In the era of digital life and social media dominance, influencer marketing has taken the next step and become a strong pillar for brands to connect with the audience at a much deeper level. Over a period of time, even this form of marketing has changed a lot of shapes and undergone various changes such as platform algorithms, consumer behavior, technological advancements, presentation style, etc. However, there is a steep rise in the slope of this and it is interesting to explore the tits and bits of the same and the kind of strategies that may shape its future. Let us explore all of these in-depth and understand what effect they generate among people, brands, and overall marketing.
Rise of Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing is not a new concept, in fact, historically most of our celebrities were involved with various brands and advertised those on different channels such as TV, radio, in-person shows, etc. so, this is not something new in the market and been existed for a long time. It’s just that face and the platform is a little different now. The rise of various digital platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, etc. has completely changed the landscape. Now, advertising is in ordinary hands too, individuals with a good influence in the market with a good size of followers can take a chance of advertising the products and services on their platform. This democratization of marketing gave birth to the era of influencer marketing. As these individuals started spreading their wings and developed some genuine followers, brands realized the potential of collaborating with these individuals to penetrate deeper into the market to gain more trust and reach the targeted audience authentically. Another strong point is that individuals have more followers in their demographics which gives another helpful vertical to stand upon and the brands get easy access to those untapped markets as well. With the trust and the bond built by influencers with their audience, brands could tap into a more receptive market.
Evolutionary Phase
- Authenticity over Glamour – Earlier this market was entirely tapped by celebrities or business tycoons as those are the people who have great following but somehow brands fail to establish a deeper connection with the customers, as it is represented more glamorously and fake, thus failed to build the trust with the audience. This is where micro-influencers with a following less than celebrities come into the picture, regardless of having less no. of the audience, they win the game and now brands prefer those influencers as an audience face due to their well-established authentication.
- Platform Diversification – It is not just an Instagram or Facebook in the market, there are various options available. YouTube has its shorts which is a well-defined way of putting things up, it also offers long-term engagement and in-depth reviews. This is a highly common thing now that whenever anyone wants to buy something whether it is an earphone or a shampoo, the first search goes to YouTube asking for a detailed end-to-end review and this is where a common individual with a good no. of subscribers hit the game and this is also highly useful as the comment or review is straight away coming from the consumer ground itself rather than some celebrity. Coming to platforms such as TikTok or Instagram offers short and interactive videos to deliver the content as quickly as possible. This is a great way to market multiple products in a short time.
- Brand image – These influencers are not just a face that represents the products but have built their face value based on their work, their public engagement, etc. Considering these points, brands and businesses, they approach their like-minded influencers or those whom their brand values match with. Whether it’s fitness, beauty, gadgets, etc. brand approaches those whose work is aligned with one of these products to establish a deeper and authentic connection with the audience.
- Data-driven decision – Since digital platforms provide insight on various metrics such as engagement rates, profile reach, clicks, conversion rates, click rates, etc. it is easy to get the data on a particular post that can be further analyzed to check the effectiveness of the post. These advanced analytical tools enable brands to calculate the trend and allow them to refine their strategies for optimal results.
What’s Next in Influencer Strategies?
- Long-term collaboration – Instead of just one or two collaborations, brands are more likely to invest in long-term collaboration with the influencers as regular and consistent partnerships will help generate trust and authenticity so they become genuine advocates rather than just one-time endorsers.
- AI influence – As the technology is increasing, there are AI versions of influencers that are popping up in the market which brands may leverage to connect with the audience on a much deeper level but this is yet to be explored. It might or might not provide results as expected. The benefit would be to train the AI as per the brand requirement but that again would lose the authenticity.
- Purpose-driven marketing – In the future, this domain will be dominated by purpose-driven marketing. Brands will approach only those influencers whose motive, and purpose are well aligned with the brands and this way brands and audiences will resonate more with the audience.
- Immersive technologies – In the future, influencers are more likely to use immersive content and AR items to be included in the marketing to connect more on a deeper level. Creating virtual product demonstrations or showing their live effects with immersive storytelling campaigns enhances the overall user experience.
Conclusion
In summary, influencer marketing has a long way to go, and new strategies will emerge with new technologies. Going ahead those brands that adapt to this kind of changes and embrace the new era will continue to harness the power of influencer marketing effectively, driving engagement, building trust, and ultimately achieving their business objectives.
