Influencers manually screenshot ephemeral metrics to prove engagement

Evidence

This is still the case for apps like Snapchat, where Influencers have taken to posting screengrabs of how many times each of their stories has been viewed or screenshot to evidence follower engagement. This is no doubt a laborious endeavor considering that stories and their attached metrics are only available for 24 hours, and that Influencers publish multiple stories, several times a day, around the clock. Yet such vernacular practices are just one of several efforts of Influencers to make their impact visible and quantify their standing on a platform that is still relatively new for advertisers. — Crystal Abidin, Internet Celebrity, 283

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Follower counts conflate popularity with influence, visibility, and personal status — Alice E. Marwick, Status Update: Celebrity, Publicity,…, 213; Influencers increasingly replace quantified stats with qualitative testimonials — Crystal Abidin, Internet Celebrity: Understanding Fame…, 285; Follower and like counts no longer truthfully indicate real engagement — Crystal Abidin, Internet Celebrity: Understanding Fame…, 281 (+1 more)