Avoiding the gifts-in-kind trap new research shows how influencers can make their work pay [Video]

Social media influencers who want to be paid money for their content must focus on three key areas to lift themselves out of the gifts-in-kind trap and to protect their pursuit of meaningful work, new research from the University of Bath shows.

Influencers – who create online content to engage users in commercial transactions in a global industry estimated to be worth $13.5 billion – often struggle to circumvent expectations that they will perform free labour for brands or settle for gifts-in-kind instead of hard cash, researchers said.

“There are around 50 million influencers worldwide and it is increasingly seen as a desirable career for people who want to pursue meaningful work and also get paid for what they love doing. But the stark reality is most are doing it for free, or settling for gifts-in-kind or promises of future exposure. The big challenge is making it viable,” said Dr Sarah Glozer of the University of Bath School of Management.

The study – ‘#Knowyourworth: …