Influencers show us their fridge, crack jokes or dispense life lessons. Why do we put ourselves through it? And why are more and more brands turning to ordinary people as ambassadors?
Dear Flavio Leu, I admit it: I find you entertaining. And yes, sometimes you even make clever points. But honestly — why do we watch videos of people we don’t even know? And let them steal time we could spend on something other than being glued to a screen, scrolling?
I always said influencers didn’t interest me. Then came my Flavio Leu moment. There I am, lying comfortably in bed next to my wife, and I wake up because she can hardly stop laughing — and I hear this guy talking and talking. “Do you know Flavio Leu?” she says, and just like that I was one of his roughly 80,000 followers.
People like you and me
It all sounds banal, but that’s how life plays out. And that brings us to the answer to the question of why we let complete strangers cast a spell on us. Quite simply: influencers are people like you and me. They speak our language, they care about the same things — and they take us along into their living rooms, their bathrooms, onto the sports field or even on a date.
“Birds of a feather flock together,” as the saying goes — and it is even scientifically proven. Studies show that we judge people we trust to be more similar to ourselves. And perceived similarity in turn breeds trust. Researchers see the reason in evolution: perceived similarity is said to have once secured survival.
Influencers — a money machine?
Being an influencer is hard work. Content creators scout locations, build props and edit videos — for hours, until every detail is right. With 5,000 followers you can expect roughly 350 to 800 francs per post. In Switzerland, though, only around ten per cent of influencers live off advertising fees alone.
5 successful Swiss influencers
Flavio Leu — @flavioleu — 25, comedian and everyday philosopher. From Instagram newcomer to the live stage.
Noemi Nikita — @noeminikita — 22, beauty queen from Bern, Switzerland’s most successful TikToker.
Oluyomi Scherrer — @thispronto — 25, trained chef from Bern, creative cooking tutorials.
Nadja Chahdi — @dailydoseofnadja — 24, draws attention to poverty in Switzerland.
Nico Capone — @nicocapone.comedy — 33, internationally famous for his sketches.
This article appeared in MEN issue 2/24 (November 2024).
