Kerry Parnell: TikTokers make a meal of the influencer game

Kerry Parnell thought she’d seen everything in her career until a restaurant witnessed a TikTok ‘influencer’ swipe the contents of a table of free food at a restaurant event.

There’s no better barometer of character than a buffet.

Let someone loose in front of an array of free food and see what they do – will they go up once and serve themselves a normal-sized portion, or pile their plate high for seconds and thirds like they’re auditioning for Man v. Food?

The same goes for a hotel – are you the kind of person who pockets all the toiletries, pens, pillows and anything else that isn’t locked down, just because you can?

I thought I’d seen everything in my long, some might say, protracted, career as a journalist.

But recently I encountered a new low, when I attended an event in a restaurant and accidentally found myself in a parallel universe of TikTokers.

I had been invited to a venue, to try its new menu. As well as moaning in this column every week, I write travel and lifestyle features, so I was going to write something about it. All good, I thought, looking forward to the event.

On arrival, a waiter showed me to a long table, where I was marooned in the middle of an ocean of influencers, feeling like the journalist version of a Dodo.

We were duly served various dishes, by the proud chef, who took time to explain all the ingredients and his vision, with a flourish, while I, as the only one with, you know, a pen, listened and made notes and everyone else just videoed the cake.

The Instagrammer to my left – a friendly woman in her 30s – chatted animatedly about her job. The TikToker to my right – a young woman in her 20s – never said a word, but instead, stealthily opened her bag, unclicked a Tupperware tub she’d stowed in the top of it and … shovelled all the savouries into it.

Yes, that is correct, she took all the food, for the table. I’m assuming if she could have pocketed the tea pot, she would have done, but must have concluded the scald-to-stealing ratio didn’t work out in her favour.

The Instagrammer crossly informed me that the influencer industry has been ruined by the onset of TikTokers, who according to her, have a reputation for being rude and demanding.

Who knew? I have no idea if that’s true or not and fair play to everyone making money from social media – it’s much harder work than it looks.

But all I say, is if you find yourself in a position of influence, whoever you are and whatever the medium, then use it for good. Not just free stuff. Social media might feel like a giant stuff buffet, but it’s not always nourishing.

According to psychologists, getting freebies gives you a boost of oxytocin, which makes you feel good and seek to repeat the emotion – interestingly the same chemicals our brains receive when we get social media likes, too. So that TikToker must have been experiencing a double-high. Literally having her cake and eating it.

But, really, to be only in it for the snacks, well, that takes the biscuit.

Originally published as Kerry Parnell: TikTokers make a meal of the influencer game