Cute kids are irresistible. The marketing and advertising departments of successful companies know this and use it to their advantage.

We’ve all been prompted to make purchases by adult influencers, even if we don’t realize it. Every time we watch a commercial or skim a print or online advertisement, we are the object of an influencer.

Of course, influencers aren’t limited to television commercials or clearly marked advertisements. In this age of technology, they also use programs such as YouTube and Instagram. And brands have been using these influencers to create interest in their products and services.

Cue the cute kids.

Families have created similar accounts for their children, from infants to adolescents, earning lucrative income streams.

A recent New York Times article noted examples such as:

• Four-year-old Samia has 143,000 followers on Instagram and more than 200,000 subscribers on YouTube. Her posts include paid promotions for kid-friendly products such as Crayola crayons.
• Taytum and Oakley Fisher, two-year-old identical twins who have more than two million Instagram followers. Their parents’ YouTube channel has about three million subscribers. The twins have promoted everything from car seats to cruise lines. Income from one sponsored post ranges from $10,000 – $20,000.
• Six-year-olds Ava Foley and her friend, Everleigh, have YouTube and Instagram accounts with more than one million followers.
• Nine-year-old “Txunamy” has two million followers. Many of them are nine to eleven years old.
• Ryan ToysReview is a YouTube channel. According to Forbes, “Ryan” earned $22 million in one year. Yes, one year!

The families of other kidfluencers are cultivating followers for products such video games, clothes, and toys.

Yet another reason for parents and grandparents to be aware that those innocent videos of cute and precocious children may not be quite so innocent after all.

Enjoy their posts…but be alert to their intentions.