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'Buy now, pay later' is sending the TikTok generation spiraling into debt, popularized by San Francisco tech firms
San Francisco Chronicle / SFGate.com ^ | May 4, 2022 Updated: May 6, 2022 11:56 a.m. | Joshua Bote , SFGATE

Posted on 05/08/2022 12:35:52 PM PDT by thecodont

Do a quick scan of TikTok and you’ll find trendy young people casually blowing hundreds or thousands of dollars on clothes and jewelry, often set to the clattering, bass-boosted din of Florida rapper Saucy Santana’s fittingly titled “Material Girl.” Plenty of those influencers get the goods they flaunt for free. But if you don’t have the followers, or the up-front cash to blow, TikTokers have a tip: Just use “buy now, pay later” services, the hottest new way to take on debt.

You may have seen some of these names — Klarna, Sezzle, Zip (formerly Quadpay), Afterpay and Affirm — pop up as you shop online, presenting an easier, more seamless alternative to having to type out your credit card information again and again. With a few clicks and a small down payment, you’ll have what you ordered on hand — all you need to do now is complete your four payments.

The services, also known as point-of-sale loans, are heavily marketed by influencers and brands on TikTok and Instagram. They giddily display their “hauls” from the most popular brands, not just normalizing debt, but actually glamorizing it — and selling it as a way for trend-conscious young people to have all the coolest consumer goods, whether they have the cash on hand or not.

One video, posted in September last year by TikTok user Lillian Bradford, features her in a faux-fur coat and gold earrings. “I was fully under the impression that I only owed maybe $300 max on Afterpay,” the text reads. Then a screenshot pops up with her balance: more than $2,000. (In an interview with the Daily Mail, the influencer later said the "video was a joke" that she did not anticipate would go viral.)

(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: bloggers; consumerdebt; genz; influencers; tiktok

1 posted on 05/08/2022 12:35:52 PM PDT by thecodont
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To: thecodont

How does one become a social media “influencer”?


2 posted on 05/08/2022 12:38:45 PM PDT by SamAdams76 (2.62 million active users on Truth Social)
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To: SamAdams76

Be a whore without a soul.


3 posted on 05/08/2022 12:42:33 PM PDT by EEGator
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To: SamAdams76
How does one become a social media "influencer"?

Good question. I suppose sign up for an account, be young and attractive, post enough content to get "followers," then use that as momentum of some sort.

4 posted on 05/08/2022 12:42:36 PM PDT by thecodont
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To: thecodont

> a quick scan of TikTok and you’ll find trendy young people casually blowing hundreds or thousands of dollars on clothes and jewelry, <

TikTok is run by ChiComs. And I’m guessing that those young people are buying tons of Chinese clothes and jewelry.

The 19th century was the British century.
The 20th century was the American century.
The 21st century will be the Chinese century. You betcha.


5 posted on 05/08/2022 12:45:56 PM PDT by Leaning Right (The steal is real.)
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To: thecodont

And I’ve wondered how many of those folks use ubereats to deliver food to their places, some even cooked, instead of shopping or cooking. I’ll bet when they get ready to retire their song will be I can’t live on Social Security payout. The government has to do something to help me maintain my standard of living.


6 posted on 05/08/2022 12:47:23 PM PDT by antidemoncrat ( adn)
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To: SamAdams76
How does one become a social media “influencer”?

Content + followers.

"Influencers" really are the rock stars of the day and once you've built up a large number of followers, you can make serious money doing this. It's a full-time job and a lot of work.

Of course, every teenager in America thinks that they can be an influencer. But, like rock stars, only a tiny few make it to the top.

7 posted on 05/08/2022 12:48:25 PM PDT by Drew68 (Ron DeSantis for President 2024)
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To: thecodont

I don’t follow influencers on tik tok, but judging by the increased amount of stuff for sale on my local buy/sell groups, people are realizing the bad times have arrived.


8 posted on 05/08/2022 1:16:25 PM PDT by sockmonkey (Conservative. Not a Neocon.)
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To: thecodont
...TikTokers have a tip: Just use “buy now, pay later” services, the hottest new way to take on debt.

Oh, you mean like student loans?

9 posted on 05/08/2022 1:17:00 PM PDT by Obadiah ("America is facing a winter of severe illness and death." Biden's own summary of his America.)
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To: thecodont

"If you can't afford it...F______ FINANCE IT!"

10 posted on 05/08/2022 1:17:51 PM PDT by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
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To: SamAdams76

The easiest and surest way is to post daily on FreeRepublic.


11 posted on 05/08/2022 1:22:57 PM PDT by ProtectOurFreedom (Instead of criminalizing guns, we need to criminalize criminals)
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To: thecodont
...all you need to do now is complete your four payments.

And if not, everyone can watch your social credit score crumble. Especially the chicoms.

12 posted on 05/08/2022 1:40:33 PM PDT by Libloather (Why do climate change hoax deniers live in mansions on the beach?)
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To: Leaning Right

“The 21st century will be the Chinese century. You betcha.”

It will be theirs by default.


13 posted on 05/08/2022 1:43:04 PM PDT by The Antiyuppie (When small men cast long shadows, then it is very late in the day.)
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To: thecodont

“’Buy now, pay later’ is sending the TikTok generation spiraling into debt, popularized by San Francisco tech firms”

How can this be? I thought the “TicTok generation” consisted in 8 and 9 year olds. My thought is created by watching a few of the TicToc videos.


14 posted on 05/08/2022 1:46:39 PM PDT by upchuck (The longer I remain unjabbed with the clot-shot, the more evidence I see supporting my decision.)
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To: thecodont

in the past, the bills all just seemed to get paid, now...


15 posted on 05/08/2022 1:49:59 PM PDT by Chode (there is no fall back position, there's no rally point, there is no LZ... we're on our own. #FJB)
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To: thecodont

Oh look, it’s ray-ciss, too:

“Fountain also pointed out that people of color — already much more burdened by debt than white people — are especially likely to use the services. An analysis by financial data firm Morning Consult found that 28% of Black and Hispanic Americans signed up for at least one point-of-sale loan in January 2022, compared with 14% of white Americans. “


16 posted on 05/08/2022 2:13:06 PM PDT by dynachrome (I have the eye of a tiger, the heart of a lion, and a lifetime ban from the zoo)
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To: thecodont

While idiotic liberals panic over “climate change” or “gun violence”, it’s narcissism that will destroy this generation.


17 posted on 05/08/2022 2:42:09 PM PDT by noiseman (The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.)
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To: thecodont

You forgot the real key: pay someone who is technically savvy to set you up with thousands of “bot” followers, so that you have the illusion of popularity that is needed for the algorithms to start recommending you. That’s how all the c-list celebrities and wannabe influencers kickstart their social media followings.


18 posted on 05/08/2022 4:09:31 PM PDT by Boogieman
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To: thecodont

Don’t worry! Joe biden will “forgive” their debt.


19 posted on 05/08/2022 4:45:55 PM PDT by I want the USA back (Government, when allowed to expand, always ends up using its power, and our $, to protect its power.)
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