Digital Policy Salon: Embracing the Digital-Led Recovery

I think a common misconception about social media influencing is that you can sustain yourself on just brand collaborations alone. It’s one of the reasons why I wanted to do this interview, to get a more realistic understanding of what influencers do and how they make their income, so it’s interesting that you say that.

It is interesting because with a lot of companies, it’s the Wild West. There just isn’t a lot of consistency between what different companies offer in terms of compensation. That’s not to say you can’t make very good money from collaborations, because you can. It’s just that it’s likely not reliable or sustainable. I wouldn’t feel comfortable solely relying on that. I’ve also had some great long-term partnerships myself, but it’s difficult to find ones that make you feel good about promoting them, and I think you should always try to operate with integrity. If it doesn’t make you feel good, don’t do it.

Based on your conversations with other influencers from Canada and around the world, how is the Canadian influencer experience different from other countries and how is it the same?

I think we’re a little more isolated here, and you definitely feel that, especially if you’re interested in doing collaborations with other influencers or working with brands where in-person contact is required or is beneficial. There just isn’t as much happening here in Canada with larger companies, and so when working with larger companies for in-person content, I’ve flown out to New York or LA or different places to do so. To be fair though, I definitely don’t capitalize on all the local relationships that I could be forming, and I’m sure many Canadian influencers do a much better job of making social connections here. I would love to work with and promote more quality Canadian companies if the opportunity presented itself.

Does being a social media influencer from Canada mean your audience demographic is mostly Canadian, or have you found success with other audiences around the world?

By a vast majority, my audience is mostly based in the US. My second biggest country is the UK and my third is Canada. Canada is a smaller market, so I don’t think it’s unusual that when you start gaining a larger audience it becomes more US-based.

“Preparing a digital-ready workforce will be paramount in fast-tracking Canada’s economic recovery post COVID-19. A heightened focus on the six innovation areas will enable expanded employment prospects for Canadians in a greener-based economy.” - Namir Anani, ICTC President and CEO