‘INFLUENCER, OR IS THAT INFLUENZA?’
Journo, racer, trackday addict and life-time dirt-rider Alastair Fagan says that the epidemic of social media influencers isn’t healthy
If you haven’t checked out the story behind Tiffany, from Nashville, the Instagram influencer accused of staging a crash – you need to. The original thread’s been deleted. It broke the internet last week and is a fascinatingly scary insight into social media and the desperate measures some might take to get followers. And also how – thankfully – aware and cynical we’re becoming about fakery. But it also got me thinking; is anyone else bewildered by the onslaught of Instagram moto girls? This phenomenon is nothing new, but they’re becoming more involved within the industry; no real shock given the progressive nature of social media. I also appreciate why manufacturers use bloggers. It’s easy, guaranteed positivity.
So, my point?
It’s no coincidence that there aren’t many male equivalents and I’m absolutely certain that it’s something to do with breasts, or lack of. But, whatever you do, don’t tell a certain faction that’s the case. Don’t get me wrong, I love breasts and there’s nothing wrong with Instagram moto girls. What makes me chuckle is that a few think their biking opinions and reviews outweigh their appeal to pervy men, casually taking a selfie with a bike in the background, pretending that bike is the subject matter and not the deluge of cleavage or war paint on show. After a chat with an employee at a manufacturer recently, he mentioned that he’d received a call from a female social media ‘expert’ asking for a ride on a five-figure superbike, and that she ‘specialised in focusing on the negatives of a bike.’ That call didn’t last long... I’ve been on launches where some ‘moto girls’ have been invited and it’s just embarrassing. Some argue that it’s ‘real world’ and certain bikes are better evaluated by less experienced pilots, which – understandable to a degree, but not when they can’t tell the front wheel from the back.
I’m not sure what’s funnier; the ‘reviewer’ thinking their opinion matters or the pervy blokes valuing said opinions. Not to mention the ethics of ‘person gets free thing to promote to followers, and surprisingly says it’s really good’. The most baffling part is why anyone would take buying advice from a faker with zero analytical talent? Or maybe the simple truth is that the ‘followers’ and ‘likes’ have no value whatsoever.