Social Media Influencers

Summary

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Down to Business English: "Social Media Influencers"

Hosts: Skip Montreux, Samantha Vega
Date: December 30, 2020

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Episode Overview

This episode delves into the business of social media influencers—defining who they are, how they operate, and their growing role in modern marketing. Skip and Samantha analyze the distinct influencer categories, the effectiveness of influencer marketing, the evolution of the industry, and the rise of virtual influencers, all while introducing key business English vocabulary.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Opening & Context: The Social Dilemma (00:14–01:54)

• Skip opens by referencing the Netflix documentary The Social Dilemma, sparking a brief discussion about social media's unintended consequences.

• Samantha shares how the documentary motivated some people to delete their social accounts.

• Takeaway: Social media platforms, originally intended to foster engagement, have led to behavioral changes and division, not just commercialism.

  “The original intent of social media engineers was to create engagement between users. But the algorithms and tools they came up with to do that, to create that engagement, have a more insidious side effect.” - Skip (01:33)

What is a Social Media Influencer? (02:22–04:35)

• Definition: Someone with a substantial online following who influences purchasing decisions through their content.

• Samantha’s Example: Cites Kylie Jenner, noting her billionaire status thanks to her online presence.

• Categories:

  • Mega Influencer: Became famous offline, possess over 1 million followers.

  “Someone who typically became famous offline...and they have more than a million followers on at least one social media platform.” – Skip (03:32)

Influencer Marketing vs. Traditional Advertising (04:35–05:14)

• Targeted Engagement: Influencer marketing is more personal and specific; influencers start with their audience’s trust.

• Brand Value: The opt-in nature of following an influencer boosts credibility and marketing efficiency.

  “There is much more engagement between the influencer and their audience through a social media channel such as Instagram...The fact that the audience has chosen to follow the influencer is very powerful.” – Skip (04:08)

Influencer Tiers & Earnings (05:14–07:40)

• Influencer Tiers:

  • Macro Influencers: 40,000–1M followers
  • Micro Influencers: 1,000–40,000 followers
  • Nano Influencers: Under 1,000 followers

• Earning Power:

  • Mega influencers, like Kylie Jenner, can earn $1M+ per post.
  • Micro-influencers with 50–100k followers can command $3,000 per post (07:17)
  • Even nano-influencers can earn $30,000–$60,000/year.

  “According to mike.com...the average influencer can take home anywhere from 30,000 to US$100,000 a year.” – Skip (06:56)

Evolution of the Industy: Past vs. Present (07:40–10:23)

• Early Days: Samantha recalls small-time influencers trading posts for perks; this was often seen as "fishy" and untrackable.

• Modern Day: The industry is now professionalized, with agencies connecting influencers and brands.

  “A plethora of agencies who focus on pairing influencers with brands have sprung up.” – Skip (09:40)

Influence Marketing’s Growth & Impact (08:36–09:08)

• Rapid Expansion: 72% of major brands are allocating larger budgets to influencer marketing.

• Projection: By 2022, $15 billion could be spent on influencer marketing.

  “Experts are forecasting that in 2022, as much as $15 billion may be spent on Influence marketing.” – Skip (08:54)

The Rise of Virtual Influencers (10:41–11:52)

• Emergence: Now over 100 virtual influencers, 80 created in the past year.

• Top Example: Lil Miquela, a CGI character, landed deals with Prada and Calvin Klein, earning $12 million in a year.

  “The most successful VI is a quote unquote model by the name of Lil Miquela...has made $12 million this year alone.” – Skip (11:01)

  “Do these virtual influencers pose a real threat to human influencers?” – Samantha (11:41)
  “Not at this moment, but the possibility is there.” – Skip (11:48)

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• On the Authority of Influencers:

  "An influencer's value is tied very closely to their authority with their followers." – Skip (05:57)

• On Changing Advertising:

  "This entire industry is a good example of how technology has yet once again disrupted a traditional business model." – Samantha (10:23)

• On Salaries and Suspicion:

  “...a couple of weeks ago I received an email from a headhunter...paid over 15 million yen a year....But something about that email seemed fishy.” – Skip (17:45)

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Vocabulary Highlights (12:35–18:39)

To go off the rails (12:35)

• Meaning: To act strangely or differently than expected.
• Example: Social media’s development described as “off the rails” (12:54).

Takeaway (13:38)

• Meaning: A key lesson or main point learned from experience.
• Example: “The big takeaway was learning how social media is changing the way we all behave.” – Skip (14:01)

Insidious (14:38)

• Meaning: Seemingly harmless but actually dangerous.
• Example: “These side effects might not look or feel dangerous, but in fact they are very dangerous.” – Skip (15:12)

Run of the mill (15:41)

• Meaning: Ordinary, nothing special.
• Example: Influencer marketing as “run of the mill commercial endorsement.” – Samantha (16:10)

Fishy (16:44)

• Meaning: Suspicious, untrustworthy.
• Example: Doubting the legitimacy of influencer-brand deals in early social media days.

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Segment Timestamps

• 00:14 – 01:54: The Social Dilemma and social media’s unintended consequences
• 02:22 – 04:35: Defining social media influencers and mega-influencers
• 05:14 – 07:40: Tiered structure of influencers and their earnings
• 07:57 – 10:23: Industry evolution & agencies’ rise
• 10:41 – 11:52: Virtual influencers’ emergence and future impact
• 12:35 – 18:39: Business English vocabulary explained with examples

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Conclusion

Skip and Samantha present a compelling, accessible overview of the influencer marketing ecosystem—its structure, financial potential, and technological evolution. They reinforce the importance of credibility and trust in influencer marketing, while sharing practical English vocabulary in business settings. The conversation closes with light-hearted holiday well-wishes and a reminder to stay sharp in the world of business English.

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Transcript

[A]

From Tokyo, Japan and Auckland, New Zealand, this is down to business English with your hosts, Git Montreux and Samantha Vega.

[B]

I have to tell you, Samantha, I watched the most disturbing documentary on Netflix last night.

[C]

And what would that have been, Skip?

[B]

It's called the Social Dilemma and it was all about how social media has gone completely off the rails and instead of bringing people together, is now actually causing huge divisions in society.

[C]

Yes, I've seen it. I thought it was great. I also know someone that watched it and then erased their social media accounts because of what they learned from the documentary.

[B]

Well, I won't be going that far, but I can understand why your friend was motivated to do that.

[C]

So what was your biggest takeaway from the Social Dilemma? Was it that instead of being a force of good, social media is primarily designed just to sell us stuff?

[B]

Well, being an advertising platform in itself is not such a bad thing. No. For me, the big takeaway was that social media, whether it be Facebook, Instagram, YouTube or Twitter, they have all unintentionally come up with a way to change the way people behave.

[C]

Unintentionally?

[B]

Yes, unintentionally.

[C]

And how did they end up doing that?

[B]

Well, I think you need to watch the Social Dilemma again then, for all the details.

[C]

Well, it was a while ago. Now that I watched it, watched it, I'll have to give it another go.

[B]

All I will say is that the original intent of social media engineers was to create engagement between users. But the algorithms and tools they came up with to do that, to create that engagement, have a more insidious side effect.

[C]

Is this our topic today, Skip the social harms of social media?

[B]

Not directly. However, our topic today is closely tied to social media. Today we are going to be talking about the online influencer market, as in

[C]

people who promote products through their Instagram and Facebook feeds.

[B]

That is certainly one part of the online influencer story. Yes.

[C]

I've always wondered how effective online influencers actually are in terms of marketing, and

[B]

that is one of the questions we will be answering.

[C]

Sounds good.

[B]

OK, so let's do it. Let's get D2B down to business with social media influencers. Who are they? Are they an effective way for brands to market their products? And what does the future hold for the social media influencing industry? Let's start by clearly defining what a social media influencer is.

[C]

I would think the term is fairly obvious.

[B]

You would think so, but there are several definitions, as a matter of fact.

[C]

Is that right? My image of a social media influencer is someone who has A large following on a social media platform and has the ability to influence the purchasing decisions of those followers.

[B]

Someone like the reality TV star, Kylie Jenner.

[C]

Yes. Kylie Jenner would be a case study on social media influencing. Didn't she recently become a billionaire through her online marketing presence?

[B]

Very true. And she is the perfect example of what is referred to as a mega influencer.

[C]

A mega influencer?

[B]

Someone who typically became famous offline, you know, a TV personality or a well known musician or even a professional athlete. And they have more than a million followers on at least one social media platform.

[C]

And with such a large following, they are able to make more major endorsement deals with big name brands to write posts about their products.

[B]

Precisely.

[C]

It sounds pretty much like your run of the mill commercial endorsement arrangement. But instead of taking out ads in a magazine or on tv, brands are paying for ads on social media.

[B]

What you need to keep in mind though is that unlike TV or print ads, there is much more engagement between the influencer and their audience through a social media channel such as Instagram. The fact that the audience has chosen to follow the influencer is very powerful. Whether it is Kylie Jenner, LeBron James or Justin Bieber, right from the get go, they have more authority in the followers eyes.

[C]

I suppose so. A TV ad costs millions of dollars to produce and is seen by everyone whether they are interested in the product or not.

[B]

And a social media post on the other hand, would be much more targeted. The audience has already expressed an interest in what the influencer has to say by following them in the first place. And that ability to target a specific demographic and the more personal relationship between influencer and follower, that is what is so appealing to brands.

[C]

Sure, it would definitely lead to a better ROI or return on investment for the advertiser.

[B]

And getting a stronger ROI on their advertising dollar is very important. So important in fact that it has created space for other types of online influencers, not just the mega influencers.

[C]

Oh, and who would they be?

[B]

There are three distinct categories. There are the macro influencers who have between 40,000 and a million followers. And then there are micro influencers with 1,000 to 40,000 followers. And finally the nano influencers who have less than 1,000 followers.

[C]

I take it that the more followers an influencer has, the more they can charge advertisers to post about their product.

[B]

Yes and no. It isn't so clear cut. An influencer's value is tied very closely to their authority with their followers.

[C]

What do you mean by authority?

[B]

Basically, authority refers to the degree of followers accept or Trust the influencer's endorsement.

[C]

In other words, how much does a follower believe what the influencer says about a product? Are they sincerely recommending it because it's a good product or service, or are they simply promoting it because they're being paid?

[B]

Exactly. Now, of course, mega influencers garner extremely high fees for their posts. Kylie Jenner, for example, has charged over a million dollars for one single post.

[C]

A million dollars for a single post? Wow, that is mega. And how many followers does she have on Instagram?

[B]

Something like 170 million followers.

[C]

Well, we all can't be like Kylie Jenner. What about the other type of influencers? How much are they making?

[B]

According to mike.com, an online media publisher who claims to have the largest reach and engagement with Millennials and Gen Z, the average influencer can take home anywhere from 30,000 to US$100,000 a year.

[C]

That's very lucrative. How many followers are required to make that much money?

[B]

Well, in another report from Vox Media, an audience of 50 to 100,000 followers can be worth as much as US$3,000 per post.

[C]

They would be the micro influencers you mentioned.

[B]

Yes, and even nano influencers who may only have a few thousand followers, they can make anywhere from 30 to 60 thousand dollars per year, according to this report.

[C]

Wouldn't we be nano influencers then? I mean, our down to business English Facebook page has a couple of thousand followers.

[B]

Actually, we are still under 2000 followers, but we're getting close. So I guess we are on the verge of becoming nano influencers.

[C]

It really seems to me that this industry has evolved over the past few years. Back in the day when I lived in Koh Samui, Thailand, I remember hearing stories about so called influencers contacting vacation resorts, wanting to trade a week of free accommodation in exchange for exposure to their followers.

[B]

I'm guessing that the resorts didn't take those requests very seriously.

[C]

Not at all. First, they didn't really need the advertising, and second, how in the world would they ever know if they are getting any tangible result?

[B]

Both very legitimate concerns.

[C]

But that was back in the early days of social media. Influence marketing has clearly evolved over the years.

[B]

It sure has. According to that Same Vox report, 72% of major brands are dedicating a major part of their advertising budget for influence marketing next year.

[C]

That's significant. Traditional media like TV and print can't be happy about that.

[B]

It certainly is stiff competition and will only get worse. Experts are forecasting that in 2022, as much as $15 billion may be spent on Influence marketing.

[C]

So how does one go about getting a piece of that pie? Sounds like being an influencer is something almost anyone can do. You just need a strong social media presence and an audience.

[B]

Well, it turns out that it is a lot harder than it looks.

[C]

I was being sarcastic. In my experience, marketing is a very hard job and takes a lot of effort and. But assuming a person does the work, puts out a lot of content on Instagram or YouTube, builds a large audience, how exactly do they go about landing a marketing deal with an advertiser?

[B]

Very simple. An agent. The industry has evolved to the point that a plethora of agencies who focus on pairing influencers with brands have sprung up.

[C]

So gone are the days of influencers contacting a brand directly and trying to bargain some kind of exchange with the brand. A week's stay at a five star hotel in exchange for a half a dozen exposure posts, for example.

[B]

I could hear your air quotes there.

[C]

I'm sorry, but that business model always sounded a little fishy to me.

[B]

I concur. I don't know for sure if that approach has completely been replaced by influencer agencies, but I don't think it's very commonplace anymore. I'm not even sure if it was very successful in the first place.

[C]

This entire industry is a good example of how technology has yet once again disrupted a traditional business model. Advertising and marketing used to be a very exclusive and a very difficult business to be successful in, but social media has really lowered the barrier to entry.

[B]

That's true, but tech is also coming up with even more competition for influencers.

[C]

Oh, and how is it doing that?

[B]

There has been a recent trend toward developing and using virtual influencers.

[C]

Virtual influencers? As in an influencer who is not even real?

[B]

That's right.

[C]

You've got to be kidding me.

[B]

I'm afraid not. Currently There are over 100 virtual influencers in business right now. 80 of them introduced in the past year alone. The most successful VI is a quote unquote model by the name of Lil Mikila.

[C]

Now look who's using air quotes.

[B]

Well, she isn't a real model, but regardless, this virtual influencer has made deals with the likes of Prada and Calvin Klein and has made $12 million this year alone.

[C]

What in the world would a virtual model spend $12 million on?

[B]

Very funny. I'm sure the team behind creating her are happy with her earnings.

[C]

I'm sure they are. In any case, do these virtual influencers pose a real threat to human influencers?

[B]

Not at this moment, but the possibility is there.

[C]

Well, before we are all replaced by AI and virtual bots, I think it's time for us to get D2V down to vocabulary.

[A]

Down to Business English audio scripts are a great learning tool. Be sure to visit the D2B website and download your free audio script of today's podcast, DowntoBusinessEnglish.com that's www.downtobusinessenglish.com.

[B]

First on the down to vocabulary list today is the idiom to go off the rails. When you say something has gone off the rails, you are communicating that that that thing has started to act very

[C]

strangely or behaving in a way that is completely different than it is supposed to be.

[B]

In the story, I commented that the Netflix documentary the Social Dilemma was all about how social media has gone completely off the rails. In other words, I was saying that this program showed how social media is behaving very differently than it was originally intended to.

[C]

I think it is safe to say that history will look back on the year 2020 and say that everything went off the rails.

[B]

Yes, a global pandemic economy shutting down, people working from their homes for weeks on end. Yes, 2020 went very much off the rails. I hope 2021 gets us back on track.

[C]

Don't we all? Next up today is the compound noun a takeaway. This noun has several different meanings, but we used it to mean the knowledge you take away from an experience. I asked Skip what his takeaway was from the Social dilemma. In other words, I was asking what the most important point he learned from watching it was.

[B]

And I said the big takeaway was learning how social media is changing the way we all behave.

[C]

Can you give us another example using takeaway?

[B]

Sure. Joe Biden was recently elected to be the next President of the United States. But to me, the takeaway from November's election is that American society is very divided. Even though Biden won by a large margin, there were still many, many, many people who voted for Trump.

[C]

74 million for Trump and 80 million for Biden. Yes, that is a divided nation.

[B]

It certainly is. And I am not sure we have heard the last of Donald J. Trump. I have a feeling that something insidious is going to happen.

[C]

Insidious? Isn't that the next D2V word? It is very sneaky of you. So what can you tell us about insidious?

[B]

When you use the adjective insidious to describe something, you are saying that even though it may look harmless, in fact it is very dangerous.

[C]

In the story, Skip talked about the insidious side effects of social media engagement tools.

[B]

So what I was saying was these side effects might not look or feel dangerous, but in fact they are very dangerous.

[C]

Do you know what I consider insidious from an economic point of view?

[B]

No. What would that be, Samantha?

[C]

Sales tax. If there is one thing that can prevent an economy from growing, it is raising the sales tax. When that happens, consumers simply stop buying things.

[B]

Oh, for sure. I completely agree with that. Do you have our next word?

[C]

I certainly do. Next is another idiom, run of the mill. This idiom describes something as being very regular or average in quality.

[B]

If I'm not mistaken. I think. I think this idiom originally comes from the textile industry. When fabric came straight from the factory or milled, it wasn't inspected for quality. That type of fabric was called run of the mill quality.

[C]

That sounds believable. In the story, I commented that the business model behind social media influencers sounded like a run of the mill commercial endorsement deal. In other words, it didn't sound much different than an average or typical TV or radio advertisement deal.

[B]

Run of the mill is often used in a negative statement to communicate that something is very special.

[C]

Can you give an example of that?

[B]

Down to business. English is not your run of the mill language learning podcast.

[C]

Nice example. What is our next word?

[B]

Our next and final word today is another idiom to be fishy. When you say something is fishy, you are saying you are suspicious of it. In the story, Samantha commented that for an independent social media influencer to offer a five star resort hotel exposure to their audience in exchange for free accommodation, well, it sounded fishy.

[C]

In other words, it seemed a bit suspicious to me and I doubted if the exchange was worth it. I still think it is fishy. Skip, do you have any idea where this idiom came from?

[B]

You know, I didn't look into it, but another version of the idiom is to smell fishy. Since the smell of fish is quite strange, I assumed that if you said something smells fishy idiomatically, it would mean that you thought it was strange or that you doubted it in some way.

[C]

Can you give an example using it in a business context?

[B]

I can. In fact, a couple of weeks ago I received an email from a headhunter. The email explained that they wanted to introduce me to a job that paid over 15 million yen a year.

[C]

That's like $140,000 a year. A very healthy six figure salary.

[B]

Yes, very, very healthy. But something about that email seemed fishy. There were several spelling mistakes and they wanted me to provide them with a lot of personal information. Also, the email address was some strange domain name.

[C]

That does sound fishy. So did you respond?

[B]

It was tempting but in the end I thought better of was just too suspicious. I sure would be interested in a six figure salary though.

[A]

Would you like to support down to Business English? Be sure to visit the D2B page in iTunes and subscribe to this show. While you are there, why don't you leave a rating and a comment. This will help D2B reach more people wanting to improve their business English skills. Down to Business English Business News to improve your business English.

[B]

Thank you Samantha. Once again. It was a pleasure talking with you.

[C]

Thank you Skip. I enjoyed it. It was a very interesting topic.

[B]

Definitely not run of the mill, that's for sure.

[C]

And Skip, as I probably won't be speaking with you over the next week or so, you make sure that you have yourself a merry little Christmas and Happy New Year.

[B]

Oh that's right. Thank you Samantha. You have yourself some happy holidays too. Try not to go off the rails drinking too much eggnog.

[C]

Who me? No way. That stuff is insidious. Tastes great, but way too many calories. I'm going to stick to red wine.

[B]

Sounds like a plan. And Happy Holidays. And a big thank you to everyone out there listening to down to Business English. Thank you for your support and we will see you in the New Year.

[C]

Happy holidays everyone. See you in 2021. Take care.

[A]

Have a comment or question about today's show? Don't be shy. Visit the D2B website or the Facebook page and post any comments or questions there. Skip, Des or Samantha will be sure to leave a reply. Want to get even more down to Business English? Sign up for the D2B Newsletter and receive updates on some of the stories covered on down to business English. That's www.downtobusinessenglish.com down to business English Business News to improve your business English, It.