Are Influencers Best Placed to Offer Experiences?

There is little getting away from the fact that, in this day and age, the social media influencer is one of the most potent forces around, holding as much if not more sway over public tastes and interests as any one well known organisation or entity can.

The natural evolution from YouTube vlogging in the 2010s to bitesize videos on TikTok or Instagram in this current decade means that, for better or worse, those individuals recording 30 or 60 second videos, to a global audience of millions via the intricate algorithms of those platforms, is something that has far more power than many can comprehend.

It's also fair to say that it has evolved the relationship that these influencers have with their audience, some of whom have such loyal followers that they develop something of a parasocial relationship, whereby they feel that bit closer to the person they see on their feeds on a daily basis.

It is inevitable, therefore, that some influencers will look to extend and capitalise on this goodwill and audience loyalty in all manner of ways, whether that's through well intended but dreadful Christmas charity records about sausage rolls (LadBaby), cinching lucrative sponsorship deals (Mrs Hinch's line of cleaning products at Asda), or popping up on popular television shows such as Strictly Come Dancing (Saffron Barker).

However, of slightly more thorny territory is when influencers set out to offer something that will get their followers closer to them than ever before, in the form of an immersive experience. And that, at present, is an area which is littered with more examples of how not to do it compared to how to do it successfully.

Take James Stephen "Jimmy" Donaldson - alias MrBeast - as a current case in point. He is the third most followed influencer on TikTok, and is best known for his elaborate challenges involving food and gaming that he films and uploads regularly, some of which are tied into charitable endeavours. Last week, at the Resorts World hotel in Las Vegas, he hosted a three day event from 13th - 15th April for fans that was largely advertised as being "immersive" and "unforgettable". 

In practice however, the reality has been unforgettable, but for all the wrong reasons. For the $1000 ticket price of the event, fans attending were promised meet and greet opportunities with him, games, speciality drinks, and mystery gift bags sent to their hotel rooms, only to either receive none of the above or, in the case of the mystery gifts, a bag containing merchandise that was already widely available and a box of chocolates.

It has since been reported that the hotel has refunded disappointed fans. For those of us with long memories, both they and Donaldson are now left handling the sort of public relations nightmare that's only been bettered (or worsened, depending on your stance) by the time when the oft dubbed "Brit Crew", consisting of once popular British YouTubers such as Zoella, Marcus Butler and Alfie Deyes, hosted the HelloWorld event, a similar "immersive" experience for fans in Birmingham in 2017, which occurred at the peak of the YouTube vlogging era, that ended in a fiasco of mismanagement, long queues and disgruntled fans demanding refunds.

One common thread that runs through all of this is that these influencers, on whichever platform they choose to broadcast and share content publicly and build a following, are largely just ordinary people at the heart of it all. 

The harsh reality is that some are better equipped with dealing with the gaze of the public eye than others. With a good PR, events and management team around them, or certainly partnering with the right reputable agencies who know their onions, they would - hopefully - be guided a lot better in making decisions that are outside of their remit when they do try to give their followers opportunities to interact with them in real life.

Does it mean that those influencers with large follower bases will stop trying to go after and offer these opportunities? No. Does it mean they should exercise a little more thought and caution when trying to extend their audience relationship in this way? Absolutely. Or at the very least, watch and learn from the MrBeasts of this world.