Hi members!
The rise of sites such as YouTube, Twitter, and Instagram has created a new player in the world of commerce and advertising: the influencer.
It’s easy to think of the mega-influencers who are now (or already were) celebrities, but the fastest-growing part of this new marketplace are actually the microinfluencers—ordinary people who have amassed followings in the tens of thousands, not the millions. It’s these people whom brands are seeking out to promote their products and services, and it has created an entire new economy in the process.
This week, Quartz reporter Hanna Kozlowska dives deep into the world of influencers, looking at its past, present, and future. Today brings her state of play memo; throughout the week, you’ll learn how influencers get their start, the middlemen and women who connect them to brands, the conferences that bring influencers and brands together, and some of the darker secrets of the trade.
In other news, Yanis Varoufakis, the former Greek finance chief who is invariably described as “pugnacious,” is poised to win a seat at the European Parliament. Our reporter Max de Haldevang was able to sit down with Varoufakis before election day, and you can read more about his plans for Europe (to say nothing of his opinions of his opponents) here. Over at Private Key, reporter Matt De Silva is looking at how bargain hunters can—if they’re both smart and careful—find bargain opportunities out there and use those price differences to their advantage.
Also, check out our new Q&A videos! This week, we’re talking with Esther Wojcicki, an educator and mother of two Silicon Valley CEOs and one college professor. In our first episode, Wojcicki details the dangers of what she calls “snowplow parenting” and what parents should do 20% of the time.
We’ll have more headed your way this week, including a conference call about influencers this Friday and a special Wednesday conference call at 830am PT/1130am ET/430pm GMT with Quartz reporter Michael Coren on Tesla’s recent wild ride on the stock exchange. Join us at this link for a 30-minute members-only videoconference call. If you’re on your phone, you can call into the conference at either +1 408 740 7256 in the US or +44 203 608 5256 in the UK; for both numbers, the meeting code is 722 994 440.
Here’s to a rewarding week,
Sam Grobart
membership editor