TikTok stars travel and party during the pandemic, the industry's top managers and agents, and Biden's influencer campaign strategy
Hi, this is Amanda Perelli and welcome back to Influencer Dashboard, our weekly rundown of what's new in the influencer and creator economy.
There's no doubt that the influencer industry has grown tremendously in recent years. And throughout our reporting, my colleague Dan Whateley and I have watched as hundreds of talent managers and agents have raced to sign the next generation of stars.
But we noticed there wasn't a central place to view the top power players in the business and see who they represent. So after months of conversations with industry insiders, and from our own reporting, we decided to build one.
This exclusive interactive database gives an inside look at who is working with the top creators on
These 95 managers and agents help many
For many creators, the need for representation has grown in importance as the pandemic and economic downturn have required them to rethink how they earn a living.
View the exclusive interactive database, here.
You can read most of the articles here by subscribing to Business Insider. And if this is your first time reading Influencer Dashboard, subscribe to the newsletter here.
A TikTok influencer group launched a new 'travel house' in spite of the pandemic
While many states in the US are still in the early stages of lifting shelter-in-place policies, some popular social-media influencers seem ready to return to normal.
This month, Clubhouse, an influencer group based in California, traveled to Tulum, Mexico, to launch a new "roaming travel house" called Clubhouse Explore, and documented themselves hanging out on the beach, playing pool volleyball, and attending a dance club — no masks in sight.
The group uploaded a three-part series to their YouTube channel Clubhouse BH (77,000 subscribers).
"We're mobbing to a rager to end the night right now, a little quarantine rager with the team, we'll get some shots there," house member Isaak Presley says in one of the YouTube videos.
The group received a few disapproving comments on social
"Have y'all forgot about the pandemic?" one commenter wrote underneath a Clubhouse Instagram post.
But Chris Young, the president of the holding company that owns the Clubhouse brand, told Business Insider that he doesn't consider the trip a mistake.
The group also plans to launch an influencer content house in Bali soon. Read more here.
An Instagram influencer's guide to negotiating a brand sponsorship
Austen Tosone is a beauty and style influencer who has 11,000 followers on Instagram and runs the blog Keep Calm and Chiffon.
Influencers like Tosone rely on brand sponsorships to earn income and creators often negotiate with the brand directly. There are strategies influencers use to get the most out of a deal, and Tosone broke down her tips for negotiating a sponsorship.
Take on some gifted projects at first, like a free product in exchange for promotion, but not too many. As a general rule, about 95% of the collaborations she does are paid projects.
Figure out what the brand is looking for. Is it brand awareness or sales?
Look for key terms like "usage" or "image rights" to understand how the brand plans to use your content and set your rate accordingly.
"I don't recommend agreeing to giving a brand rights to use your image or likeness for more than a year," Tosone said. "I will never sign a contract if it is in perpetuity. Even if it's your favorite brand you just never know."
Read more on how to negotiate an Instagram influencer sponsorship here.
Inside Biden's Instagram influencer campaign strategy
Former VP Joe Biden is working with social-media influencers on his presidential campaign and his strategy is the opposite of Bloomberg's meme-buying spree.
Dan spoke to Village Marketing, the agency behind Biden's Instagram influencer campaign strategy.
The Biden campaign worked with the agency recently to coordinate a #BidenTownHall campaign with six Instagram influencers. Village founder Vickie Segar said the campaign was looking to get in front of young voters during the pandemic.
The creators hosted Instagram livestreams with Biden and posted short videos on their accounts. None of them were compensated to post the content, Segar said.
"None of these influencers are paid, and many will tell you this is not even an endorsement," Segar said. "That's what I think is so authentic and awesome about this campaign and this approach. We picked people who have the right voice or the right audience to have a topical conversation."
Read more about the strategy, here.
What else happened on BI this week:
How much money Twitch streamers make from subscriptions: Twitch streamers can generate tens of thousands of dollars a month from fans who decide to subscribe to their channels. Dan looked at how much subscription revenue some of the app's popular creators make each month.
How to get a job interview at TikTok: Dan spoke to Kate Barney, a TikTok hiring exec, to learn more about how to get noticed by TikTok recruiters and land an interview at the company.
4 steps for navigating tax season as an influencer: I spoke to creators on YouTube and Instagram who shared their strategies for staying organized for tax season.
Industry updates:
The
entertainment company Fullscreen and the media platform TheFutureParty are hosting a virtual event on Black creators, brands, and systemic racism on June 29.Select Management Group recently signed more than a dozen new creators including YouTubers Aaron Burriss (1.46 million subscribers), Heyitsfeiii (1.59 million), and Jelian Mercado (1.08 million), and also hired Brittany Gilpin and promoted Lori Puzon as talent managers. The new signs will be managed across the desks of Lori Puzon, Charley Button, Mike Jezusko, Fred Johnson, Amy Neben, Lisa Filipelli, and Caroline Nardilla.
Naomi Lennon (Lennon Management) signed TikTok stars Our Fire (5.8 million followers), Nathan Piland (3.8 million), Alan Chikin-Chow (1.9 million), and Romain Bernus (1.7 million).
TalentX hired Amber Howard as the head of talent at its joint venture TalentX Gaming. Howard was previously a talent agent at A3 Artists Agency.
This week from Insider's digital culture team:
An Instagram page is showing pay inequality: Lindsay Dodgson spoke to Adesuwa Ajayi who set up the "Influencer Pay Gap" Instagram account, which shows the pay gap between Black and white influencers.
TikTok star Bryce Hall addresses drug charges: Hanna Lustig wrote that in an essay for People, Hall issued a statement on the incident and how it's forced him to change in the month since.
Influencers rethink posting about politics: Rachel Greenspan and Kat Tenbarge wrote that the Black Lives Matter protests have flipped the script for influencers who are now participating in the political conversation more than ever.
Frog memes are in an internet golden age: Palmer Haasch wrote about how the animals once grouped with an online "hate symbol" turned wholesome.
Here's what else we're reading:
MrBeast is launching an app and giving away $25,000: Julia Alexander from The Verge wrote that Jimmy Donaldson (MrBeast) has partnered with internet collective MSCHF for "Finger on the App," a one-time multiplayer game. The last person to take their finger off their phone screen wins up to $25,000.
Women in gaming speak out about sexism and harassment: Taylor Lorenz and Kellen Browning from The New York Times wrote about the more than 70 allegations that surfaced on Twitter recently and why some say it's the beginning of real change in the industry.
Instagram expands shopping features: Sarah Perez from TechCrunch wrote that the platform is expanding access to Instagram Shopping to more businesses, including creators who want to sell their own merchandise.
Thanks for reading! Send me your tips, comments, or questions: aperelli@businessinsider.com.
