Local influencer Tony Neville, known as HeyTonyTV, finding success through social media

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- It's a new age and unless you've been living under a rock, social media has taken over.

By now millions of people all around the world are taking advantage of this and changing the business industry.

They're called influencers and we connected with local influencer Tony Neville, better known as "HeyTonyTV".

You might recognize his characters like 'The It girl' parody videos of artists like Kelly Roland, or one of the most popular, the administrator.

They're only a handful he has created online that has grown to millions of followers on several platforms.

"I was trying to bring something different to the reality of my videos so that way it's still funny but it's also relatable," he said.

He says the ideas for characters come off the top of his head, sometimes right as he wakes up and then films the same day.

Tony and the Better Business Bureau says the key is authenticity and it leads to the growing success people are finding as social media influencers world wide.

"Now, there's actually an estimated 50 million influencers across the world, and it's now over a $5 billion business," said Alyssa Parker.

It's changing the business industry.

"If you're a typical brick and mortar store, you're not only thinking of like, how can I get someone on via social media ads or a billboard, you're thinking, what influencer can I partner with, to really promote my products," she added.

Which can open doors and pay big bucks, Tony had a big first deal.

"It came from Nike and they reached out to me literally maybe 3 days before the shoot to film a commercial with a top rapper," he explained.

That rapper? Meg The Stallion.

"I worked hard for this like I've stayed persistent I've never given up I've never let anybody put anything in my ear that discourages me from doing what I wanted to do. I just kept doing it and to see all of these blessings just come out of nowhere it's just amazing," he explained.

Tony has really made a name for himself with a merch line and a new horror movie coming up.

The Better Business Bureau told me this has now become a bit of an over saturated industry, but not impossible to break into.

The biggest thing you want to be aware of are scammers pretending to want to work with you, but not following through.