From TFA...
> resorts in the Maldives were swamped with influencer inquiries
> has faced such an overwhelming number of inquiries from “influencers” over the past six months that the hotel has stopped working with them
It's like saying you don't see the harm in email spam.
Like, there's no harm if the outcome is mutually beneficial... but you just have to know deep down that posting one picture of a beach out front of a resort for your 2,000 followers to see is not going to generate a worthwhile amount of interest in the resort in reality... But I think most "influencers" are completely deluded anyways, so maybe they really do believe that posting a couple vacation photos is of equivalent worth to the vacation itself...
It's like people who approach photographers and request that they work for free to "build their portfolio".
How about the 'influencers' work for free to build up more followers.
If you spend your own money to go on vacations and post videos / pictures, then you will get followers.