You can tell we are bombarded by financial advice on social media these days. Open your Reddit, and you will be satiated with numberless money advice. Not to mention, the so-called tricks and shortcuts that by no means work in real life. The same is true with all other social media platforms. Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn users spread out their money tips and financial advice. More often than not, these ‘tricks’ or advice are far away from practical life.
Like it or not, the social media influencers, that you follow on these platforms, change your lifestyle one way or the other. Be it for good or bad, the content of these influencers leaves their marks on you as a follower. Nonetheless, it is a worthwhile idea if the advice or ‘trick’ that changes your life is realistic and not something imaginary or utopian.
Given this inevitability, understanding the right advice and the right social media influencer is essential. If you blindly follow a piece of advice without cross-verifying it, chances are that you will meet hazardous consequences. Here are some simple and efficient ways to know if an influencer is worth listening to:
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Popularity Does Not Equal Credibility
One of the fundamental traps that most social media users fall into is popularity. Say, if a social media influencer has 20,000 followers, they consider it credible. Meaning, they think that if this influencer has such a vast following, he must be credible. Ultimately, they follow them and their content.
But the truth is that popularity is by no means equal to credibility. Nonetheless, it is crucial to mention here that social media influencers and ‘finfluencers’ can give money advice that is general. Or they can share their personal experiences. But the measurement should not be their popularity. Rather, try to look for the quality of the content that they share.
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Cross Verification of Identity is Crucial
Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter show verified accounts of professionals with blue ticks. These blue ticks are the first direct way to verify if the user is a standard and verified. More often than not, professionals with a vast audience get the blue tick verification. It also indicates that the user is professional and the quality of his content is up to the standards of the platform.
With that said, double-checking and cross-verification are crucial. You can go ahead and head over to the content, comment section, and bio. If you find spammy content anywhere in the account, perhaps it is time to move on.
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Is the Influencer Linking to Any Third Party?
You would have noticed that most influencers put links to third parties in their bios. Most of the time, these links land somewhere on sales pages. This means that the influencer is indirectly selling you something. If this is the case, you have got to walk away from listening to this influencer.