Eco-influencers less valued
‘‘People are getting fed up with this increased multiplication of influencers and their haul videos and the ‘consume, consume, consume’ messaging.’’
If you want to make a living on Instagram, it seems spreading an environmentally conscious message is not the way to do it. Eco-friendly influencers say they have to take ‘‘real’’ jobs to pay their bills while their counterparts promoting fast fashion and corporates milk thousands of dollars per post.
Instagram influencer Kate Hall, 23, promotes an environmentally conscious lifestyle, brands and products.
Hall’s personal Instagram account turned public after she started gaining a small following for sharing her thoughts on anticonsumerism prompted by a Netflix documentary she saw on the fast fashion industry, True Cost.
‘‘It turned into a bigger thing and now it’s part of my life,’’ Hall said.
But while some influencers promoting big brands earn as much as $2000 a post, Hall could not afford to make a living from promoting anti-consumerism.
‘‘If I wanted to make a living I wouldn’t be in ethical fashion or an eco-influencer,’’ Hall said.
‘‘Sometimes I go back and forth with a brand for months and research what factories they’re using before I work with them.
‘‘I’m not prepared to put my value and reputation on the line for money because there are people following what I’m doing.’’
As Hall could not rely on influencer marketing as a full-time gig, she had other jobs to pay the bills such as public speaking and social media consultancy for businesses.
Another influencer, Danielle France, 29, also relied on her ethical clothing business to pay the bills rather than her Instagram account promoting sustainability conscious shopping over fast fashion.
‘‘When I started out I wanted to make Instagram my full-time job, but it’s only very recently that I’ve changed my mind on that. Being on Instagram consumes you,’’ France said.
In recent months France has limited her time as an Instagram influencer to just two days a week. The other days she works on her ethical fashion business Slow Muse Store.
‘‘I no longer reach out to brands for jobs because making money off it is no longer my goal. I’d rather say no and still make a positive influence than say yes for money and be a sell out.
‘‘I understand people need to pay their bills, but influencers still have a social responsibility.’’
The Market general manager of trading Sarah Gunn said the online shopping website owned by The Warehouse regularly used influencers for marketing.
‘‘We pick influencers that suit us and rotate them. It’s about reach and how they fit with us,’’ she said.
France said influencers who were new to the business accepted just about any deal from big companies to make money and feared standing up for their personal beliefs.
‘‘You have to sell yourself and work with brands that don’t fit your personal views for the money,’’ France said.
Last year influencers and celebrities copped flak for being hosted by the government of Saudi Arabia to attend and promote its music festival MDL Beast to rehabilitate the nation’s damaged international image.
Influencers had also faced backlash for promoting laxatives
Mike Lee University of Auckland marketing lecturer
packaged as weight-loss teas.
University of Auckland marketing lecturer Mike Lee said social media users were becoming tired of influencer marketing.
‘‘When it first started it was quaint and niche, people could relate to them. But as with all things commerce, when something works, it starts to replicate and scale up,’’ he said.
‘‘People are getting fed up with this increased multiplication of influencers and their haul videos and the ‘consume, consume, consume’ messaging.’’
Hall said 2020 would be the year of influencers green-washing.
‘‘As climate change awareness increases more people are jumping on the eco-blogger bandwagon,’’ she said.
‘‘There are people who do it for the wrong reasons and give people doing it for the right reasons a bad rap.’’
Social Club co founder Georgia McGillivray said she had noticed a spike in anti-consumerism content by influencers around Black Friday and China’s Singles Day.
But not everyone walked the talk, she said.
‘‘There is also a lot of hypocrisy. Some claim to be eco-conscious and anti-consumerism but then contradict themselves by going on regular long-haul flights paid for by large companies,’’ McGillivray said.
Paymark’s spending figures showed last year’s Black Friday sales in November eclipsed Boxing Day, traditionally one of New Zealand’s busiest shopping days.
Shoppers spent about $150 million on Boxing Day and $253m on Black Friday, just a month earlier. Spending over the six weeks leading into Christmas Day was up 4.6 per cent on 2018, with
Kiwis clocking up $8.88 billion in shopping across all retailers.
The Market’s Gunn said ecoconscious products were growing in popularity.
‘‘Over Black Friday and Cyber Monday we saw more purchase for brands that had sustainable background such as Ethique, Hello Cup and beeswax wraps,’’ Gunn said.
‘‘Many of our merchants realise if they don’t head in that direction they will be left behind.’’