Jet-setting off on a brand trip to an exotic locale has historically been an activity reserved for those with seven-figure follower counts. Nowadays, though, it seems any number will do.

A growing number of brands are adding regular customers to the guest lists of adventures to desirable destinations like Mallorca or Bora Bora, including influencer-founded beauty label Refy, skincare brand Topicals and cosmetics label Tarte, which developed a reputation online for its extravagant influencer trips. The term “community trip” has begun to pop up in place of “influencer trip” as brands bring a democratised aspect to events that once thrived on being exclusive.

Previously functioning as a setting for aspirational content to inspire purchases, the influencer trip began to have its drawbacks in recent years. As resentment over the perceived privilege of social media’s elite has grown, trips such as Tarte’s events in Dubai and Bora Bora began attracting backlash over the extremely lavish perks that came along with them, from flying business class to five-star hotel rooms stocked with clothes, beauty products and other gifts.

Now, brands are hoping that by inviting customers in to be a part of the experience, they’ll be able to not only avoid some of that negative attention, but also engage with their wider audience, increase user-generated content and create what marketers call “immeasurable” positive brand sentiment for customer retention. And while the average customer likely won’t generate the same sort of earned media or sales impact an influencer would, it brings different benefits, too.

“There’s always a lot of pushback on influencers. In a time where people don’t feel like they have a ton of money and there’s a recession happening, seeing people go on a trip and not having access to that doesn’t necessarily feel good,” said Natalie Holmes, the director of community and social impact at Topicals, which described a recent brand trip to France as a “community trip” with a combination of influencers and regular customers. The brand also recently brought customers on a trip to the Hamptons, and plans to continue to do so on all upcoming trips.

For Topicals, bringing customers on trips is a “‘need to have’, not a ‘nice to have,’” said Holmes.

Keeping Aspiration Alive

Influencer trips first emerged in the 2010s as an aspirational marketing tool. Attendees would take to social media to show off aesthetically pleasing photos of their luxury hotel rooms stocked with free beauty products and clothes, as well as the parties, dinners, spa treatments and workout classes they’d attend while they were there. Customers’ place was at home, attending vicariously through their phone screens.

But recently, online audiences — dealing with inflation and an increased cost of living — are less receptive to the conspicuous consumption the trips often put on display. It was something of an evolution to the backlash that began in the early days of the pandemic, when users accused influencers like Arielle Charnas of privileged or out-of-touch behaviour, travelling or receiving Covid-19 tests when they were still in short supply. When travel finally resumed, extravagant influencer trips were the next target of online ire. On TikTok, some commenters questioned why Tarte couldn’t bring essential workers like teachers or nurses on their trips instead of high-profile influencers like Alix Earle. Some brands began to tone down their trips as a result.

People “don’t want to necessarily be doing their mindless scrolling and be reminded, ‘Oh yeah, I can’t afford a trip to XYZ place’” said Halie Soprano, senior influencer marketing consultant at influencer marketing platform Traackr.

In 2023, Tarte began bringing regular customers on its “Trippin With Tarte” events – after receiving backlash for its Bora Bora trip, the brand pointed out that two of the attendees were customers who had won a contest to attend. A July 2023 visit to New York City brought 13 contest winners and their guests, as well as influencers, to a Beyoncé concert. Tarte founder and CEO Maureen Kelly said that they didn’t make the shift because of the backlash, but instead after receiving feedback from customers asking to come on the trips.

Community trips preserve all the trappings of an influencer trip – fabulous destinations and free stuff included — but remove some of the exclusivity that comes when it’s only mega influencers that are invited.

In late July, influencer Jess Hunt’s beauty label Refy hosted its first-ever brand trip in the format of a community trip, bringing a mix of micro-influencers and customers to an Instagram-ready villa in Mallorca, Spain. The brand stocked their rooms with free products and clothes, and took them to activities such as a natural wine bar and sound bath with Hunt over the weekend.

“We wanted it to be aspirational, understated. We’re not a garish brand anyway, but the villa wasn’t overly branded,” said Refy’s brand experience and PR manager James McKeown, who organised the trip.

Everyone’s an Influencer

While audiences have taken to questioning whether influencers deserve to be jet-setting to luxurious destinations, countless brands have determined over the years that the expense of the traditional influencer trip delivers a worthwhile return in earned media value, engagement, brand awareness and eventual sales.

With community trips, ROI is calculated differently in terms of both tangible results and sentiment. While the attendees don’t have the follower numbers to gain visibility for the brand, pre-event hype among a brand’s audience can be just as valuable. Benefit Cosmetics’ former digital director Lauren Spearman said in a recent viral TikTok video that a 2019 Benefit community trip had stronger engagement and positive sentiment than a separate luxurious influencer trip the brand held in the Maldives, which she said “completely alienated our customer.”

Brands are also bringing customers along for the planning process. Ahead of Refy’s Spain trip, it allowed followers on its Instagram broadcast channel to vote on the destination before opening up an application to attend that received over 4,000 applicants. Posts about the trip helped drive a 250 percent in its broadcast channel membership and earned a reach of 6 million views in three days. Topicals, meanwhile, asked people to share videos about why they wanted to attend the trip on social media.

Sentiment is another key reason to include customers on these trips, as regular peoples’ opinions on brands – both positive and negative – spread like wildfire on TikTok.

“The impact that it has for the company, and being a type of company that brings their customers, their loyal fans, to the trip, is actually kind of immeasurable,” said Holmes. “It’s brand loyalty, and it deepens that relationship and ultimately leads to customer retention.”

But given that only a tiny handful of customers will ever get to experience the trips, brands are working on creative ways to bring influencer trip elements to the masses. Tarte is currently doing a 25-city tour with a trolley that gives out free gift bags of full-size products to the first 500 attendees; it has given out $1.5 million in products so far. Topicals, meanwhile, hosts events such as pickleball and line dancing classes in US cities. And Refy held a promotion where it offered free glam sessions and photos to fans, photographing over 1,000 people in Los Angeles.

In the future, it appears likely that both influencers and customers will continue to get to experience trips, as both have their specific place in the influencer marketing ecosystem. Earlier this month, Topicals opened up applications for its next community trip, asking customers to create a 60-second TikTok or Instagram Reels video for the chance to receive a spot. And Tarte is not giving up on its Trippin With Tarte series.

“Like anything on social media, there are some outspoken voices that have strong feelings one way, but for every voice in one direction, there’s 10 times in another direction. And I see people being so happy for these influencers,” said Kelly.

But from now on, Kelly promises that customers will always be part of the equation.

“We will definitely always bring customers on to our Trippin With Tarte. We listened, we heard the feedback, and it was super successful, and we will do it forever more,” she said.