Cancel Culture & Influencer Marketing: Keeping the industry on their toes

Go back around 5 years, and the term “cancel culture” didn’t really exist as it does now. That’s not to say that people weren’t being called out online, we just didn’t refer to it that way. Now, it’s hard to go a day without seeing reference to someone or something being “cancelled” on social media.

What is Cancel Culture

In case you haven’t heard of cancel culture – or you’ve heard it a lot, but don’t really get what it means – then the best way to describe it is probably as the online version of a pitchfork-wielding mob. Something’s happened that they don’t agree with and everyone needs to know and join the outrage.

It usually starts with someone doing or saying something online that’s considered inappropriate, outlandish or just plain offensive online or in a public forum. Someone on social media points it out, other people pile in, and there you have it, that person or brand is officially Cancelled. Cue the media storm. 

There’s no doubt that criticism, backlash, mob mentality and peer pressure existed way before social media did. What makes it different, and impacts the growth of cancel culture, is that your mistakes are now on an accessible public platform. There’s also the fact that it’s easier than ever to delve into the lives of others, to find out personal details and information online that can be weaponised as part of the Big Cancellation. 

Plus, nothing on the internet is ever really deleted so it’s harder for those on the receiving end to move on. Back in the day you could start out somewhere new, learn from the mistakes you’d made in the past and try to grow from them. Now, there will always be someone on hand to send you a screenshot.

It seems like as a society, we’re waiting for people to fail and when they don’t…we’re looking back through their Twitter feed to find their flaws. Let’s be honest, we all make mistakes and all of us have said something that someone else hasn’t agreed with at one point or another. 

Professor Evan Gerstmann summarised it perfectly when he said “Cancel culture is also a belief that you are no better than your worst moment no matter how young you were when you transgressed, even if it was an isolated incident.” 

So is cancel culture ok? Is it the fault of the brands, influencers and individuals who are cancelled for not being more aware of themselves? Are we a zero tolerance society when it comes to mistakes? Let’s dig a little deeper.

Cancel culture: where has it come from?

It started out as a way for people to call out brands, people and individuals that weren’t being inclusive and accessible to all to drive change. That still happens, but over time it’s evolved into something a bit more akin to “our opinion differs, therefore you are cancelled.”

The internet can be a great place. It’s full of information, opportunities and interesting stuff. It’s also provided a platform for people to share their experiences, opinions and views freely without censorship. Sounds great right? The downside is that people can express opinions and point fingers without any proof or context whatsoever. 

We’re constantly being asked to review purchases, give feedback on one another, rate a service we used or complete a survey on a location we visited. By now, the art of giving instant feedback is so ingrained into how we operate – especially online – that we maybe don’t stop to think about the impact.

Why is cancel culture bad for influencers and brands?

Influencers have made their career through building an audience who resonate with their content, personality and opinions. They’re relatable or aspirational. Without that audience, there isn’t really anyone to influence or share content with. Your entire fanbase can be slashed overnight once you’re cancelled, which can impact on your career, earnings and lifestyle.

There’s also the mental health cost of being cancelled too. Think about how much it hurts when someone says something negative to you. Now imagine that’s millions of people, and it doesn’t stop. It’s at your workplace, it’s when you’re relaxing and it’s pretty relentless. No matter how rich or popular you are, that must be hard to take. 

It’s easy to say “oh just ignore it”, but when you’re using social media platforms to earn a living – and a living that often significantly outstrips what you would earn in a job in the ‘real world’ – logging out and ignoring it isn’t really an option. Maybe you think “don’t give out your opinion if you can’t take the criticism” and maybe there’s a little truth in that too.

Being cancelled isn’t all bad news for some influencers either. There are influencers and public figures who have carved out whole careers based on being controversial enough to be cancelled. It brings them fame, opportunities and even advertising revenue. So they go for the clickbait approach that’s going to get them as much attention (and traffic) as possible so they can scoop up that low hanging fruit.

A  positive of cancel culture is that it raises awareness of issues and brings them into a wider domain. This can be really useful for open discussion and change, but it isn’t pain-free and usually comes at the expense of an individual or brand.

For brands, cancel culture hits a little different. No one wants the brand they’ve spent years building to be boycotted overnight after partnering with an influencer who then gets cancelled. Or a misguided tweet by an employee with a dark sense of humour. It can be a PR nightmare and can turn what was hoped to become a lucrative partnership into a time and money drain. 

Your brand being cancelled can significantly impact the growth, revenue and future. That’s why it’s essential to choose the right influencers to work with, do your due diligence and make sure you have contracts and expectations clear before you start your partnership with an influencer.

Moving on from being cancelled

The big question on cancel culture is this: if someone has apologised, learned from their mistake and demonstrated that, at what point are they no longer cancelled? When do we acknowledge that they’ve learned from their mistakes and are ready to move forward?

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