Under the Influence

team of individuals to develop a successful business venture, and have the opportunity to attend competitions across the country.” In league competition, UPEI students basked in the spotlight on the mainstage receiving hardware for the award-winning project, Bury&Bloom, where students produce and sell plantable paper products and invest in the environmental education of local students. The team is committed to making a quantum leap with Bury&Bloom next year—leveraging this success to scale the project size and impact. At the executive forum, UPEI had the honour of sending two students to dine and network with CEOs and other top executives in a small group setting; UPEI was the only school to have more than one attendee. Enactus is an experiential learning environment in which a small university like UPEI can punch well above its weight class. The Faculty of Business is so proud of what our students have achieved so far and is excited about what the future holds.

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Under the Influence By Jason Dunne

HOW MANY OF US see influencers on Instagram and wonder how they got there? How can they make a living by connecting with their followers? How do they get noticed by brands?

These are all questions I wondered when I started on this journey to become a social media influencer. In my last year as a UPEI BBA student (I graduated in 2019), I was finishing my marketing specialization and was able to take a course on social media (Bus 4790, taught by Dr. Melissa James). One of the most interesting topics to me was how brands cultivate followers on social media and how they market themselves on different platforms. I had an interest in social media marketing for years and was growing my following, but once I was able to apply these lessons directly to my personal account, I started seeing a lot of success on Instagram. Now I have over 80k followers. In today’s digital world, brands are looking for people to be brand representatives on social media, and as an influencer, it’s

important to know how to get these companies’ attention. These companies reach out to people in specific niches who could be an “opinion leader.” These people are held in high regard by their followers, who trust them to only endorse products they actually like. I’ve been lucky enough to work with brands such as Polo Ralph Lauren, Garnier, Smart Sweets, Jed North, Yummy Sports, and many more. Often, these companies will send me products so I can create content and market their products over my social media accounts. Our relationship is mutually beneficial. I am grateful that I was able to learn about this subject in depth at UPEI and apply it directly to my own life. I have no doubt that the concepts I learned in my classes and their implementation has a direct impact on my work as an influencer. What I learned was useful, practical, and evidence-based. I’m glad UPEI is keeping up with trends and staying current; it certainly made a difference in my learning and helped me on my current path.