Influences are people who cultivate a persona through social media outlets to reach a targeted audience and influence their decisions for purchases, politics, and social discourse. They are actors selling a product. They are companies. They are very effective because people only see the end result and believe it to be real. They see a "get rich quick I could do that" story and dream about becoming one themselves. Much the same way "amateur porn" and "reality tv" is a highly produced product made to look organic, influencers are constantly working behind the scenes with producers, manufacturers, marketing analysts, and crew to create high quality "amateur" content.