Ian Brownhill has amassed a huge following on social media by creating videos. His signature look in a hooded sweater and flip-flops drinking iced Dunkin’ coffee pokes fun at what he views as the stereotypical New England guy. And the Westerly native is cashing in on it.
A video he shot of himself brushing snow off a car the day before Halloween in 2020 while wearing a New England Patriots hoodie, flip-flops and shorts helped to elevate his profile and set him on a path to become a social media influencer. To date, he has amassed 1.3 million followers on TikTok and more than 266,000 on Instagram.
“When I first started, I was like, ‘How can I market myself so that brands want to work with me?’” Brownhill said. “And originally it was mostly because I wanted to create a name for myself in the acting world.”
Making money from videos
But Brownhill’s popularity on social media has become more than a way to get noticed as an actor. He has found a way to make a living creating videos full-time, working with companies like Dunkin’, Papa Gino’s and Iggy’s Doughboys & Chowder House.
“These companies will reach out to me. We’ll have a conversation,” Brownhill said. “They’ll say, ‘Hey, we would like 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 videos from you spread over the next couple months. We would like to talk about maybe some new products that we have. We’d like to talk about maybe some things that we’re doing for our local community. Would you mind commenting on that?.’”
Brownhill was making videos for almost three years before he earned any money from them. And even now, he says 90% of his videos are not sponsored.
A love of entertaining
“These videos I make because I love making videos, I love entertaining, and I’m going for a laugh. The fact that I’ve been able to fortunately get the following that I have and create the brand that I have is what attracts brands to want to work with me,” Brownhill said. “The common thread is 98% of the people that I work with are all New England-based.”
Brownhill’s mother said she is not surprised by her son’s success.
“And all my friends (say), ‘Your son is so good. Your son’s so funny. He’s so handsome,’” Sheila Bonner said. “I’m like, ‘Hey, he’s my son, so you don’t have to give me the handsome stuff. Stay away, old cougar.’”
Men’s mental health
While Brownhill is always looking for a laugh, he is also exploring how to use his social media fame to talk about another topic he cares deeply about — men’s mental health.
“A lot of people don’t know that I’m in therapy once a week, that I go and I talk about my emotions and my feelings and my struggles and things going on,” Brownhill said. “My mom always created an open-door policy for our family. So my mom has always been someone to say, ‘I know you’re upset. Don’t walk away. Sit here, let’s talk.’”
Future of digital marketing
Brownhill is not sure what his future as a content creator looks like, but he said the type of digital marketing that he provides is here to stay.
“I think the biggest misconception is that it’s not a career and that it’s not a job,” he said. “And that what I do isn’t hard and that it isn’t something that can be like sustainable.”
Brownhill said he is approaching the future one video at a time.
“I don’t know that I necessarily have a plan, but for now as long as people will have me on their screens of their phone, I would love to continue to entertain and be there for you,” he said.
