Being an “influencer” can mean big bucks, and not just for you but for the business you talk about on your social media feeds. Arguably the most popular influencer in the world is Kim Kardashian who charges around $500,000 for a promotional photo on Instagram. It’s a hell of a way to make a living, and she’s leading a slew of people to try to lead the same kind of lives…or at least attempt to.

Many people consider themselves “influencers” and as a result, attempt to exchange their popularity for cash or free stuff. The idea is that their talking about something on their Twitter feed or Instagram will immediately result in more business for the subject being discussed. Truth be told, it actually works, but not everyone is as influential as they think they are.

In fact, they’re really just entitled brats who are more self-important than they are important.

That’s why one ice cream vendor is taking a stand and charging influencers who try to get their ice cream free double the price.

“We’ve decided to make this thing official with signage. We truly don’t care if you’re an Influencer, or how many followers you have. We will never give you a free ice cream in exchange for a post on your social media page. It’s literally a $4 item…well now it’s $8 for you,” said CVT Soft Serve in Los Angeles in an Instagram post.

I posted this on @reddit about one of my favorite food trucks @CVTSoftServe and their stance on influencers. It got some traction.https://t.co/BwmzBujxM0

— Rick Cortes (@rickcortes) July 1, 2019

The stand against “infludencers” has caught national attention and CVT’s declaration has been covered by various news outlets, including People and Newsweek.

The business’s owner, Joe Nicchi told time that he’s inundated with requests by influencers for free product every week.

“I’m truly embarrassed for these people,” Nicchi told People. “I’m not really 100 percent sure what they actually do, and their followers, likes, and comments can all be purchased, so I have trouble looking at them as being reputable.”

“I’m sure there are some legitimate ‘influencers’ out there, but we haven’t come across any at our trucks or through event requests,” he added.

Nicchi told People that he “received a request for an event to comp them 300 servings in exchange for “exposure”…I believe that’s an influencer’s favorite word.”

As a guy who has had businesses request free work in exchange for “exposure,” I can tell you that it really doesn’t pay the bills. The people offering up “exposure” aren’t getting paid in exposure themselves. It’s essentially you doing all the work and them benefiting from it at no cost.

I’ve played Oregon Trail enough to know you can die from exposure.

We currently live in a culture where you can be famous for being famous, and it’s creating a group of people who attempt to utilize their popularity in getting what they want from people who aren’t as popular. This would be like the popular kid in school telling the nerdy kid that they’d hang out with them for an hour for money in order to increase their standing.

Only many of these “popular kids” aren’t as popular as they think they are. In fact, they’re the most annoying people in the cafeteria.