Red Light, Green Light: How An Influencer Vetting Tool Can Prevent A Major Marketing Catastrophe

In today’s fast-moving influencer marketing landscape, a single collaboration can catapult a brand to viral success or, conversely, trigger a public relations nightmare. Secure, Viral Nation's award winning vetting tool, provides brands with a structured way to evaluate influencer partnerships and anticipate potential reputational challenges. 

By analyzing social media history, public commentary, and multimedia content, such tools can offer a “traffic light” framework highlighting potential risks (red), cautionary areas (yellow), and safer opportunities (green). While human judgment remains essential, tools like Secure give brands guidance to make informed decisions. 

The following ten examples illustrate how such an approach could help brands navigate influencer partnerships more safely.

Kanye West (Ye)

Verdict: 🛑 RED LIGHT

Analysis: Kanye West has been associated with alleged hate speech and numerous controversial statements, creating a highly volatile reputational profile. While he has significant cultural influence and reach, partnering with him carries substantial risk due to unpredictable public reactions. Audience sentiment can be polarizing, and multimedia content may include material perceived as offensive.

 Brands must carefully weigh whether potential engagement justifies exposure to negative publicity. Vetting frameworks can flag these high-risk scenarios and help marketers prepare, though some campaigns targeting niche or bold audiences might still attempt strategic collaborations with extraordinary caution.

Platforms: Instagram, X (Twitter), YouTube
Focus Area: Music, Fashion, Culture, Politics

Kim Kardashian

Verdict: 🟡 YELLOW LIGHT

Analysis: Kim Kardashian’s content is generally aligned with lifestyle, fashion, and beauty brands, but her past controversies warrant caution. Allegations include promoting unrealistic body standards for women and young girls, as well as criticism for certain campaigns considered ethically questionable or insensitive. 

While her audience remains large and highly engaged, and her mainstream appeal is strong, brands should carefully evaluate campaign alignment and messaging. Tools like Secure Tool can provide guidance on risk factors and audience sentiment, helping marketers take a calculated approach. Kim represents a cautionary “yellow-light” scenario, high potential reach, but with reputational nuances to consider.

Platforms: Instagram, X, TikTok
Focus Area: Lifestyle, Beauty, Fashion, Entertainment

MrBeast

Verdict: 🟢 GREEN LIGHT

Analysis: MrBeast’s content (philanthropic stunts, family-friendly challenges, and high-energy entertainment) tends to be low-risk for brand partnerships. His audience is highly engaged, particularly among Gen Z and millennials. 

Tools like Secure Tool can provide guidance on audience alignment and highlight potential minor risks, but overall, his brand-safe content makes him an appealing partner for campaigns seeking large, active audiences. While no influencer is without some risk, MrBeast’s track record and content style make him a dependable choice.

Platforms: YouTube, Instagram, TikTok
Focus Area: Entertainment, Philanthropy, Challenges, Lifestyle

Machine Gun Kelly (MGK)

Verdict: 🟡 YELLOW LIGHT

Analysis: Machine Gun Kelly, known for his music, acting, and high-profile celebrity relationships, presents both opportunity and caution for brands. While his large following and cultural relevance make him a strong engagement driver, his public persona has been shaped by past controversies, including public feuds, provocative lyrics, and outspoken behavior that sometimes polarizes audiences. 

Content associated with MGK can occasionally be edgy or confrontational, which may not align with more conservative or family-focused campaigns. Brands considering a partnership would need to weigh the potential reach against reputational risk, and tailor messaging carefully. In some contexts, MGK’s influence could amplify campaigns significantly, but careful planning and brand alignment are essential to mitigate any negative backlash.

Platforms: Instagram, TikTok, YouTube
Focus Area: Music, Acting, Lifestyle, Pop Culture

Charli D’Amelio

Verdict: 🟢 GREEN LIGHT

Analysis: Charli D’Amelio’s family-friendly, dance-focused content makes her a low-risk influencer for campaigns targeting younger audiences. Sentiment analysis shows overwhelmingly positive reception, and her audience is highly engaged. 

Tools like Secure Tool can help confirm brand fit and highlight audience demographics, but her content generally aligns with safe, lifestyle, and entertainment messaging. Collaborations are likely to deliver measurable engagement with minimal reputational risk.

Platforms: TikTok, Instagram, YouTube
Focus Area: Dance, Lifestyle, Entertainment

Gordon Ramsay

Verdict: 🟡 YELLOW LIGHT

Analysis: Gordon Ramsay is widely popular for culinary and entertainment content, but his well-known use of strong language and sharp critiques can introduce minor risks. Brands can use vetting frameworks to determine where contextual guidance or content review might be necessary.

 His appeal is high, but careful planning ensures that campaigns avoid potential misalignment or audience sensitivity issues. Ramsay presents a calculated opportunity where risk is manageable with thoughtful oversight.

Social Media Link: https://www.instagram.com/gordongram/
Platforms: Instagram, YouTube, X (Twitter)
Focus Area: Food, Entertainment, Lifestyle, Celebrity Chef

Tabitha Brown

Verdict: 🟢 GREEN LIGHT

Analysis: Tabitha Brown’s uplifting content focused on wellness, plant-based cooking, and lifestyle is highly brand-aligned and low-risk. Audience sentiment is consistently positive, and engagement is steady and authentic. Using vetting frameworks can provide brands with confidence in audience alignment and predictability of results. Her approachable and trustworthy persona makes her an ideal partner for campaigns emphasizing wellness, positivity, and lifestyle storytelling.

Platforms: Instagram, TikTok, YouTube
Focus Area: Lifestyle, Wellness, Plant-Based Cooking

Jake Paul

Verdict: 🛑 RED LIGHT

Analysis: Jake Paul’s history of public controversies, legal allegations, and polarizing content makes him a higher-risk influencer for most brands. Audience engagement is strong but highly divided, and potential for negative press is significant. Vetting frameworks can highlight these risks and help brands evaluate whether the collaboration aligns with their objectives. While some brands targeting edgy, younger audiences may find success, caution and strategic planning are essential to mitigate reputational exposure.

Platforms: Instagram, YouTube, TikTok
Focus Area: Entertainment, Sports, Controversy, Lifestyle

Addie Bowley

Verdict: 🟢 GREEN LIGHT

Analysis: Addie Bowley is a challenge-based content creator known for restaurant and product reviews that pit the worst locations against the best. His entertaining and relatable style generates millions of views across YouTube and TikTok. 

While his content appears low-risk, Secure could help his brand assess alignment with campaign goals and target audiences, providing general guidance on potential risks and engagement. Addie’s approachable, humorous content makes him a strong candidate for lifestyle, food, and experiential campaigns.

Platforms: YouTube, TikTok
Focus Area: Challenge-Based Content, Food & Product Reviews, Entertainment

Alex Ramos

Verdict: 🟢 GREEN LIGHT

Analysis: Alex Ramos is a former professional soccer player who has transitioned into a prominent soccer trainer, amassing over 2.6 million followers across his social media platforms.  He founded ART Soccer Training, a year-round technical soccer academy located in Monmouth County, NJ, specializing in developing fundamental skills and ball movement for players of all levels. 

ART Soccer Ramos's content includes high-level advice to improve one's game, interviews with top players, and showcases an athletic lifestyle. His background and expertise make him a reliable and positive figure in the sports community, aligning well with brands promoting athletic development and youth sports.

Platforms: Instagram, TikTok, YouTube
Focus Area: Soccer Training, Youth Development, Athletic Lifestyle

Stop, Go, or Think Twice: How Tools Can Guide Safer Partnerships

Influencer marketing has the power to generate enormous engagement, brand awareness and sales, but it also carries inherent risks. Tools and frameworks like Secure Tool provide marketers with a structured approach to evaluating potential partnerships, offering a “traffic light” framework that highlights red-light, yellow-light, or green-light scenarios. 

While higher-risk influencers may still yield strong results in the right context, understanding potential reputational exposure helps brands make informed decisions. These tools offer general guidance, allowing teams to assess audience alignment, content suitability, and past behavior before committing to collaborations.

 By combining this insight with strategic planning, marketers can navigate the fast-moving social media landscape more confidently, protecting brand integrity while maximizing reach, engagement, and ROI in campaigns that are both effective and thoughtful.