An ice cream truck owner has clapped back at a multitude of requests for free soft-serve from people claiming to be social media influencers. Joe Nicchi, owner of CVT which is named for its available flavors of chocolate, vanilla, and twirl, said “I’m truly embarrassed for these people … I’m not really 100% 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.”
The owner posted a sign on his CVT truck stating “Influencers pay double” in an effort to ward off future requests for free ice cream.
Nicchi took to Instagram to make the new rule official in a post that was captioned, “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.”
In another post, Nicchi shared the type of request he hopes to avoid in the future under his new policy. The caption stated, “If it’s public knowledge that anyone can purchase followers and likes, then why does an ‘influencer’ hold weight? Let’s make hard work ‘huge right now.’ Let’s make not asking people to work for free ‘huge right now.’ We are not impressed or influenced by your ‘following’ …yo u probably bought them.”
