Influencer marketing is one of the most important aspects of today’s marketing campaigns, especially for businesses that care about influencing decisions that come to what buyers want, which brands they can trust and the latest products people should be aware of. While not many businesses might care or worry about influencer marketing, it is because many still don’t know how much influence they truly have on people’s behavior.
While the idea of people being influenced by celebrities and other well-known people has always been around, it is the new trend where people can quickly rise to become social media influencers that are new. That is what makes influencer marketing attractive and interesting. It shows how old methods have quickly become adapted to new changes in technology and how people like doing their shopping and other business dealings.
Businesses need to adapt to this new rise and change in people’s perceived celebrities. Musicians and actors are not where people go to choose their new coffee machines or their new workout clothes. While yes it is still mostly influenced by celebrities and that is why brands like Yeezy have quickly become a billion-dollar businesses, it still shouldn’t take the attention away from other people who excel in their sports and are able to attract many who quickly become attached to what they are wearing while they compete and win.
Influencer marketing has been around for quite some time, and strategies are starting to differ. Influencers are no longer always openly sponsoring products and services, but they are also sponsoring products that they are using in their everyday life. One of the popular new strategies now is allowing influencers to integrate products into their lifestyle, and therefore when they sponsor it they are talking more from their own experience, making the ad more convincing and familiarizing the audience with the brand over the long term.
Influencer marketing no longer depends on the perfect shot from the perfect camera. Things that are too bright or too shiny are all over the internet. People now care more about photos that look authentic. Influencers who take photographs in front of a mirror in their homes, or in clothes they wear casually walking down the street. Pictures capture the mood and feelings of influencers as they go throughout their day, and how they are just normal people who are sometimes able to give us advice that can help us in everyday life.
Influencer marketing is effectively executed through several popular platforms, most notably Instagram(which recently introduced reels), TikTok, and clubhouse. Changes in platforms like Instagram shows it introducing reels and shifting its focus to video, and the rising popularity of TikTok shows what people are really interested in. Fashion is now advertised through short videos, as well as other products and services like wine, sports, and new phones. What matters the most to people who are sponsoring their business through influencers is how authentic the influencer is with their audience. How powerful they really are with their audience, are they trusted? Is their advice taken seriously? How much influence do they have in a certain segment of the market?
In order to ensure that authenticity remains intact, businesses should target influencers that have the audience they already desire, instead of trying to get into a market where people just don’t care about what is being offered, and therefore will quickly lose interest in what they see. The sponsored ad should be similar to the rest of the influencers’ content, or complementary.
Influencer marketing, although expensive most of the time when compared with other forms of online marketing, has always proven to have a big impact on people, whether negatively or positively. That is why it’s always important to make sure that it is done correctly, and not just using an influencer with too many followers who aren’t really interested in what they have to offer. An influencer might have many followers for his sense of humor for example, and not many will care if he is dressed fashionably or is offering skincare advice. The influencer marketing strategy is important and here to stay, using it is important, for both growing businesses and those that want to stay in the public’s eyes. There is nothing to replace it anytime soon except brands that are directly made or supported by famous people, and therefore it is critical to keep in mind that there will be a point where using an influencer can be a lifesaver for your brand or business.