Behind the scenes: The life of student influencers
By: Anna Gasowski
The beginning of it all
It started at Swarthmore College in 1994. Justin Hall, 19, launched Justin’s Links From The Underground, a website that prompted The New York Times Magazine to dub him “the founding father of personal bloggers” in 2004.
Hall shared personal stories from his life as well as his favorite links. People began sharing his stories across the country.
Today, he would likely be called an influencer, someone whose social media presence and opinions sway others. In recent years, influencers have become an integral part of marketing.
Brands, especially those targeting Millennial and Gen Z consumers, pour their marketing budgets into these creators, many of whom are college students with niche audiences that can still have more sway than celebrity endorsements.
About 60% of Gen Z consumers in the United States bought a product they saw featured in creator-generated content as of May 2024, according to a study by Statista. Among Millennials, this number was 55%.
Influencers represent a growing portion of marketing and advertising budgets, because the strategy works, said Stacy Landreth Grau, associate dean of the John V. Roach Honors College and professor of professional practice. “Brands see this as a way to reach their audience in an authentic way.”
Influencers are categorized based on their number of followers, according to Influencer Marketing Hub:
- Micro-influencers have 10,000 to 50,000 followers
- Mid-tier influencers have 50,000 to 500,000 followers
- Macro-influencers have 500,000 to 1 million followers
The key to all of this is how an influencer engages with their audience. A person with a small following might be considered more influential than one with legions of fans if that person has an audience that keeps up with and listens to them.
Brand partnerships and growth
Mia Ristaino, a senior strategic communication major, has more than 900,000 followers on TikTok.
Ristaino started posting vlogs for personal memories during her senior year of high school, but didn’t start gaining a large following until she came to TCU.
“I think for me it was definitely more of a slow growth, which I'm really happy about,” Ristaino said. “I feel like I was able to build a strong community over time.”
One aspect of content creation that most influencers do not share is the behind-the-scenes work that goes into each brand video.
While many celebrities have teams that can cover parts of their work, smaller influencers are responsible for it on their own.
“You are basically the writer, filmmaker, the editor, the producer and the actor,” Ristaino said.
Once creators reach larger followings and have high audience engagements, the brand offers often start flowing in, whether it be paid ads, affiliate links or free PR items.
One difficult aspect is determining which brands the influencers desire to work with and can commit time to, especially as college students.
“I'm really intentional about the brands that I work with and try to make sure that they align with me. I'll use the products before I make videos about them to make sure that they actually work.”
With the rise of social media in the early 2000s, the ability to share text and photos with friends became widely accessible through platforms like Facebook, X (formerly Twitter) and Reddit.
Especially with the emergence of mobile phones with internet access, people could post information about their lives even when on the go. It no longer required sitting down at a desktop, making it more convenient for consumers to post.
Paul Klee
Addie Dawson, a sophomore journalism major, is most known for her fashion videos on TikTok, especially with brands like LoveShackFancy.
Dawson, known on social media as @addielovespink, is a member of their “bestie program,” where she works as a brand ambassador.
“I loved posting their outfits and their dresses, and sometimes they posted me, but thankfully, having built that relationship (as a brand ambassador) and loving it so passionately, I now am going to start working retail,” Dawson said.
Dawson mentioned that she typically does a limited amount of brand partnerships because she wants to focus on being a full-time student.
Brands choose the creators they want to work with by finding ones who make compelling content with a loyal following.
“Typically, an influencer will post a certain number of times or create content from a creative brief,” Grau said. “Influencers are paid based on posting, effectiveness based on metrics and, in some cases, based on sales.”
Peyton Mabry, a 2018 TCU graduate, came into her first semester at TCU with quite a large following, even before the term “influencer” was coined.
Mabry started working with brands even before becoming a TCU cheerleader. She began her following in 2012 as a competitive cheerleader for Cheer Athletics. While on the team, they won the USASF Cheerleading Worlds in 2012. After winning, her following “exploded overnight,” she said.
For many athletes, college is what makes their social media skyrocket, but she came into college with an established platform.
“For me, NIL was not yet allowed, but influencing also wasn't a thing yet,” Mabry said. “I was just a girl doing what she loved to do, and I happened to get a platform out of it.
When working with brands, Mabry said things were different than how they are today.
“At the time, it was all mom-and-pop businesses,” Mabry said. “I would either get a DM or an email, basically saying, 'If we send you these cheer bows, can you post a picture with the bows," she said. “That very quickly led to the point where I designed my own bow with a company. Then they sent me thousands of fabric swatches, and I autographed each swatch.”
Mabry began doing more partnerships with larger brands as she came into college, and it eventually became a way she was able to support herself financially. She credits her parents with helping her navigate brand deals at such a young age.
Dawson is shown at the grand opening celebration for The Woodlands' location of LoveShackFancy on October 4, 2025.(Photo: Addie Dawson)
Dawson poses on the Sullivans Island Beach to promote LoveShackFancy's new perfume collection at Sephora. (Photo: Addie Dawson)
Mabry was a flyer for the Cheer Athletics Cheetahs, a high-level cheer team based in Dallas, Texas. (Photo: Peyton Mabry)
Mabry worked with the company Bad to the Bows as one of her first brand partnerships. (Photo: Peyton Mabry)
Mabry spent her first year at TCU as a member of TCU Cheer. (Photo: Peyton Mabry)
Mandell is shown worshipping at Compass City Church in Washington. (Photo: Dylan Mandell)
Mandell is shown worshipping at Compass City Church in Washington. (Photo: Dylan Mandell)
Mandell is pictured with fellow Christian influencers Ryan Miller and Forrest Frank. Miller recently interviewed Mandell on his podcast Jesus People Podcast. (Photo: Dylan Mandell)
Mandell is pictured with fellow Christian influencers Ryan Miller and Forrest Frank. Miller recently interviewed Mandell on his podcast Jesus People Podcast. (Photo: Dylan Mandell)
Mandell is pictured during his interview with Christian Youtuber Bryce Crawford. The interview, which includes more of Mandell's story and testimony, now has over 100,000 views. (Photo: Dylan Mandell)
Mandell is pictured during his interview with Christian Youtuber Bryce Crawford. The interview, which includes more of Mandell's story and testimony, now has over 100,000 views. (Photo: Dylan Mandell)
Faith: behind the consistency and motivation
Senior strategic communication student Dylan Mandell has over 350,000 followers on Instagram, with many of his videos attracting millions of views.
Mandell could be typically categorized as an “influencer,” but he sees his platform as an avenue to do even more.
Mandell has spent the last few years sharing his life through short videos on social media, opening up about his treatment for Rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare form of cancer. But his faith journey and motivational content are what his platform is truly built on.
“I don't care about numbers,” Mandell said. “I really couldn't care less about a follower count. I just pray that the right people at the right time will receive the word that God puts in front of them.”
He described how being in a hospital environment made him see so much sadness around him, prompting him to share his faith with others.
“People need hope because everyone goes through certain things in their life,” he said. “It's not a matter of if challenges hit your life, it's a matter of when.”
Mandell persevered through near-impossible surgeries and difficult treatments, and he attributes his strength to his faith. Mandell said that he doesn't want his unfortunate life circumstances to define who he is.
With such a large following, Mandell has the opportunity to not just share his story but actually teach people about Jesus.
“It's crazy for me to say, but there are like thousands of people whose entire understanding of Jesus revolves around what I say,” he said. “If all they get from Jesus is what comes out of my mouth, I have to think about how I can be an obedient servant to give them the good word of God.”
Many of Mandell’s videos have become popular due to his consistency in his routine. Even while battling cancer, there were still early morning alarms, workouts, cold plunges and more.
“I think you have to be consistent in all aspects of your life, otherwise you're going to slip up,” Mandell said. “It's that lack of discipline in one area of my life that is going to start influencing the other areas. If I'm not disciplined in my workouts, my sleep, my diet and my training, then trying to be disciplined with sin would be really difficult.”
Although he has such a large online presence, Mandell never expected it to come about and has even considered transitioning into the traditional ministry avenue, if that's where his path is lead.
“I'm kind of an introvert in the sense where I didn't really force this, but I think God's gonna take it in a direction that he wants it to go,” he said.
The pressure to post
Posting consistently can become stressful for influencers, especially ones who are full-time students. Some feel pressured to make money because it’s their career, while others feel drawn to posting to bring more content to their followers.
“I do post multiple times a day, but I feel like I do that because I’m motivated to build a community with my followers rather than making money,” Ristaino said.
Influencers often have to balance the fine line between their job and their personal life because so much of their life is filmed and posted online.
“If social media ever does become my career once I graduate, I could see myself getting a bit discouraged in that sense, but right now, if I’m sick or really busy, I just won’t post,” Dawson said.
The pressure can especially start to seep in when major changes in life happen. Mabry had to end her cheer career at TCU unexpectedly to receive spinal fusion surgery.
Her platform had been built on being a world-renowned cheerleader, and with that taken away, Mabry struggled to find the balance between her personal life and social media.
“I had been cheering since I was four years old. I was a flyer, and I was very good at what I did, which is partly why I got the platform," she said. “So when that was taken away overnight, I didn’t just struggle with my brand, I really struggled with my identity.”
Mabry said that as her platform grew, it became more difficult for her to post in the ways that others wanted or expected her to.
“When I was in college, it was very easy for me to post,” Mabry said. It probably wasn't until 2020, honestly, like the pandemic changed everything for everybody. It felt really invasive to let the world in on my personal life.”
Mabry had to pause her social media for four years because of a stalker. She now reflects on the importance of privacy and internet safety when posting, especially to such a large audience.
After the 40-year-old male stalker was sentenced to 20 years in prison, she posted about this experience on her return to social media:
“For the chance of a few years of reprieve, I handed him my playbook and exposed my life, my fears and the steps I took to stay safe.”
Through this experience, she hopes to connect with other stalking victims and hopes that her story can help them.
Ristaino is shown at the Supergoop! event in Dallas where she was able to receive PR and other fun items. (Photo: Mia Ristaino)
Ristaino is shown at the Supergoop! event in Dallas where she was able to receive PR and other fun items. (Photo: Mia Ristaino)
Mabry is shown posing by her name at the Neiman Marcus Entrepreneurship Panel in 2019. (Photo: Peyton Mabry)
Mabry is shown posing by her name at the Neiman Marcus Entrepreneurship Panel in 2019. (Photo: Peyton Mabry)
Mabry was able to go to Paris, France on a brand trip with the brand Secret to collaborate with the U.S. Soccer Women's National Team. (Photo: Peyton Mabry)
Mabry was able to go to Paris, France on a brand trip with the brand Secret to collaborate with the U.S. Soccer Women's National Team. (Photo: Peyton Mabry)
Audience appeals: the videos their viewers enjoy
@addielovespink
@miaristaino
@dylanmandell
Dawson experienced changes personally, too, but hers occurred due to her growing presence online as an incoming student.
Before her first year in college, many TCU students had seen her videos on TikTok, and it buzzed around campus that she was coming to TCU.
“It was kind of bizarre to me, because even though I had a bit of a following on TikTok, I still don't see myself as being famous or anything,” Dawson said.
After attending a small private school, she was unsure of how her online presence would affect her experience in sorority recruitment.
“It was a little bit stressful as I was rushing, because I wanted to be looked at as just a normal girl,” Dawson said.
Yik Yak, a social media app that lets people within a 5-mile radius anonymously post and view discussion threads, is used by many TCU students, and some even choose to write negative comments to named students.
While Dawson was recruiting Potential New Members (PNMs) this past August for her sorority, statements were posted about her claiming that she only talked about social media during conversations.
“People are gonna be mean, and that's something that's hard," she said. "But at the same time, it's something I love, so it didn't hurt me bad enough to stop doing social media.”
Dawson mentioned that if social media ever came up in her conversations, she always tried to divert the topic. She wanted people to get to know her personally and know that social media is what she does on the side.
“I think it's kind of silly that people spend their time posting anonymous mean things about someone they've never met," she said. "That's just something that I can't even comprehend.”
Mandell also had eye-opening experiences on campus as his following grew.
“I'd park my car and step out, and someone would say, ‘Hey, you’re Dylan, right?’ I’d say yes, and then they'd ask ‘Can we pray right now?’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, let’s do it,’” Mandell said.
Mandell mentioned that he would pray for people in places all across campus, whether it be hallways or elevators.
"I just feel like, if I don't post, I'm letting people down. It feels like people are counting on me to do certain things, and so that can be a challenge."
"It was kind of scary to have, like, all the eyes on you"
Opportunity awaits
One of the best parts about being an influencer is the opportunities it brings to creators, Ristaino said.
“I've had the opportunity to travel and go to events where I get to meet other creators, which has been so much fun, because sometimes it's hard to explain what the job is like to people who have never experienced it,” she said.
Mabry’s experience with social media brought her multiple opportunities to grow her career post-grad even after her cheer time ended.
In 2021, Mabry co-founded a company called Influxer, which helps student athletes connect with brands for paid partnerships.
“I got to use my love of sports, my knowledge in branding and marketing and my business savvy side to connect all of the different brands and grow something from the ground up,” she said.
She eventually transitioned into consulting because she “figured out there was a way for me to use all of my experience and do something that I still enjoyed doing without feeling that pressure,” Mabry said.
Mandell said that because social media is his full-time job, he’s been able to work with non-profits that he’s passionate about.
“It’s kind of a win-win, because I get to work with a lot of cool nonprofits, so they support me, and I also can help them promote amazing causes,” he said.
Another opportunity being an influencer brings is getting to meet their followers.
“One of the coolest things is when I get to meet people that recognize me or if I get a message saying, 'Your videos made me happier,'” Ristaino said. “That is the best feeling ever for me, because I know what it's like to go through struggles.”
Growing up posting videos on social media allows an influencer's followers to get a glimpse of many milestones in their life. Dawson mentioned how special it is to have her social media exist as her “digital diary,” she said.
“If you are a follower and you like watching my videos, then it's cool that you've seen me grow through high school and college,” Dawson said.
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