You know what it’s like to have free time and check social media. You encounter a free moment or two and pull out your phone to check your favored social media website. You are wowed by those lifestyle influencers who post some of the most attractive pictures of their houses or the most fashionable styles of clothing.
It’s quick and easy to buy from your online dispatch using your credit card.
But what are these lifestyle influencers doing to your wallet? Could lifestyle influencers on Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, or other platforms be making you broke?
What is a lifestyle influencer?
By definition, a lifestyle influencer posts items for sale to their social media followers in an effort to encourage them to purchase the items. They may post videos in which they unpack new products in front of the camera for their fans to unbox.
Lifestyle influencers are always around us. Maybe you are familiar with at least one influencer whose primary focus in publishing a YouTube channel, Instagram account, or blog is to get people to buy products.
Luxury influencers and lifestyle influencers typically earn kickbacks from companies for endorsing their products.
Companies can save lots of money by giving away free products, services, or benefits for influencers instead of paying them for a conventional advertising and marketing campaign.
Lifestyle influencers are not unscrupulous people. They may endorse products and ideas that they genuinely believe in (for example, monetary influencers). Don’t assume that your favorite social media personalities are washed up. They are likely to add a great deal of insight and inspiration.
Remember that the person you’re following may have financial incentives for producing the videos they post. That doesn’t necessarily mean their views are invalid. You should pay close attention as you enjoy your new jewelry or convertibles, as they may affect your status as a medical beneficiary.
How lifestyle influencers might be making you broke
You can probably see how individuals go bankrupt by following too many lifestyle influencers. The more expensive the items or products they’re posting on social media platforms, the more likely they are to get paid kickbacks from the firm.
This is how influencers make money. When you buy something from a luxury influencer, they in turn get some benefit.
While some Instagram influencers seem to be totally genuine and trustworthy, it’s crucial to recognize that they’re only showing their ideal selves. They’re not being completely honest. Modifiers usually only reward the best: the most beautiful home, the finest car, the most peaceful vacation, or a particular designer bag.
Think of how social media influencers might lead you to overspend and even go bankrupt.
1. Lifestyle influencers can breed discontentment
Most social media posts from a lifestyle influencer can make you feel like you are not satisfied with your life. Why is that? Because when you are dissatisfied, you seek something to fill that void and make you happier.
If they can get you to buy something for hundreds or thousands of dollars, they add to your paycheck or host of freebies that month.
When you see that person’s bright face, you think it’s due to a new skincare product they recently reviewed.
Whatever posts an influencer makes available for reference, it can be manipulated strategically to make the audience feel compelled to spend their own money to fix it.
The importance of gratitude cannot be overstated, regardless of how much you are rewarded by luxury influencers. You can ignore their advice and remember that you already possess all that you desire.
The next time you are scrolling Instagram and feel the urge to purchase a new luxury item, consider just how lucky you are to have what may be the best things in life.
Building gratitude is similar to building muscle strength: it’s best if you work out that muscle every day. Author James Clear says that gratitude may be a habit (he has an idea to be thankful every night at dinner).
Use this habit every day. If you are an early riser, you can list three items before breakfast or wait listing until bedtime. Perhaps you use your social media accounts for good and post your gratitude list there!
Think about the individuals in your life, whether they’re family, friends, or coworkers. Giving to charity can make you happier and avoid you from making unnecessary purchases.
This may be a daily or weekly habit, but you decide to do it that way, letting those you love know you are thankful feels wonderful. Whether big or small the gesture or gift, people enjoy being thanked.
2. Lifestyle influencers may convince you that you need the thing they’re promoting
some thing luxury influencers are really adept at is making their social media followers believe the goods they share are “must-have” items. A dangerous habit is to believe that you absolutely need the merchandise appearing on your feed.
The fact is that you probably never gave that object one thought until you saw that influencer post about it! These tricks will be useful next time you think, “I need that,” when contemplating your Instagram page.
Whether it’s a designer handbag, organic protein powder, or top-of-the-line baby gear, you might want to purchase the product being advertised. But don’t buy something you don’t need just because it’s advertised.
Save it for another day if you are just shopping for a luxurious item and not that important.
If you have determined that this product is a necessity, the next step is to run a catalog of what you already own.
This goes back to the tradition of appreciation. When we appreciate what we have now, not just material possessions but also our health, relationships, and purpose, it’s easier to find alternatives to online shopping based on influencer suggestions.
This is a key tip to keep in mind: influencers who are paid to promote their opinions on expensive merchandise should not invalidate their comments.
However, think twice before forking over the cash to purchase new things. They may have tried a new product just to earn thousands in influencer marketing in exchange for promoting it on their platform.
3. You may feel you are missing out
FOMO, or fear of missing out, drives a lot of our decisionmaking. This is often true with lifestyle influencers. You might believe you must have the new object or your life will be incomplete. This is not true.
You really won’t be missing out by purchasing something that you don’t really need.
Following lifestyle influencers on social media may make you feel as though you’re close friends with them. However, most of the time, they are just someone whose photos and videos you see. If your friends don’t care whether you purchase that nice new car, you will lose out nothing.
Think about which luxury influencers have lead you to fear FOMO the most. Which products (shoes, jewelry, vehicles, travel experiences) are of most interest to you? You are more likely to be wasted by unfollowing, so you should avoid this temptation entirely.
You could start a complete social media detox for a short period to improve your health.
Instead of succumbing to FOMO, plan ahead and start saving for the things you want. It isn’t wrong to spend money on luxuries that are not necessities, even if you aren’t a frugal sort. But you have to stick to your budget. So make a plan and implement it.
4. You may think you’ll change if you get this one thing
Influencers may try to make you believe that improving your life is simpler than it is by using this course or product. It’s a type of marketing that makes you think that you need something. Whatever is wrong with your life, buying https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Y, or https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Z can fix it!
Whatever clothing you wear or car you drive, or whatever food you eat, you’re still you. Your essential self doesn’t change by buying the latest must-have item.
Even well intended purchases (such as buying a treadmill for exercise) can be dangerous if you don’t have a plan for actually using them.
Rather than buying goods seen on an Instagram ad, consider what you want to buy before buying. Don’t buy items because someone is selling them as a friend. Think about your goals and devise strategic plans to achieve them.
If you want true change in some part of your life and fitness, spirituality, relationships, intellectual clarity, or career, there are always low-cost methods to get there.
5. Lifestyle influencers can waste your time
Just as crucial as it is to keep an eye on your bank balance and net worth, it is important to monitor your time.
Even if you don’t end up racking up huge credit card bills from social media influencers, you’re still giving them part of your life with every minute you spend online.
If it’s unclear to you how much time you spend on lifestyle influencers, you may want to track your time for a few days. There are several free apps that let you track your social media usage.
You can create a simple spreadsheet and record how many times you check social media each day.
Spend your free time like your money and set a spending limit on social media and life influencers. The more you spend on the platforms, the less you will spend overall.
You may be surprised when you see just how many hours per week or day you devote to browsing influencer platforms. You can change things up by taking up a new leisure activity.
Enjoy free concerts and recreational activities in the park, take leisurely strolls, work on an old piano, learn a foreign language with Duolingo. There are plenty of fun opportunities to learn!
I wouldn’t recommend wasting every minute of your spare time on working. We all need some downtime. But for some, starting a side hustle is a better use of your time than browsing social media. Instead of wasting money on luxurious influencers, you can make more cash with your skills!
General guidelines to avoid lifestyle influencers making you broke
Influencers promoting lifestyle habits aren’t evil, but you do not have to follow them. You can avoid overspending when you see their posts about new products or fashion trends.
1. Make it harder to overspend
Even if you continue following your favorite lifestyle influencers, you can set some boundaries for yourself that could create friction when you encounter the “buy” button.
By deleting your credit card information from Amazon and other shopping websites, you eliminate the hassle involved in purchasing nonessential items. This forces you to make thoughtful purchases.
You will need to go out of your way to find your wallet and enter specific information every time you make a purchase.
Many financial experts recommend waiting before making large purchases. Whether it’s 72 hours or longer, it can be advisable to make a purchase before buying something major. I don’t know about you, but my desire to make a purchase is highest when I first see it in the store or online.
After a couple of days, my desire for shopping has significantly decreased, and I often don’t desire it anymore. Try a self-imposed waiting period; it could greatly reduce your impulse buying!
If you believe that a waiting period isn’t enough, and you still can’t afford all the shopping prompted by advertisers, unsubscribe. Remove the temptation to shop. Unless you see the product or store ad, you’ll usually not buy anything.
Also unsubscribe from individual store emails since you can end up with a dozen or more stores marketing to you (with your permission).
2. Get good at budgeting
You can do your part to help save cash by practicing budgeting. Everyone is capable of developing and adhering to a budget if they try. This can help you withstand pressure from social media influencers.
A budget or spending plan is where you identify all of your expenditures and earnings to make sure nothing’s left over. You want your income to exceed your expenses.
Regardless of whether you use a spreadsheet, a budgeting app, or pencil-and-paper, add up everything you need to spend money on and every thing you earn money.
By budgeting regularly, you can determine whether you have room for fun purchases of items your favorite lifestyle influencers use. Then you can spend up to (up to a dollar amount) guilt-free!
Evaluate different approaches and find the budgeting style that suits you best. You could prefer the 50/30/20 rule that dedicates 50% of your income to necessities, 30% to desires (non-necessities), and 20% toward debt repayment and savings.
Envelopes or cash are a popular way of budgeting because individuals discover that using an all-cash budget allows them to spend less money. Zero-based budgeting is another simple way to keep tabs on your income and expenditures. Test different approaches to determine which one is the easiest for you to follow.
3. Get clear on your financial goals
Why do we all need to avoid overspending? Overspending means spending more money that we have.
Cut back on unnecessary expenses to save a little money. It may be easier to avoid luxury purchases if you have something else in mind.
There are plenty of financial goal examples you could consider, such as saving up to buy a home, paying for schooling, or setting aside money for retirement.
Your goals may be different than those above. Whatever your goals are, remember that they’re important when you’re considering lifestyle influencers who tempt you to purchase luxuries. It’s fine to splurge on occasion or budget certain “fun” purchases into your life, but be reasonable with yourself at all times.
Avoid lifestyle influencers that are making you broke
Followers of lifestyle bloggers can be entertaining to follow and give you ideas and inspiration. Perhaps you will suddenly find an idea that spurs you to start your own business or find a new skill.
Be wary of who you follow on any social media network, as they could lead to you being dissatisfied and wasting money that you don’t have. Don’t let any lifestyle influencers dictate or manage your finances–your job is to keep yourself happy!
