The Future of Influencer Marketing
As you scroll through Instagram, you’ll notice how influencer marketing has become a part of everyday content. At first it doesn’t feel like an ad at all. It feels like they are just putting out a suggestion. Almost a friend who is passing along info on a product. That is what influencer marketing is based on — trust. But recently it has changed. Almost every post is sponsored. Every creator is a walking ad. At some point you have to ask yourself is this still about that trust or has it just become hype?
Understanding Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing is that which brands do to reach out to individuals which have large social media followings to talk up their products or services. These influencers range from the famous to the niche content creators which may have a smaller but dedicated audience.
We see this different from traditional advertising. What we put out through influencers is more personal. It is integrated into regular content which in turn means that people do not always realize they are looking at an ad.
And that is what made it so powerful to begin with.
Why Did it Become So Popular?
The biggest reason is simple — people trust people more than brands.
Many people do not pay much attention to mainstream advertisements since most know that the purposes of advertisements are to promote products or services. However, user-created content makes the endorsement of the product feel more genuine due to the fact that it appears the user used the product. Social media has dramatically changed the landscape for advertising as well. The evolution of social media platforms (such as Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok) has fostered and supported the creation of small communities around individual creators; these communities often become loyal followers of the creator due to the creators’ personalities or opinions, and not solely based on the type of content that the creators provide.
At that stage, influencer marketing actually worked really well. It was relatable, subtle, and effective.
The Trust Factor: What works.
One of the greatest assets of influencer marketing is that it comes off so naturally.
When a creator brings up a product in their own words it doesn’t look like a hard sell, it is a part of what they are talking about. Also with the smaller influencers that connection is even better.
For instance when a fitness influencer reports on a supplement they are using which works for them it is easy to buy into. Or when a skin care influencer goes before and after it is very authentic.
I have that I pay more attention to creators which stick to a certain niche. When a person is consistent in what they post out — be it fitness, tech, or skin care their info seems more reliable.
Also it is why micro influencers are growing in importance. They may not have large followings but their audiences are very into what they have to say.
The other side: When Does It Stop Feeling Like Hype?
Then things begin to shift.
As influencer marketing got more successful, so did the amount of people doing it! Brands began working with multiple influencers at once, which meant that a product was being promoted by many creators at the same time.
That is when an influencer will no longer feel like a recommendation but rather part of a campaign.
It is common practice for a creator to promote one brand today, and then next week promote a competing brand. That’s when the creator’s trust is broken – it’s clear that their promotion was only paid for.
Over-promoting brands creates confusion between what an influencer actually likes and what they are being paid to promote.
I know I have experienced it first-hand, when multiple influencers promote the same product over time, it becomes repetitive and forced.
Real-Life Examples of Influencer Marketing in India
Examining how brands are actually implementing it in practice can help determine whether influencer marketing is founded on trust or marketing hype.
Plum Goodness is a good example of a skincare brand that uses influencer marketing to market their products rather than utilizing traditional advertising and celebrities for their campaigns. Instead of only utilizing celebrity endorsements, they worked with a variety of beauty influencers and bloggers to share their own skincare routines and experiences with Plum Goodness products. The campaigns for Plum Goodness have generated a lot of exposure and demonstrated the strength of influencer-generated content.
An additional unique attribute of Plum Goodness is that they didn’t just rely on high-profile influencers to promote their brand; they also encouraged average people who used their products to share their experiences with the products with smaller creators. This has helped create an authentic brand experience by providing the impression of community rather than just creating promotional material.
Additionally, I have seen numerous influencers promote Plum Goodness products. Although this expands the potential exposure for the campaign, it can create the perception that all of the influencers were participating in a coordinated effort.
An example would be boAt, who took a creative approach to influencer marketing. Instead of having influencers promote directly, they were provided with influencers creating content about daily products they use, their lifestyle and cricket-related events during IPL that felt more natural to audiences.
The examples above demonstrate that influencer marketing works, although it has to feel like something other than a forced promotion to succeed.
Conclusion
Influencer marketing is not completely dead, however, it is definitely going through some phases of evolution.
Today, audiences are more knowledgeable and skeptical than ever before. They can quickly identify when something is authentic and when it is straight advertisement. Therefore, brands and Influencers must become more cautious than ever before.
The success of influencer marketing ultimately lies in the brand’s ability to make the influencer connection seem authentic. As soon as an influencer connection begins to feel like it has pressured the influencer into making an endorsement, the connection has lost its value.
So perhaps it’s not just a matter of “building trust” or “creating hype” but rath