It’s the dream of many teens: to be an influencer. And it’s easy to see why. According to Forbes, TikTok stars earn more than top managers in America.

At the top of the tiktoker ranking we find the American influencer Charlie D’Amelio, 17 years old, is able to build an empire on TikTok in just two years. Thanks to the skillful use of choreographies lasting a few seconds that went “viral” on the social network, in 2021, Charlie Jamal earned $17.5 million. With her following of 134 million followers, she has managed to amass earnings outperforming CEOs of big companies like Darren Woods, CEO of ExxonMobil with $15.6 million), or Kevin Johnson, CEO of Starbucks (with $14.7 million). dollar).

In a special ranking of influencers compiled by Forbes magazine, Charli D’Amelio is the highest-paid TikTok influencer in the world. ahead of his sister Dixie Damelio (with $10 million and 57 million followers), Addison Ray ($8.5 million and 86 million followers), Bella Burke (5 million and 87 million followers) H Josh Richards ($5 million, 26 million followers). In total, the seven highest-paid stars on TikTok earned $55.5 million in 2021, a 200 percent increase from 2020.

Today, many young people consider making a career as an influencer on the TikTok platform as a way to try to climb socially. Thanks to the Chinese social network, brilliant strangers have made a fortune without having a distinct social background or prestigious studies behind them. Kind of like winning the lottery. And indeed, like lottery winners, all American traders suddenly became famous and collected huge sums in a short period of time.

Is TikTok the New American Dream? There are those who are starting to think so. The secret of TikTok certainly lies in having a huge audience greedy for entertainment. The other main ingredient is The power of algorithms.

“The algorithm is the magic TikTok recipe”Soraya Khair El Din, founder of TikTok Agency 4YOU, reveals. “Unlike Instagram, TikTok is constantly testing the popularity of new videos by always putting them in center stage. The result: a user can gain hundreds of thousands of followers in three months.”

That’s how it went, in July 2019 when she was just an unknown 15-year-old from Connecticut, to Charlie D’Amelio. Two months after signing up for TikTok, I posted a video in which I followed, step by step, the choreography I had seen by another Tiktok, Move With Joy. Thus, he began his career as a star on the social network with a 15-second video. In December 2019, he again caused a sensation with a ballet group called Renegade, on the lottery lottery for rapper K-Camp.

All the major brands have sniffed the deal and within a few months threw themselves on TikTok, and it’s attracted Social potential: From luxury fashion houses like Gucci to Pandora jewelry, passing by Sephora cosmetics stores.

So the big brands signed up to the most famous influencers to make them their testimonials. It’s clear that Generation Z is on the horizon: Millennials born between 1996 and 2010. Half of TikTok’s users are now 25 years old and with the pandemic – and forced isolation – the Chinese social network has expanded its reach exponentially.

The best traders in the world manage to earn amazing numbers: from 100 thousand to 250 thousand dollars for a video of a few seconds. Not to mention that thanks to the dedicated promotional codes offered to followers, it is possible to determine the profitability of each influencer.

Two-thirds of influencer revenue comes from partnerships with major brands. There is an attendance fee for content posted on the social network (for product sponsorships, for contests or for personal challenges); But for high-profile influencers like the D’Amelio sisters, there are also millionaire contracts to make them brand testimonials even off the platform. In the United States, we find their images in stores, catalogs and many other advertising media.

Many of these influencers are trying to cash in on their bad reputation – which may soon fade – by throwing themselves into the business world to launch their makeup or fashion line.

At the beginning of 2021, the D’Amelio sisters, for example, teamed up with the Hollister brand to launch their Social Tourist clothing line. Among the items that can be purchased there are shirts or trousers, most of which are sold at 50 euros each. Distributed in 500 Hollister stores, as well as on the website, Social Tourist sent the brand’s sales in 2021: +10% through September.