Influencer Guide:
Between Authenticity and Staging

Influencers have a specific talent or knowledge that they use to inspire their followers. They act as opinion leaders in a world that offers a flood of possibilities. They are experts in their field and know all about the latest news and trends. Their followers benefit from this, as well as from the stories that influencers tell.

Influencers are often only known to a small group of people, as their topics are usually very focused. But there are exceptions: PewDePie (gaming), BibisBeautyPalace (fashion, cosmetics) and JulienBam (music videos, comedy) are influencers who have also gained popularity outside their community.

As content creators, influencers plan every photo, story and clip very carefully. What looks spontaneous is rarely so. Posts are calculated down to the last detail, and reality is often stylised.

To impress or convince, influencers tell many stories. And as is common in rhetorically powerful narratives, posts often exaggerate, dramatise or freely invent one or two image or text elements. Influencers don't just stick to storytelling, they often slip into a role themselves.

The importance of authenticity to followers is demonstrated by the fact that influencers repeatedly emphasise that their appearance must be genuine. Over time, followers develop a keen sense of this and quickly recognise when an action by their online stars no longer fits the image. Disappointed, they turn away and unfollow their heroes – and influencers want to prevent this at all costs.

As an influencer, technical know-how in using smartphones, cameras and social media is required. Content creators take on many different tasks in both conception and production and know how social media works. Influencers have their finger on the pulse and know what's popular.

They are creative minds and good storytellers. Influencers feel an inner urge to constantly develop themselves further. They like to be the centre of attention, shine in front of the camera and have a feel for the community. A basic understanding of marketing is certainly not a bad thing.

When young people express a desire to become influencers, alarm bells ring for many adults. Despite the age of digital media and artificial intelligence, the majority of young people still aspire to traditional professions such as doctor, teacher or manager. This gives pause for thought, as the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) expects around 39 per cent of these traditional professions to disappear over the next 10 to 15 years as a result of automation.

If young people want to become influencers, it is important to take their wishes seriously and convey to them that basic training makes perfect sense if they want to pursue their dream job as an influencer. This will enable them to improve the quality of their content in the long term.

An apprenticeship as a mediamatician can also be a good foundation for future influencers. Media specialists are creative designers of information who develop skills in implementation and design, marketing, communication, multimedia, IT and project work. Two Swiss influencers, Brian Havarie (@briann) and Sami Loft (@samiloft), have completed such an apprenticeship as media specialists at Swisscom.

Tip for parents

Is your child's fandom for an influencer reaching worrying proportions? Have you noticed your child expressing new and abstruse views? Talk to them about it. Ask where these views come from and question the source together:

• Is the sender competent?
• Do they back up their claims?
• Are there other sources and other views on the subject?
  

It is important to have an ongoing debate about values within the family. Analyse the origin of new attitudes and values in the family. Question them critically. Then decide together: can the new values be integrated into the family or are there alternative value models?