Instagram is unique as a social media platform because it’s formatted entirely with photos and graphics. Because of this, Instagram marketing veers slightly from the traditional promotional paths that Facebook and Twitter take. A recent trend in the Instaworld is the use of celebrities (and I use that term lightly) to promote various brands and products.
You don’t need to be in movies or play professional sports to be ‘Instafamous.’ In the past few years, hundreds and even thousands of everyday people have become “famous” on Instagram and acquired huge followings. So how does one achieve stardom on Instagram? Some people earn attention for being funny, some because they’re physically attractive, and others just simply by chance. Regardless of how or why, Instagram celebrities are followed by millions of people all over the world. Naturally, marketers have begun using them as a medium for advertising and promotion.
Admittedly, I have become a sheep to the world of Instafame (no shame) and follow several people who would otherwise be Average Joes had they not gone viral on Instagram. One of my favorite personalities is Bretman Rock, a 17 year-old beauty guru from Hawaii. Several makeup and fashion companies send Bretman free product for him to use, wear, and review in his Instagram posts. Many of these companies pay him additional talent fees simply for posting a picture of him holding the product. In fact, the top Instagram users who have over 500,000 followers are being paid thousands of dollars per photo to endorse products.
It seems that paying an InstaCeleb a few grand to endorse your product may be a smarter decision than paying a household name celebrity hundreds of thousands to do the same thing. Many of these internet sensations have followings the same size or even larger than well-known pop culture icons. Of course, the decision to use Instagram personalities depends on who you’re targeting and what you’re promoting, but enlisting a micro-celebrity from social media may actually be a very cost-effective and strategic move for big-name brands. The evolution of the Instagram marketing culture seems strange and even silly, but at $3,000 per snapshot, the real question is how the heck do I get Instafamous?!