An 18-year-old influencer with 2.6 million followers has started a discussion about marketing, influencer culture, and emotional manipulation after sharing a now deleted post about her failed t-shirt brand launch.

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pre prom 🖤

A post shared by arii (@arii) on May 18, 2019 at 3:05pm PDT

As with most macro influencers, Arii relies on endorsements and partnerships with brands to keep her lifestyle afloat, which means having millions of followers isn't enough in itself, you need followers who will engage with your social media and actually buy products.

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mondayz @fashionnova

A post shared by arii (@arii) on May 27, 2019 at 12:26pm PDT

In her now deleted post, Arii shared that the initial launch of her clothing line was a bust because she was unable to sell 36 t-shirts, the minimum requirement for the clothing company she was working with.

The caption read:

"Unfortunately the company that I'm working with goes based on your first drop sales. In order for them to order and make my products (even to keep working with them) I have to sell at least 36 pieces (knowing I've become super irrelevant, I already knew it was gonna be hard) but I was getting such good feedback that people loved it and were gonna buy it. No one has kept their word so now the company won't be able to send out the orders to people who actually bought shit and it breaks my heart."

The influencer bubble is bursting. This young lady has well over 2 million followers and couldn’t sell 36 shirts. Focus on genuine engagement and not followers cuz they ain’t gonna buy a thing. pic.twitter.com/uOSVxc2k4D
— Flawless and Brown (@kissmyelite) May 27, 2019

Screenshots of her post quickly went viral, and started a discussion about how being a successful influencer requires actual engagement with your followers and a cohesive branding tactic.

The truth is that her followers aren't her customers.

Understanding who will actually buy from you and what they will buy is a key business lesson.
— Tamara (@baydiangirl) May 27, 2019

People were quick to point out that having a lot of followers who like your photos is different than being influential or having a palpable and clear creative vision.

skimming her ig, it looks like she just didn't have a real "brand" other than taking cute photos of herself, there was no videos, no comedy, nothing inspirational. i thin she mistook people liking her aesthetic as "a brand"
— Kelandria (@angeltenders) May 27, 2019

Look at her feed vs her product line. These aren't even close to the same aesthetic.

If you can't imagine her wearing any of these, why would her followers? pic.twitter.com/5CdEdxKUjf
— Jack Appleby (@JuiceboxCA) May 27, 2019

Also, selling t-shirts falls outside the larger purview of launching a fully fleshed fashion brand or capsule.

Making a t shirt isn’t launching a brand.
— Tony King (@tonykingnyc) May 27, 2019

She clearly thinks so... pic.twitter.com/HOqxKUE3X3
— America’s Sass (@PuppyBongRips) May 27, 2019

A handful of people theorized that the initial fail was purposeful, and possibly a manipulative marketing tactic to get people to pity buy upon a "second" launch attempt.

Not so hot take. The failure and subsequent pity party IS her marketing angle and she’ll use it later to pivot and say how she overcame adversity and try to sell ebooks on the road to success 🤷🏾‍♀️
— The Many Faced God’s personal MUA (@chas_sididdy) May 28, 2019

pic.twitter.com/da6XFfZQ5s
— Zoro’s Booty Call (@FierclyRae) May 27, 2019

Maybe I missed her IG Stories or promoted posts, but looks like she announced w/ video, only put up one more video, then said she failed 13 days later?

Not one single pic of her in product.
Only two posts even about it?

She basically didn't even try to promote her own product. pic.twitter.com/W28NAd1ogM
— Jack Appleby (@JuiceboxCA) May 27, 2019

PLOT TWIST: she deleted her “my brand failed” post.

Something is definitely up. The “positive” spin: she took flak for failing & wanted it to stop. It’s seeming more plausible that someone’s lying somewhere.

“Marketing stunt” maybe?
Sympathy post for future $?
Lie about sales? pic.twitter.com/gJEnKf5umK
— Jack Appleby (@JuiceboxCA) May 28, 2019

She has yet to post a follow-up to her now deleted post about the t-shirts, but now that the theories are out, she may get that extra boost of attention she was looking for.

Influencer with 2 million followers couldn't sell 36 t-shirts and the internet is coming for her.