The inflation crunch is real, and it has manifested itself in TikTok’s latest trend—deinfluencing. Creators list the trendy but expensive products that consumers don’t need, offering up inexpensive dupes or reminders that they already have twenty lip glosses. I’m looking at you Fenty Gloss Bomb in Hot Chocolit. Some “deinfluencers” also explain that TikTok’s cult beauty products didn’t work for them. Ultimately, deinfluencing videos follow a wide format from product reviews to dupe suggestions, but they all seek to calm the hype surrounding TikTok’s most popular products.
Deinfluencing TikToks show a clear shift in consumer behavior from the #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt era of the last few years that was fueled by pandemic stimulus. Now as a recession looms on the horizon, consumers are practicing more careful spending habits through #deinfluencing. The trend is also in line with Gen Z’s value of sustainability because it counteracts the overconsumption popularized by TikTok. GRWMs and restock TikToks earn millions of views, but often include upwards of 20 products that are all conveniently linked in an account’s amazon storefront. In response, some deinfluencers are tallying up the cost of these videos to remind viewers that it isn’t normal to spend $500 on accessories for a new car. The public is realizing that they can’t afford to live like influencers, who get the majority of their products for free and make money from promoting them.
The trend became popular after TikTik creator Estef posted a video to her account @sadgirlswag. In it she tells her audience, “I am here to deinfluence you. Do not get the Ugg Minis. Do not get the Dyson Airwrap. Do not get the Charlotte Tilbury wand. Do not get the Stanley Cup. Do not get Colleen Hoover books. Do not get the Airpods Pro Max. If you do any of those things a bomb is gonna explode.” Estef’s video calls attention to the cult of TikTok products and tries to get her audience to snap out of their influencer-motivated buying haze.
One of deinfluencing’s most popular creators is @michelleskidelsky, who is already on part eleven of her deinfluencing series. In this TikTok with 2 million views, Michelle reminds her viewers that expensive products like the hottest pair of Uggs are “going to be out of fashion just as quickly as they came into fashion.” People are obsessed with the series, commenting “Regular people unite” and “Make more of these I love you.”
Who is to say whether deinfluencing is here to stay or whether it will be out of style next year —like the Ugg minis. That being said, if the economic outlook continues to be negative consumers will continue to find the overconsumption promoted on TikTok unrelatable and inaccessible. As a consumer of TikTok trends (I am wearing the Airpods Max right now lol), I find the deinfluencing content refreshing in a sea of constant advertising. Dyson Airwrap I don’t need you!
The inflation crunch is real, and it has manifested itself in TikTok’s latest trend—deinfluencing. Creators list the trendy but expensive products that consumers don’t need, offering up inexpensive dupes or reminders that they already have twenty lip glosses. I’m looking at you Fenty Gloss Bomb in Hot Chocolit. Some “deinfluencers” also explain that TikTok’s cult beauty products didn’t work for them. Ultimately, deinfluencing videos follow a wide format from product reviews to dupe suggestions, but they all seek to calm the hype surrounding TikTok’s most popular products.
Deinfluencing TikToks show a clear shift in consumer behavior from the #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt era of the last few years that was fueled by pandemic stimulus. Now as a recession looms on the horizon, consumers are practicing more careful spending habits through #deinfluencing. The trend is also in line with Gen Z’s value of sustainability because it counteracts the overconsumption popularized by TikTok. GRWMs and restock TikToks earn millions of views, but often include upwards of 20 products that are all conveniently linked in an account’s amazon storefront. In response, some deinfluencers are tallying up the cost of these videos to remind viewers that it isn’t normal to spend $500 on accessories for a new car. The public is realizing that they can’t afford to live like influencers, who get the majority of their products for free and make money from promoting them.
The trend became popular after TikTik creator Estef posted a video to her account @sadgirlswag. In it she tells her audience, “I am here to deinfluence you. Do not get the Ugg Minis. Do not get the Dyson Airwrap. Do not get the Charlotte Tilbury wand. Do not get the Stanley Cup. Do not get Colleen Hoover books. Do not get the Airpods Pro Max. If you do any of those things a bomb is gonna explode.” Estef’s video calls attention to the cult of TikTok products and tries to get her audience to snap out of their influencer-motivated buying haze.
One of deinfluencing’s most popular creators is @michelleskidelsky, who is already on part eleven of her deinfluencing series. In this TikTok with 2 million views, Michelle reminds her viewers that expensive products like the hottest pair of Uggs are “going to be out of fashion just as quickly as they came into fashion.” People are obsessed with the series, commenting “Regular people unite” and “Make more of these I love you.”
Who is to say whether deinfluencing is here to stay or whether it will be out of style next year —like the Ugg minis. That being said, if the economic outlook continues to be negative consumers will continue to find the overconsumption promoted on TikTok unrelatable and inaccessible. As a consumer of TikTok trends (I am wearing the Airpods Max right now lol), I find the deinfluencing content refreshing in a sea of constant advertising. Dyson Airwrap I don’t need you!
