The “It Girl.” It seems that every generation has one. But nowadays, why is this idea of the perfection every woman strives for so prevalent? Today’s fashion, beauty, and even hobbies are all aspects that are impacted by this “It Girl” illusion. With media exposure, influencers or “content creators” serve as more than just the inspiration or vision behind the facade. In fact, it means more to be internet famous than ever before.
Precedently there has always been some sort of glamorous influence on society. This mainly stems from Hollywood. For the most part, these worlds were separated. You would see a hairstyle in a magazine or movie, A new silhouette on a runway, and the trend would build from there. Nowadays, these worlds have collided into a digital era where anyone can become famous, creating a new way for people to connect with current trends that cycle rapidly.
I suppose this is also the reason “It Girls” are the new sensation. The fact is, they are not famous in the typical sense. So to an audience, they are more relatable. In fact, influencer culture has gone as far as adopting an older sister role. When an influencer such as Alix Earle posts a get ready with me, it is as if she were talking with the viewer over the phone. With charismatic anecdotes and her seemingly perfected makeup routine, this effortless connection exists between her and her now 4.4 million TikTok followers. But the trick is that one person can’t have a personal connection with 4.4 million people. But that relationship with her following is also what makes brands fall at her feet.
Influencer culture has brands in such a tight grasp that they will go to seemingly any lengths to get an influencer to promote products to their targeted audiences. After all, with the seal of approval from today’s most popular girls, they can either make or break a product. These same brands put on these extravagant, heavily fabricated brand trips that are perfectly detailed down to who is in attendance. Although these paid-in-full trips appear to be a group of girls having the time of their lives together, this is the crucial part of a bigger marketing scheme. For many people, this would be a once-in-a-lifetime vacation. Consequently, making people fall in love with the idea of the trip and the brand by association. Of course, everyone invited is having a blast, considering that, more often than not, they are getting paid to attend and post simply. But the question still stands. When is enough, enough?
These excessive trips are just one way to keep brands from appearing insignificant. In the age of social media and microtrends, it’s no wonder why brands are choosing to take such drastic measures. Similarly, the topmost successful brands are just like you and me. They want to hold significance and be seen. Brands want to make a lasting impression comparable to everyone else in the world. Looking closer, you can see that the ostentatious and overdone influencer invitations and “PR” are simply a plea to stay relevant, further falling for the “It Girl” illusion.
Words by Sonya Moore.
Graphic by Josh Jamili.