• by Maria Bailey , Columnist, Yesterday

Arizona State University recently announced a new degree: bachelor of content creation.  The program promises not only to teach students video editing and branding, but also how to become an influencer.

I have no issue with the degree. In fact, I think many of those skills are incredibly valuable in today’s media landscape. But there is one thing you cannot teach someone in a college classroom: how to be influential.

Call me old-school, but influence is not a job title. Influence is a behavioral effect.

We have turned the word influencer into a profession, when influence itself has always been something much more human. It is the effect one person has on the thinking, decisions or behavior of another person because a relationship exists between them.

Influence is built through trust, shared experiences, expertise, credibility, communication and, sometimes, simply being the person someone else relates to.

You can teach someone how to shoot a better video. You can teach storytelling, editing, social media strategy, analytics, search optimization and brand partnerships. You can teach someone how to understand an algorithm or build a content calendar.

But you cannot hand someone influence at graduation.

More importantly, nobody is influential about everything.

A mom may have tremendous influence within her circle when it comes to choosing a preschool because she has three children and has researched every option in town. That same person may have absolutely no influence over what car her friends purchase.

A fitness creator might influence thousands of people when it comes to workout routines, but have little credibility recommending financial services.

This distinction matters enormously to marketers. Too often, brands select influencers based on audience size and engagement rates rather than asking the much more important question: Does this person have influence over people making a decision about my field?

Real influence is contextual.

It can come from expertise. It can come from experience. It can come from leadership within a community. It can come from being the friend who always discovers the best products first or the parent everyone calls when they need advice.

In most instances, influence comes from circumstances that could never be replicated in a classroom.

There is another important piece we often overlook: You do not get to decide that you are influential. Other people decide that, and they don’t base their decision on a person’s college degree.

I think ASU is onto something important with this program, but the language surrounding influencing deserves more consideration.

The creator economy absolutely needs educated professionals. Content creation is a legitimate career requiring increasingly sophisticated skills in storytelling, production, analytics, business development and marketing.

Teach students all of that.

Teach them how to create compelling content and how to build communities. Teach them how to understand audiences, negotiate contracts, analyze performance and operate a sustainable creator business. But don’t tell them a degree can make them influential.

Call it what it actually is: a bachelor’s degree in content creation.  Content can be taught.  But influence can only be earned.