In our world, there are various careers to do in many ways. If we talk about entertainment industry, the actor/ actress or director will be mentioned firstly. However, in the present online platforms are very important and famous among society. No matter what they do they will post on the social media as eating, travelling, or activities. When some famous people or the actor/actress post some text, picture, or video on social media, people will pay attention with them and do the same thing like them. Nevertheless, the audience interest in famous people almost equal the famous actor/actress because they can influence human and helping the online marketing. So, we can call famous people on social media that “Influencer”.
The definition of influencer is a person who influences, inspires, or persuades other people on social media platform. There are many types of influencers as beauty, fashion, traveling, eating or experts of game, music, and film (also include celebrities). Most platform that influencer and audiences using are Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter. Each influencer also has a unique concept. The more people pay attention to influencer, the more influencer will have the number of followers. Then, their budget will be increase. In the marketing, the brand will bring influencer to communicate with buyers, and making target audience interest and influencer can also build credibility for the brand. Gen Z believes in influencer on social more than advertisement because they receive information from following their influencer and perhaps because they easy to access more. Then, these are part of famous influencers around the world.
1.Leonie Hanne
She is German who love fashion. Her lifestyle is about travelling, but every time she goes travel, she will be full of beautiful dress or accessories. She creates great contents on Instagram and can matching perfect outfits. Many luxury and famous brands need to work with Leonie. Her Instagram is @leoniehanne (4.2m followers)
2. Mr.Beats or Jimmy Donaldson
He is American influencer and Youtuber. His contents are about adventure and funny activities or do a good thing for the society. He can get hundreds of millions of dollars from his audience and viewers on YouTube. His Instagram is @mrbeast (17.8m followers)
3. Zia
She is Korean girl and used to go on the variety show in Korea which is Single’s Inferno. She is very popular among teenagers because her lifestyle in the show and Instagram is very luxury, pretty behavior and including her perfect face and body. However, there is some drama about her that she uses copy brand-named, making she delete all photo on Instagram, but still can watch her in Netflix. Her elegant image has made luxury brands as Chanel, Dior, or Prada support her lifestyle. Her Instagram is @dear.zia (3.5m followers)
4. Gamgy
She is Thai woman that begin from being Youtuber and then become influencer. Moreover, after she is famous influencer in Thailand, she builds a company about cosmetics, and she get excellent feedback from her followers because her products are good and she creates interesting content that support her brand. Her lifestyle is like most Thai woman, this is reason why she is famous. Her Instagram is @gamkotcha (531k followers)
Difference between influencer and traditional advertisement (or using brand ambassador to speak out) are influencer always can respond, consult, or talk with their follower or audience as they are friends. Moreover, influencer has a creative mind set to create content which link with the brand and their followers. So, it’s like a connecting each other between the brand and buyers through influencer.
In the present, our world has an evolution that develop an innovation for convenience of people and creates new thing. In 2016, there are some companies need to create a model for storytelling of the world and that company is “Brud Marketing Agency”. They create the first virtual influencer in the world by CGI computer graphic. The first virtual influencer is a woman, her name is “Miquela”. She is American-Brazilian, and she has Instagram which name is @lilquela to post her lifestyle and her followers are 3.1m followers. There are a lot of famous brands that hired her or need to be her sponsor such as Supreme, Prada, Samsung, etc. Besides she is an influencer in fashion way, also empower in political as Black Lives Matter. Moreover, she also promotes organization for society such as Innocence Project, Downtown Women’s center, and Youth Justice.
However, creator’s team of Miquela has a story of her life that including drama to makes it real as human. Her drama is about there is another account that name is @bermudaisbae, who is Bermuda Triangle and is virtual influencer like Miquela, she hacks Miquela’s Instagram and then threaten that if Miquela do not tell the truth with people, she will not give her Instagram back. However, Bermuda return Miquela’s Instagram later. After this drama end, people receive their emotional like they are real human, it makes followers feel they are not CG.
Moreover, there are various virtual influencer that impact on the social.
1.Lu Do Magalu
She is Brazilian. She is created by Magazine Luiza company (the biggest retail company in Brazil) for promoting and making benefits for the company. She creates content that review products and video clip that share many tricks of software in the company. Her Instagram is @magazineluiza and she has 5.8m followers which is the most followers.
2. Knox frost
He lives in Atlanta, Georgia. He is a spokesperson of World Health Organization for donating about COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund. Moreover, famous agencies news such as CNN, Business Insider, and Forbes interest him because of his repute. His Instagram is @knoxfrost and he has 669k followers.
3. Imma
She is the first Asian influencer in 2018 from Japan. She is a Japanese girl, has pink short hair with bangs, and interest in the culture of Japanese film and art. There are many brands support her such as Dior, Ikea, and KATE TOKYO. Her Instagram is @imma.gram and now she has 356k followers.
4. Shudu
She is British, developed in 2017 by photographer from England. She has a unique skin as black skin and her look like a model lead her to collaborate with lots of famous brand as VOGUE, Christian Louboutin, and BALMAIN. Her Instagram is @shudu.gram and she has 223k followers.
5. Ailynn
She is Thai virtual influencer, developed by SIA Bangkok. She represents Thai modern teenager, and she is extrovert that brings her to do whatever she want or never do before. Moreover, she also is Brand Ambassador of AIS, and she has known many Thai celebrities. Her Instagram is @ai_ailynn and has 11.9k followers.
All virtual influencers have the famous brand support and people interest them as they are real influencer. They can help their company to get great income and build a reputation for the company. However, there is some controversy about they will snatch the jobs from real influencer or not because of everything that virtual influencers do is the same as real influencers do. Moreover, potential of virtual influencer is created equal with real influencer, and it is look like the brands also pay attention in virtual influencer.
Nowadays, most people communicate in social media platform, it is cause of Virtual Influencer has an important role in promoting product or content because everything is easy to do on computer. Virtual Influencer can be presenter, review product, working with celebrities, or being a model.
Where is Virtual influencer better than Real Influencer?
- Having many workers to manage about content, lifestyle, or fashion stylist. It can reduce working time and cost. However, real influencer may do it by yourself, there is no team to help.
- He/She will not have bad background information because the brand absolutely creates a good thing.
- Can do a work all time, not sick or pain and include not late.
- Can create your own personalization, behavior, or lifestyle that you want.
- There is no complication in emotional and mind set as human, it helps them to ignore bullying on social media and do not do bad behavior that affect the brand which work together.
- Making human feel strange and new on social media.
- Supporting business to be modern more.
- Making people realize about beauty standard.
However, Virtual Influencer do not famous equal Real Influencer and some consumers do not know about Virtual Influencer. Some people have an opinion that why they must follow computer graphic that is not real human, if they cannot meet someone who they like lifestyle in real life, what are they going to follow for? Moreover, there is some restriction on product review in the skincare and makeup categories. Nevertheless, Real Influencer can do this and make credibility or persuade more because they are real. People will believe in Real Influencer more than Virtual Influencer because all people have complicated in emotion and can meet in real life. Although Virtual Influencer has many advantages, being the choices that safety for the brand, and importance for social marketing in the future, still cannot replace celebrities or Real Influencer absolutely