The Rise of the Cleanfluencers - Who Are They and Why Are They So Popular?
Every time you go online, you’re bound to come by at least one influencer. They are popular icons today, trendsetters, and they can be found for every niche you can imagine.
If you go online looking for the newest health fads, shopping trends, gadgets and tools, gardening tips, cleaning tips, exercise tips, latest sneakers, music, make-up, travel… every possible industry that you can think of basically, there’s a group of people who dictate what’s new, what’s trending, what’s terrible - and they’re the influencers.
What started off as honest reviews slowly became a great tool for marketing. Influencer marketing has now become one of the most successful ways a brand can reach out to their intended audience and gather support. This is because of the trust and bond that exists between the influencers and their followers.
Why Do People Trust Influencers, You Ask?
Photo from Adobe Stock
To put it simply, it’s because they’re honest. And relatable.
Even though they’re largely popular now, they’ve built their popularity slowly and organically through their followers. They trust them because they come from humble beginnings. They aren’t actors and musicians who you see on television, they’re regular people just like us.
Influencers often go about their days, going to work, living a relatively non-glamorous life, and it feels like they understand us. It builds a connection between the viewer and the influencer, something that is lacking with celebrities.
This is what makes them relatable, and this is why their followers don’t look at what they have to say as a marketing gimmick or an advertisement and follow their lead.
A survey conducted by Matter Communications observed that the consumers who were a part of their survey preferred influencers who had relatable personalities, and 61% of the total number of surveyed individuals stated that they would trust a recommendation that came from a friend, family member or an influencer.
This only proves our point further. Influencers are considered to be the next-door, friendly neighbor in the world of social media, and if your neighbor gives you a recommendation on the best way to mow your lawn, won’t you at least try it out?
Photo from Adobe Stock
Over the last year and a half we’ve had to adapt. We have had to adjust to life at home, and the most fun we’ve had is watching baking fails while eating popcorn on our couch, or finally getting on that Zoom call all of us had been talking about with our friends for weeks. As the world around us changed drastically, so did our priorities. Many people ended up adopting pets, many people got really into gardening, and people realized the importance of maintaining a clean and beautiful home. Once we started looking at our day-to-day lives differently, the content we consumed changed with it - and we found ourselves looking at cleanfluencers.
So that begs the question, what in the world is a “cleanfluencer”?
Well, it’s a pretty self-explanatory term. Cleanfluencers are cleaning influencers.
The cleanliness and hygiene market has carved a niche for itself on the internet as more and more people realized there was an easier way to do what they’ve been doing daily. Cleaning hacks, new products, quick tips, and organizational porn are some of the things that made the cleanfluencer of today.
When the pandemic hit and people got really focused on maintaining hygiene and cleanliness in all aspects of their lives, a lot of people realized that they knew nothing about keeping their homes in a pristine state.
If we were to be really honest, the only times our house was spectacularly clean was when we were having guests who were staying for a couple of days. We’re sure that’s true for many of us everywhere. We started looking for the best ways to clean up, how to manage our daily chores, living at home for days without turning it into a mess, and we kept coming across these great influencers, aka cleanfluencers who spread the gospel of cleanliness, hygiene and organization and made our lives a lot easier to deal with.
Photo from Adobe Stock
Since both Hyper Lychee and Skadu are all about cleanliness, hygiene and the simplicity of the task, our interest immediately piqued. We started looking at different cleanfluencers from all around the world and focused on what it was about them that we all love and appreciate so much.
How are Cleanfluencers So Popular?
Image created by Hyper Lychee
Cleaning isn’t pretty. It is messy, painful at times, and oh-so boring. It is a chore, not a fun activity. It’s not fun to do, which means it shouldn’t be fun to watch too, right? So then what is it that created such a big buzz around the cleanfluencers? What is it that makes them so popular?
Their content so satisfying to watch
There are various channels and videos you can find under the Oddly Satisfying tag. The Oddly Satisfying subreddit has 6 million followers. There is something calming about watching people fix or build things, and watching people transform a space into a clean area is something that a lot of us find oddly satisfying. This is one of the reasons why people love watching cleanfluencers do their thing.
The tips and tricks cleanfluencers give us
The other, way bigger reason is that they’re helpful. Their niche is so helpful for all of us! Who doesn’t need a cleaning hack? Who doesn’t want to feel like their lives are going to get a lot easier if they just follow these 5 simple steps? I mean, it’s a really good bait to get people to watch their content, and the best part about it is that most of them actually work!
Cleanfluencers face the same problems as all of us. They’re all focused on creating a cleaner, more hygienic and a more organized space around them. We need all of this information that they’re trying to provide, and this is why the cleanfluencer audience is so vast.
Accessible solutions to our daily problems
They also use products that we can find in our homes easily or products that are super accessible to all of us. This makes their content really easy to execute, and if the cleanfluencer says a lemon wedge is going to help take out the oil grease from the pan, there is no excessive effort required in trying it out. And if it works, you’re a believer (for your information, it does help!) for life. You will take their advice seriously and if it helped you once, why won’t a different hack or technique help you again?
Cleanfluencers have managed to reach millions of people around the world and there are many budding ones who are trying to join the league. Every day, they teach millions of people how to get the most out of that cabinet full of cleaning products they hide under the sink. Cleaning and organization enthusiasts, those who want to learn how to take care of their home and their belongings better, and cleanfluencers have created a whole world for themselves.
It is this authenticity and accessibility that is the true appeal of the cleanfluencer.
Who are the Top 3 Best Cleanfluencers Today?
Sophie Hinchliffe, aka Mrs. Hinch
Photo from GoodtoKnow
Sophie Hinchcliffe also known as Mrs. Hinch is probably the most famous cleanfluncer out there.
While she’s also known for advertising products, being a mom, writing a book and being a TV star, she is most famous for her chatty, quirky, upbeat videos of cleaning tips for absolutely anything. She gives out great recommendations for affordable cleaning products to get you your money’s worth, while also suggesting cleaning as a way to deal with anxiety.
In an interview with This Morning, she says that her ‘Hinch army’ or ‘Hinches’ are incredibly supportive and she didn’t expect her platform to become so big. This 30 year old says she just puts on some music to do some therapeutic cleaning saying that making it fun is the key to cleaning anything.
Melissa Maker
Photo from Makers Clean
Influencer Melissa Maker has a slightly different approach to cleaning, with over one million followers on YouTube, she believes in cleaning quickly and efficiently so that you have more time to do the things you love.
Her website ‘clean my space’ is very informative as she has videos on cleaning anything from your toilet to your car. Her tips are quick, easy and efficient.
Lynsey Crombie, aka Lynsey Queen of Clean
Photo from News Chain Online
Another influencer you might have heard of is Lynsey (Queen of Clean). She is a best-selling author and cleaning expert focusing on natural cleaning hacks to get your house in tip top shape.
Lynsey focuses on helping you get organised and keep your house clean in a fun, constructive way. This single mum has come a long way and has succeeded in creating fun cleaning tips and demos to connect like-minded people just like her.
What Do You Get from Following a Cleanfluencer?
Cleaning inspo!
The motivation to finish those chores that have been piling up on your to-do list.
A thousand hacks to make your life easier.
If these reasons weren't enough already, they also help you find the best products in your price range to get that perfect mop or brush, the best detergent for your laundry, the best ways to clean the grime off your microwave, and so much more.
Cleanfluencers are inspiring, real life people (just like us) who show us that with a few secrets, we can have clean, sparkling Instagram-worthy houses in no time!
TL,DR:
Image created by Hyper Lychee
