We know you’re thinking, what on earth is de-influencing? In all honesty, up until writing this blog, we were unclear too…
In short, de-influencing is the latest TikTok trend whereby instead of urging people to buy products, influencers are telling people what products didn’t work for them and offering preferred alternatives instead.
We’ve discussed sustainability from brands a lot in the past. De-influencing is acknowledging that the overconsumption of products is a real issue. It also keeps honesty and authenticity at the forefront, with influencers sharing real stories and experiences.
44% of Gen Z will make a purchase based on influencer recommendation, so de-influencing offers a way for influencers to discuss products they love and deter people from making a one-off purchase of products that didn’t work for them.
Authenticity is a big thing, as we say people buy from people, and this year we may be more likely to see influencers turning down brand deals that don’t align with them. Influencing is like a cycle, person A sees person B wearing a specific item and then buys it, person C sees person A wearing it, and buys it, and so on. The de-influencing curve may help to break this fast fashion/anti-sustainability cycle.
Although it is a step away from the ‘buy this/ buy that’ culture of influencing, de-influencing still sees influencers selling their personal brand to us and trying to build trust with audiences. This majorly blurs the line between actual recommendation and marketing content. De-influencing could be seen as an act of self-preservation, in order to differentiate from other influencers, using personality to come across as though they don’t want their viewers to waste their money.
The anti-haul culture is great, but is de-influencing truly a part of this? Of course, influencers are coming forward and saying why they dislike the products they don’t use, but they’re also telling you what they use instead, or what they prefer. In short, influencers are still doing what they always have done, influencing people’s purchase decisions, maybe even more so than before.
