Swipe Up for More!

 

 

                                        *free review copy* 

Title: Swipe Up for More!: Inside the Unfiltered Lives of Influencers

Author: Stephanie McNeal

Publisher: Portfolio

Release Date: 6.6.23

Publisher’s Summary 

An unfiltered, colorful romp through the IRL world of influencers that spills the tea on the multibillion-dollar industry of content creation.

If you’re anything like journalist Stephanie McNeal—aka, a millennial woman—you spend hours every day indulging in Instagram’s infinite scroll. The influencers on the platform aren’t just providing eye candy; these tastemakers impact how we cook, consume, parent, decorate, think, and live. But what exactly is going on behind the curtain of the perfectly curated Instagram grids we obsess over the most?

Through intimate, funny, and vulnerable reporting, McNeal takes us through the looking glass and into the secretive real world of three major fashion and lifestyle juggernaut Caitlin Covington of Southern Curls & Pearls, runner and advocate Mirna Valerio, and OG “mommy blogger” Shannon Bird. Swipe Up For More! is based on three years of unprecedented, fly-on-the-wall access that offers a rare glimpse into how these influencers build their empires, struggle with the haters and snarkers, fight for creative control from the tech platforms that enable their businesses, parent in public, and try to look good while doing it.

Along the way, McNeal answers burning questions, Why are there so many Mormon mommy influencers? What is it like to work for a popular influencer? What do they do with all the free swag? How do brand partnerships work? And how much money do they really make?

Irresistible, juicy, and voyeuristic, Swipe Up For More! reveals all about the women some love to hate (and many actually, secretly, genuinely love).

My Review

I am so thankful that in the last few years, several books have been released to showcase what is really going on behind the scenes with social media. Max Fisher's "The Chaos Machine" outlined the profit algorithms integrated into each platform, Sarah Frier gave a full history of Instagram in "No Filter," Sara Petersen showcased how the previously unseen and unpaid labor of motherhood is being commodified in "Momfluenced" and Emily Lynn Paulson revealed the tight connections between MLMs and influencers in "Hey, Hun."

Now, In "Swipe Up for More!: Inside the Unfiltered Lives of Influencers," Senior Glamour magazine editor Stephanie McNeal dives into those burning questions like "how much do influencers make?" and "how do those brand partnerships get set up?" The first 2/3 of the book focuses on several well-known bloggers/influencers, giving readers a bit of their histories including all the ups and downs. However, it was the last 1/3 of the book where McNeal drills down on the current and future obstacles of influencers that I found truly noteworthy. For instance, the public's relentless need for influencers to make instant comments about current events and how to responsibly feature, protect, and financially compensate children. 

If you are fascinated by influencers, interested in social media marketing, or want some insight on future consumer trends I suggest you add "Swipe Up for More!" to your reading list.