Allen Ginsberg once asked, “When can I go into the supermarket and buy what I need with my good looks?”

I’m asking, “How many ‘influencers’ are going into the supermarket and buying what they need with their reach? And how many brand marketers are going into the supermarket and buying what they need on the backs on the ‘influencers’?

I’m obsessed with the idea that people are being paid for their personalities. I went to a Social Media Club event in San Francisco thrown by Chris Heuer and I’ve decided the idea is both great and daunting.


ON PERSONALITY & INFLUENCE
It’s great because there is hope for people who produce good art, film, literature and music. If what you make is who you are, and what you make is awesome, then it stands to reason that people should think you’re awesome. This whole “cult of personalities” is nothing new to the art and academic world, but the difference is that today there’s a resurgence in buyers with a webby social twist on the whole thing. For example, tech writer and SMCSFO panelist Harry McCracken gets a call from a brand and decides whether to align with them or not. From there, his fans decide whether to follow Harry’s recommendations or go their own route. And then everyone writes about their decision publicly and there’s this big ole discussion. It’s pretty darn spectacular.

Then there’s the tough part. It’s daunting that once it’s being paid for, your personality is being rated. How many people would click a like button on you? How many recommendation engines mulch you into their algorithm and serve you up with other respectables? Would your personality be more persuasive over the weekend?

I’m so fascinated in seeing how all these new influencer campaigns go down and I want to know how they’ll be tweaked and how personalities of late adopters could be tweaked in the process. To read more about the Social Media Club SF’s discussion on trends, or to see the discussion on the discussion on trends, visit the group page.