12- to 17-year-olds in particular often spend several hours a day on social media platforms such as YouTube, Snapchat, TikTok or Instagram. In doing so, they look at content from people they don’t know personally, but still know a lot about. Even though the term influencer sounds like a strong influence, your child is actively choosing to follow someone and watch their videos for specific reasons. Certain influencers have varying degrees of importance or lasting interest.
Influencers report in pictures or videos about their supposed everyday life or deal with topics such as fashion, beauty or gaming. Influencers offer orientation, for example, when it comes to one’s own search for identity, but also something like friendship. One can distinguish between different types of influencers:
The simplest classification is according to the number of followers, which tells how big an influencer’s reach is. Influencers with low reach are also significant for companies to advertise with. The most common terms are as follows:
Mega-influencer, super-influencer or hero-influencer
These influencers have reach in the millions and get the most attention on social networks. They are the stars of the scene, such as Bibi or Lisa and Lena.
Star influencer or celebrity influencer
This is the name given to influencers who have become prominent as athletes, film stars, or pop stars and also have a large fan community outside of social media.
Macro-Influencer or Everyday-Influencer
They have a smaller but still large reach with about 50,000 followers. They are considered role models in their scene and often set new trends.
But micro- or nano-influencers also have a strong influence. They are experts on certain topics, e.g. bloggers or Youtubers with channels on specific topics. They are considered very credible in their field and have a loyal following. Emerging or Rising Influencers are considered the upcoming talents, with a still small reach.
Influencers can also be distinguished by the topics they cover and the way they perform:
Style Inspirers
They celebrate lifestyle in beauty, cars, fashion, food and travel. They allow the user to daydream while remaining approachable through their interaction.
Coaches
They are mentors, i.e. they take the follower by the hand, offer orientation and concrete advice. Topics can range from do-it-yourself to life hacks and life advice to any hobby or niche interest.
Experts
Although they often only serve a small niche as micro-influencers, they are a great authority in this field. They offer valuable guidance to followers on a particular topic through their great expertise.
Explainers
They are concerned with making everyday, political and scientific topics understandable and making them accessible to others. Besides, thanks to them, their followers have the opportunity to form their own opinion. They draw their credibility from their conviction.
Self-promoters and entertainers
They are funny and entertaining. Watching their videos, you can briefly escape from everyday life. With ingenuity and a lot of character, they offer good entertainment.
Missionaries
These role models represent certain ideals from everyday life, politics or lifestyle that they follow.
Ask your child about what excites and interests them about one person or another. Perhaps you too will find inspiration in an influencer!
