Impact of social media influencers on your children
Firstly, is your child on social media? If yes, then is he/she following any social media influencers? If we compare our teenage years with that of our children, we will notice that there are so many differences. The most significant difference is that social media and digital technology, to this extent, didn't exist back then. In comparison, today's teens know everything about the latest trends and other fads. It is good, but anything that exceeds its limits has its consequences.
Teenagers come to know about the latest things in tech, fashion, style, and many other areas. The chances are that their sources are social media influencers. Also, the chances are that your kids' behavior is getting influenced by the social media influencers they follow on their social media handles. So, here is what parents should know about social media influencers and their impact on children.
Who are social media influencers, and what do they do?
If we put it most simply, they influence people and influence people on social media. The influence varies from lifestyle to fashion to many other areas. Social media influencer is a relatively new term, and earlier, many of these people were bloggers.
Influencers share the accurate data that they receive among their social media audience. Now, it can have good and bad effects on your child's behavior. It largely depends on the news and the influencer. All in all, there are numerous social media platforms supporting influencers and the culture. But, the most famous platform among these is Instagram.
What kind of social media influencers do teenagers follow?
Most teens follow the influencers who can give their opinions to their needs. Or they follow the influencers who share the same interests as theirs. They want the influencers to be just like them or the ones that can make them feel more comfortable.
Teens also look out for the people next door who are similar to them when they think of following an influencer on social media. Generally, kids follow the people who share data about the unboxing of digital items, games, fashion, shoes, celebrities, lifestyle, and similar areas.
How does social media influence affect the behavior of your child?
The concept of influencing someone is relatively straightforward. Social media influence has a positive and negative part to it. Some social media influencers actually want to spread awareness with their data, while some only want to expand their reach and brand value. Irrespective of their real purpose, children find them cool, and they even find being on the platform cool.
Teens even like talking to their buddies and unknown people on social media. Coming to social media influencers, children find happiness and peace in following them. The reason behind their satisfaction is that they are able to resonate with them on a personal level. It almost feels like they are a part of their friend circle, which increases their attachment.
Most social media influencers come up with content that their audience can feel. And some people are good enough to offer a personal touch to it. It is a huge reason why you see social media influencers promoting brands and products. Brands want them to endorse their products because of the impact they have on people. Below are some areas where social media influencers can impact children, unintentionally or intentionally.
Materialism
Social media influencers post a lot about products and otherworldly things. It is very likely to tempt teens and make them feel like having the same things for themselves. In the end, it becomes a race for the highest social status, and they end up spending the hard-earned money of their parents to get those things.
Lifestyle
Social media influencers often show how they are living their lives on social media. Their lifestyles are shiny and glittery. Apart from it, specific influencers honestly work to make people aware of having a healthy way of living. It can be by working out, eating clean, and doing other things to develop them into better versions of themselves.
Thinking and motivation
Various social media influencers talk about the importance of positive thinking and motivation. They encourage other people to create a life plan, have goals, and work for it without giving up. To let people know that they come from humble beginnings, they also share their life experiences. It allows the followers to learn from them and move ahead in life. All in all, such influencers try to incubate good habits in their followers. For instance, some social media influencers spread awareness about social distancing and ask their followers to follow the norms.
Bad habits
Some influencers are all about positivity, but some aren't. Some influencers are famous for posting dangerous things and things that can incubate bad habits in teenagers. It can be driving at high speeds, smoking, drinking, and many other things.
Such influencers can have a bad impact on children. As a parent, you must ensure that your kids are away from such content. A very accurate way to make sure that your children don't contact such things is by using parental control software like Avosmart. With Avosmart, you can block websites and put limitations on apps and games. View social media activity. If you find that your children are following someone they shouldn't, you can easily block them.