Celebrities have been, well, celebrated for as long as human culture has existed. But as culture has moved on and developed, with that has come an evolving narrative about what a celebrity actually is, and what being one means. 

By comparison, the word “influencer” started gaining traction in late 2015, but while on the surface it means a very similar thing, this report will look at the differences and increasing homogenisation between influencers and celebrities; their intricacies and nuance. In a world where Russell Brand operates on YouTube from his house, is it still as simple as splitting these once siloed sets of celebrated people apart? 

A matter of Format Over Effect

In late 2015, Google started indexing a surge of searches for “Influencers”. What had existed and been defined for a long time as “content creation” instead started getting co-opted as “influencing”. The term itself isn't new, having long been attached to a wide range of practices that cut to the core of what influencing actually is. But the current incarnation was described in 2011 as “A new type of independent third party endorser who shape audience attitudes through blogs, tweets, and the use of other social media”. For the most part, this definition only differentiates from traditional celebrities in the second half, when it describes format over effect.

To be able to work with both celebrities and content creators effectively in branded content and influencer marketing, we first have to define what each means. To quote Scott Guthrie, “Influencers often spend years honing their online persona, developing subject matter expertise and, fundamentally, nurturing an online community.” On the other side, celebrities build their fame away from social media through prowess in a number of fields, and turn to social media to further their personal and professional promotion. 

This takes us to the aim of this report, in which we will look at celebrities using social video to not just enhance their profile as a celebrity, but to connect with their audience on a deeper level, in formats most commonly utilised by influencers.

What is happening right now?

As with any meta-trend, the changes come as a result of patterned shifts in behaviour, not a via a sudden influx of interest. What started as a small group of counter-culture celebrities using the internet to release uncensored podcasts (see Kevin Smith, Ricky Gervais, and Joe Rogan for examples), has turned into a consistent long-term strategy to reposition Hollywood and the TV elite as regular people.

DRIVETRIBE, a media organization owned and fronted by the former Top Gear trio, are now using YouTube as a major outlet for content. Nothing too surprising when you consider the views that their old clips accrue. What's interesting about their approach, and perhaps the impetus for this report, is that they are using formats heavily associated with content creators. The result is a 3.2m view video in which James May flippantly lambasts Jeffree Star's pink Rolls Royce. Ten times their average views.

No conversation about UK TV's most successful celebrities-come-influencers would be complete without consideration of Gordon Ramsay, who is fast approaching his 400 millionth like on TikTok. Gen-Z, TikTok's most frequent audience, is unlikely to follow a Boomer unless the content truly resonates. Ramsay's strategy perfectly encapsulates the meme humour that has existed for as long as the internet, and as such it thrives on the platform. Check out this video of him 'pranking' a Costa employee. Small touches like using recognisable content creator audio 'Monkeys Spinning Monkeys' by Kevin MacLeod make this feel like a post from a traditional, platform-native TikTok influencer. 

It doesn't stop there though. Ramsey’s YouTube presence is just as tongue-in-cheek, with his Kitchen Nightmares channel racking up 2.8m views on 'staff we stan' and 3.1m views for 'when the food is not bussin :('. It's not clear if all of his channels are run by the same creative team or parachuted out to various rights holders, but what is clear is that Ramsay has adopted the formats of internet culture and has been rewarded with adoration among an audience far his junior.

A shift in consumption

To see celebrities dominating the conversation on social is nothing new, though we are still in the honeymoon period for these new, self-shot peeks behind the heavily manufactured image. Reality shows have been with us long enough to demystify the traditional image of the celebrity, but with formats like Keeping Up With The Kardashians pushing fifteen years old, a shakeup in how B-listers engage with their audience is likely overdue.

For celebrities looking to find the next way to connect with a new audience, the data is pretty clear. The below graph comes from a 2020 study that asked 'Is YouTube-style AVoD an alternative to TV'. The results are cut straight across generational lines. Celebrities already know that YouTube is one of the most important platforms to have a presence on. Most of them simply don't know how to engage with younger people on it.  

We all get served enough adverts on social, and audiences are savvy enough to separate the straightforward sales pushes from the ‘real’ content. As such, the days of celebrities releasing a cold trailer to their platform as content are numbered. It won't be enough to simply exist on the platform that has the audience. Celebrities will have to understand the same jokes and community activities, and keep on top of the same trends in order to stay relevant. They’ll need to be part of the audience rather than just a broadcaster using an online platform. They’ll need to understand how Twitch Raids work, and live knee-deep in memes.

What happens next?

In the next five years, we will see an ever-increasing number of celebrities co-opting content creator formats. This will invariably lead to a blurring of the lines between what it really means to be an influencer or a celebrity. There is no doubt that those who use YouTube and Twitch in a format that is native and authentic to the platforms will continue to see gargantuan growth. And this growth, of course, will continue to be propped up by mainstream exposure. Internet-savvy celebrities who truly understand how Twitch works will find themselves in the sweet-spot.

Eventually, however, the 10 - 19 demographic above will hit their twenties, thirties and forties. By this point, there is a fair expectation that native content creators on YouTube and Twitch may have audiences that eclipse that of your run-of-the-mill traditional celebs. Content creator formats will become mainstream consumption. That is not to say that tier lists, reactions, and top tens will dominate pop culture as a whole, but whatever comes next might. If Mr Beast can open a chain of restaurants and Hasan Piker can get unedited time with two members of Congress, it begs the question of just what we will see from prominent creators in fifteen years’ time.

Hashtag United owner Spencer FC perhaps best embodies this notion, taking the leap from YouTube footballer to forming a real-life football team that has steadily climbed the ranks for a few seasons. Undoubtedly the steady budget supplied by a highly coveted merch line and support from many prominent creators has helped propel them up the initial leagues, but this level of innovation and barrier-pushing will be what continues to blur lines.

How does this line-blurring affect influencer marketing? 

If we are to anticipate an eventual homogenisation of traditional media and the influencer space, we also need to carefully consider what the new world will look like. As it stands, celebrities manage to dominate YouTube and Twitch when they do engage, but increasingly TV is relying on influencers to lend credibility to their product. Chunkz is a staple of mainstream football media, Vikkstar has appeared on prime time Saturday night television, and KSI regularly appears on chat shows promoting his rap and boxing career.

In the midterm, this means that cross-over and branded content opportunities for content creators will expand to include everything from music festivals to collaborations with long-established fashion houses. The insight is that content creators are no longer passive observers of mainstream culture, but directly affect and will soon transition to be the primary drivers of it.

The inverse of this is in building a clearer picture of when it is appropriate to work with people from traditional media in branded content, who at this time cost a lot more money and provide less tangible value. There is in-built positive sentiment and recognition-appeal to be leveraged, but where content creators have a much greater advantage over celebrities is that their platforms have real community. Content creators are not reliant on the fandom of say, Game of Thrones or Star Wars, to build their audience. 

Moving forward, we need to consider how both camps can boost and support each other, as celebrities and content creators increasingly operate in the same space. Rio Ferdinand's campaign with Peperami feels out of place on YouTube, but 'Rio Ferdinand reacts to Sunday league horror tackles' is a clickable video. Pair him up with Chris MD, and you could have a social video that might very well set you up for success with both sides of the audience. 

Increasingly, the best and most insightful kind of influencer marketing agency will be the one with the versatility to truly understand the strengths and weaknesses of both factions operating on social video platforms. Those who do not necessarily come down in favour of one or the other, but who can meaningfully advise on case-by-case, contextual suitability, and strategise the most powerful ways to optimise messaging using the right combinations of both.