Public speaking is a bete noir for me..it’s a toss up between that and a root canal.  So I’ve politely declined a few invitations to speak at beauty conferences lately, but one topic I think is fascinating at the moment – and will ruffle more feathers – is the power of social media influencers.
This power may gradually be dwindling, however, as brands start to run smaller campaigns across wider/more “credible” platforms and people. Zoella may have a massive following, but are her followers the ones you really want, if your product is really for more mature skin/very holistic/etc.etc.etc" Various polls/predictions tell us that brands will be throwing even more money at social media influencers next year – but investing in, throwing money at, and throwing money away are three different things.
Keeping it real
The Beauty Shortlist Awards and Mama & Baby Awards
 NO ads, NO sponsors, NO voting
We all know by now that the bigger the following, the smaller the “real” engagement. Brands are gradually shying away from the “big numbers” influencers to ones with fewer, but more relevant, more interactive, followers. In other words…people that might actually BUY that new SPF/age-enhancing/multi-tasking primer, not just comment on a photo of it. This is not brand new news but there is a definite turning of the tide and it looks like it’s accelerating. With the need for authenticity and transparen...