The Rise of the Deinfluencing Movement

This Insight Brief is brought to you by Infegy’s partnership with Joseph Bayer's students at The Ohio State University. We work with these students to dig into a particular topic of their interest and encourage deeper insights.

What is Deinfluencing?  

Social media has traditionally been used to showcase products, establish trends, and shape consumer desires. Many users post hauls of their recent purchases and highlight must-have items. Influencers, in particular, often promote a curated aesthetic or aspirational lifestyle that their followers strive to embody. As a result, consumers frequently turn to their favorite influencers to determine which products to buy and which trends to follow. These behaviors encourage a cycle of frequent consumption, especially in the fashion and beauty industries, where trends rise and fall quickly.

In 2023, social media users began pushing back against this cycle of overconsumption and started a counter-movement called deinfluencing. This trend involves describing which products are not worth buying and the reasons why. Overall, the goal of the deinfluencing movement is to reduce the amount of unnecessary purchases and inspire consumers to be more intentional with their spending habits.  

Social listening data can reveal whether trends are temporary or here to stay. The 84.1% increase in post volume over the past three years suggests that the deinfluencing movement is not just a fleeting trend.

This insight brief investigates the motivations behind the shift from overconsumption to mindful consumption and explores how microtrends keep the movement relevant over time.

A Viral Moment With Sustained Impact

The deinfluencing trend first gained traction in January 2023 and reached its peak in February 2023. The exact origins of this trend are unknown, but many sources suggest it emerged in response to growing skepticism toward influencers and concerns about whether their product recommendations were genuine or driven by paid sponsorships. Astroturfing is also on the rise, where artificial consumer support for a product is created by brands. After this viral moment, conversations about deinfluencing decreased but remained steady with some occasional spikes throughout 2024. The gradual upward trend seen in Figure 1 suggests that deinfluencing continues to be a relevant conversation topic, even after the rise and fall of its initial viral moment.
 

Figure 1: Deinfluencing Post Volume (April 1st, 2022 to March 31st, 2025); Infegy Social Dataset.

Key Industries and Motivations      

By using Infegy’s Narratives tool, we can identify clusters that represent key conversations in the deinfluencing movement. These conversations will help us understand what motivates users to participate in the trend.

Skincare and Makeup

The beauty industry is the most common target of deinfluencing conversations. Many of these narratives focus on specific skincare or makeup products and discuss whether they truly live up to the hype they receive. As shown in Figure 2 below, discussions about viral makeup products were one of the leading conversations during the trend’s peak in 2023. Notably, makeup conversations mirror the overall trajectory of the deinfluencing trend, suggesting that makeup plays a key role in the movement. Additionally, skincare discussions have increased by 192.5% over the past three years, as shown in Figure 3.

Figure 2: Narrative Cluster Involving Makeup (April 1st, 2022 to March 31st, 2025); Infegy Social Dataset.

Figure 3: Narrative Cluster Involving Skincare (April 1st, 2022 to March 31st, 2025); Infegy Social Dataset.

Motivations

What are the reasons why people say products are not worth purchasing? What are the motivations behind the deinfluencing movement? These questions can be answered by examining the key narratives that appear in deinfluencing conversations. Two common motivations emerge:

1. Financial Concerns: Is this product worth the money, or am I being deceived by influencer marketing tactics?

Conversations about price skyrocketed by 117.4% from April 1st, 2022 to March 31st, 2025.  

Figure 4: Narrative Cluster Involving Price (April 1st, 2022 to March 31st, 2025); Infegy Social Dataset.

2. Environmental Awareness: Do I really need this product, or am I just contributing to the cycle of overconsumption and environmental waste?

Conversations about sustainability and overconsumption increased by 36.8% from April 1st, 2022 to March 31st, 2025.

Figure 5: Narrative Cluster Involving Sustainability (April 1st, 2022 to March 31st, 2025); Infegy Social Dataset.

These motivations reflect a broader shift toward mindful consumption. A growing percentage of people are pushing back against impulse buying and instead prioritizing quality, cost-effectiveness, and sustainability.

Microtrends Within The Deinfluencing Movement    

One of the reasons why we continue to see occasional spikes in the deinfluencing movement is because of microtrends. Microtrends are small, short-lived trends that gain popularity quickly on social media and eventually fade away.

A recent microtrend involving deinfluencing is the “Deinfluence My Wishlist” trend where users post a photo collage of items they are tempted to buy and other users comment reasons why they should not buy each product. As shown in Figure 6 below, the “wishlist” topic is rapidly rising in popularity with a velocity of 1,720%.

Figure 6: Rising Topics Related to Deinfluencing (April 1st, 2022 to March 31st, 2025); Infegy Social Dataset.

Deinfluence My Wishlist

The products included in the “Deinfluence My Wishlist” collage are often very hyped and heavily promoted by influencers on social media. People are looking for honest opinions on whether these products are worth their high prices. As shown in Figure 7 below, many commenters share affordable alternatives to the products, reflecting a shift towards more mindful consumption.

These microtrends help keep the deinfluencing movement active and relevant over long periods of time by contributing to the overall post volume.

Figure 7: Screenshot from a TikTok post participating in the “Deinfluence My Wishlist” microtrend (@jessiebehman)

Takeaways for Brands

Social listening tools like Infegy Starscape offer unique insights into consumer values, attitudes, and behaviors. Brands should prioritize:

• Long-lasting quality and sustainability when designing new products.
• Authenticity and transparency when promoting new products

Tracking key trends helps brands understand what consumers care about and why. The deinfluencing movement suggests that consumers are placing more emphasis on quality rather than hype when buying particular products. Additionally, consumers desire authentic and transparent messaging, especially when it comes to influencer marketing. This shift is evident when analyzing trends like “Deinfluence My Wishlist” where consumers are actively seeking honest opinions on products from their peers instead of relying solely on influencer endorsements or advertisements.

Brands that better align with these shifting consumer values will develop stronger connections with their audiences, paving the way for long-term loyalty and trust.

For more insight into the movements of Health and Beauty, check out Infegy’s new eBook!