Overconsumption on Social Media: Have You Been Influenced?

Do you have free will over the things you purchase? Or did TikTok make you buy it? Following the increase of short-form influencers, such as creators of “get ready with me” videos and specific “reset” videos, overconsumption has skyrocketed. Boastful videos carefully show new, aesthetically-pleasing products in an attempt to fog over the eyes of the casual viewer, convincing them that they need to buy what is shown in the videos.

One facet of the constant commercialization on social media is beauty and “get ready with me” videos. These types of videos involve showing off different products, picking clothes out of extensive closets, and giving viewers an unrealistic portrayal of the daily life of those content creators. These videos often include product advertisements, and on occasion, the advertisements might not be ethically disclosed.

Another branch of the videos based on overconsumption are home and lifestyle videos. Popularized on short-form content apps such as TikTok and Instagram, “reset” videos involve the creators cleaning and reorganizing their homes using aesthetically-pleasing products. They sell an uncluttered, curated lifestyle with quick and simple fixes to any problem in their home. Influencers also sell the products they use, usually linking to their Amazon Storefront to generate easy access to the lifestyle they are advertising.

This issue seems like a surface-level problem to many. People justify buying unnecessary products because they bring happiness to their lives, but situational awareness has to kick in at some point. Because of human activity, climate change is on a constant upswing. Our oceans are polluted, and our ozone layer has a hole, but is that really an issue if lifestyle influencers get to advertise their butterfly-shaped ice mold? Most people do not care if the things that they buy are contributing to global warming because, as long as they can sip their “water of the day” through the straw of one of the many Stanley cups they own, they do not see anything about their lifestyle as a problem.

Still, not all social media-driven commerce should stop. Many smaller businesses use their platforms as a leaping-off point to help drive their ideas into the hands of customers. Product sustainability is on the rise, which could make a difference in reducing the effects of climate change brought about by consumerism. Even so, the purchasing of useless, redundant, and particularly non-local products, will still have a thoroughly-negative impact on the environment.

Consumers crave authenticity, and creators claim to supply it. Are the constant product advertisements made by these influencers really selling an attainable standard of living? No miracle products can magically create an ultra-curated life. The “perfect life” only exists in 60-second-long TikTok videos, made by someone with a tripod and a high-quality camera. Not a single makeup product, kitchenware item, cute storage hack, or sippable cup will aid in escaping the consumer's flawed life in the pursuit of an idealized one. No matter what the algorithm or your favorite creator may say, no product is worth jeopardizing our future.