A Global Phenomenon: The Rise of Influencers Around the World

Abstract

This chapter opens with the story of Elijah Whaley, an American entrepreneur and his girlfriend Maggie Fu, a Chinese beauty influencer. It documents their journey building a cross-border business where Maggie helps international brands like H&M, Nike, and Estée Lauder on their marketing efforts in China. The chapter describes how the latest iteration of influencer marketing is a truly borderless phenomenon because of the internet (and globally adopted social media like Facebook and YouTube), and as a result influencer marketing is developing in different ways around the world. The chapter share stories and anecdotes of influencer marketing in Asia, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and North America to emphasize this point.