The Swan Song To My Influencer Career: How Getting It Right Was Also Getting It Wrong | by Ellen “Jelly” McRae | Sep, 2023

I used to be an influencer on Instagram. I used to be; I’ve retired.

Before I continue, I politely ask you not to judge. It was a short-lived hobby that, as you’re about to learn, wasn’t a position I intended to become.

More than most, I appreciate the stigmatism surrounding the term influencer. It’s become one of the most abhorred job titles, especially when you feel like the influencer economy is destroying business or posing challenges to your marketing.

And if you’re not annoyed by influencers because of this shift in marketing, you hate them because you find them intolerable to watch, be around and support.

Trust me, I have a list of influencers I would happily tell where to go if given the chance.

I never set out to be an influencer, the stereotypical vapid and consumer-centric people we tend to hate. I didn’t take to my Instagram to promote other people’s products. It wasn’t the game’s aim when I began posting online.

But six months after I started taking my Instagram marketing seriously, I found myself with a bathroom cupboard full of skincare, make-up and haircare I didn’t necessarily want.

And if you ask my husband, I didn’t need either.

It took a moment of clarity and a stiff drink to assess what was happening. I studied my life as it was, staring at the contents of my cupboard, my Instagram account and my overflowing email with requests from brands.

I then looked at my writing to my actual career and studied my progress over the last six months. My influencer status hadn’t brought me any new readers, nor was I any closer to publishing a book, nor did people know I spent my days writing.

What had happened?

This wasn’t where I wanted to be when I started posting daily and focusing on curated content. But that’s where I was, and I was a success.

This is how I became an accidental influencer, and despite technically failing at my initial goal, what I learned (and you can steal!).