With the significance of social media growth, consumers are increasingly turning to influencers for their advice on brands and products
What is an Influencer?
Global Digital Statshot recently reported that around 40% of the globe’s population now use social media. This is a truly astonishing figure. As should be expected with the development of any other community, the online community also has its own pockets of niche groups and interest boards. No matter what you might be into, chances are there will be a Facebook page, a YouTube channel or a Twitter feed dedicated to feeding specialised content to its followers.
Now, for brands big and small, this is great news. These niche communities act as potential avenues through which their products can be marketed. No matter how specific a brand’s target demographic may be, there is sure to be a pool of interested consumers just waiting to lap those ads up.
Here’s where the influencer steps in. If there’s an individual who has gathered a following from one of these niche circles, then their voice can become instrumental in the way that group’s opinions or tastes evolve. If a brand aims to affect purchase decisions, increase awareness or even get a message to its target demographic, then the right influencer could do this job extremely effectively. The voice of the influencer is typically knowledgeable, trusted and therefore listened to above most others. Consumers understandably react better to personalities above faceless corporations.
What Kinds of Influencers are out there?
Of course, there are far more types of influencers out there than are worth mentioning. But, here is a rundown of the ones you should be concerned with:
Celebrities
Arguably the very first kind of influencer, celebrity endorsements have for a long time helped boost product sales. Despite their waning success and use, countless up-market brands still use celebrities to promote their latest goods.
Perhaps the waning use of celebrity endorsement can be attributed to the high costs involved and the lack of personalities who are actually willing to engage in these kind of initiatives. The resultant rise in social media endorsement may be to the fact that celebrity influencers tend to be unrelated to the product they are promoting. See Tom Hardy’s advertisement for Sky Mobile and Martin Freeman’s advert for Vodafone.
ARTICLE: More on Celebrity Endorsement
Industry experts and Thought leaders
An industry expert’s credibility most often comes from a place of qualifications, position, or experience on a topic. For example, Amy Dargan – the regular columnist for motorsport magazine, Bike Social – is considered to have a reliable opinion on all things bike related and would be the go-to industry expert to become an influencer for companies like Yamaha or Honda, for example.
Social media Influencers
Social media influencers make up the main bulk of marketing on these platforms. This is because their relationships to their followers is typically closer and more authentic than a brand’s relationship. The micro influencer, for example, is an individual whose following has gradually grown from nothing. Their fans have watched them blossom from an average layman to a revered voice in their particular field. This kind of relationship fosters close and trusted bonds, through which brands are keen to advertise their products.
The only tricky part of this however, is the necessity for the brand and the micro influencer’s audience to relate in interest. If there is any disparity or irrelevance between the product and the influencer’s followers, then the influencer is likely to turn down an endorsement proposal, for fear of jeopardising the size of their fan-base.
Today, micro influencers have been known to grow into fully fledged celebrities. For example, Danielle Copperman is a fitness and wellbeing Instagram influencer. She regularly posts content regarding health and exercise:
Bloggers and content creators
Another incarnation of the influencer is a content creator, such as a blogger or vlogger. Should a content creator frequently mention a product or brand in their posts, then that pool of followers will eventually become aware or even buy that product.
Thanks to their regular content on supercars, YouTube vloggers like MrJWW, Queen B and Shmee150 have become a leading voices in the online automotive world. Shmee150, for example, might be considered the perfect influencer for Ferarri or Porshe. He regularly posts content endorsing motoring events and other related news:
Want to win a pair of tickets to the World Premiere of #ROADTOGYMKHANA taking place in London on 27 March at 7pm ahead of the broadcast on @WatchInsightTV? Make sure to enter here #sp:
— Shmee150 (@Shmee150) March 20, 2018
Influencer Marketing: The Future of Marketing
Web content now has a significance that it didn’t always have. Social media accounts have become advertising instruments in their own right. For this reason, influencer marketing could be the future of marketing. It offers a less brash and more credible means to advertise products. It also ensures that the adverts themselves are reaching the desired demographics. Soon, influencer marketing could be part of every brand’s marketing strategy.
Find your celebrity talent or influencer, here.