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By Ishan Jindal
The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic has spawned strong growth in the adoption of influencer marketing. According to the stats – influencer marketing represents a Rs 900 crore industry in India and is being adopted ubiquitously by organisations especially those looking to boost customer trust in 2022. The trend started with firms in fashion, food, beauty, travel, among others in getting due recognition on social media platforms.
In the present market scenario, brands and marketers have realised the power of the influencer marketing model. By collaborating with creators on these platforms, companies are charting a direct route to their customers’ hearts. In addition, they are harnessing the potential of influencer marketing to diversify and maximise their reach to the target groups. Bolstered by long stay-at-home norms, consumers spend more time scrolling social media and creators have emerged as an integral component in building a sense of community. As a result, a positive review or recommendation by these creators influences the buying decisions of customers.
Influencer marketing is recognised for offering quicker turnaround time with extreme personalisation due to the shorter video content. This allows creators to share a bond of trust with their fans that brands and marketers leverage in reaching out to their target consumers. As a result, influencer marketing is undergoing a tremendous transformation, becoming a center stage for digital marketing.
Ease and scalability
Influencer marketing was largely considered a time-consuming and manual process. From finding the right fit of influencers, sending them product samples and briefing on content to disbursing payouts and tracking their performance is a tedious process. Every brand aims to captivate its target audience and permeate the consumers’ minds. As a result, simplifying and scaling the influencer marketing process becomes critical for any D2C brand. With the emergence of influencer marketing platforms integrated with new technologies, it becomes easier to connect marketers with a host of influencers within minutes, the process has been simplified. For instance – many leading brands from across different domains work with thousands of influencers simultaneously, manage them easily and run multiple campaigns.
Accountability
Nowadays, maintaining a professional relationship has become a major responsibility considering the market competitiveness. It requires more accountability and transparency to retain professional networks from the beginning itself. Accountability is a prerequisite for both sides in the new influencer marketing. Eleventh-hour dropouts from influencers and last-minute cancellations from marketers hamper the success of a marketing campaign. Influencer marketing platforms ensure accountability by allowing marketers and influencers to choose each other based on ratings, history and performance analysis. As a result, neither the influencer nor the marketers feel deceived.
Measurability
Long gone are the days when marketers cherry-picked influencers based on the count of their followers and engagement. Technology has shifted the focus towards data and has made the brands become more performance and result-oriented. As a result, marketers analyse data and performance metrics to optimise their spending. Data such as the traffic generated by influencer posts, conversion rates, repeat purchases, among others, can be analysed on influencer marketing platforms before hiring a particular influencer. Insights into measurable data help brands establish an appropriate budget and predict the success of their campaign.
Affordability and transparency
Brands of all sizes wish to run marketing campaigns and hire influencers to reach out to their target customers. Considering the dynamics of the present marketing landscape, marketers are leveraging the use of influencer marketing platforms to connect with a host of influencers, share transparent pricing, post requirements and hire influencers easily.
These platforms aim to remove middlemen and agencies and connect marketers with influencers directly. When prices are made visible, commissions are transparent with no hidden costs, both influencers and marketers can win from such platforms. As a result, brands don’t overrun their campaign budgets and transparency can be established among influencers and marketers.
Key Takeaways
The world of influencer marketing is constantly shifting and evolving. As new technologies revolutionize established processes and practices in every sphere, influencer marketing is not immune either. Strategies that worked in the past may no longer ensure the success of a brand campaign today. As the tide turns, marketers and influencers are moving towards more simplified, scalable, transparent, accountable and measurable processes. Influencer marketing platforms are reforming and reorganizing the influencer marketing industry and the inclusion of these practices is set to cultivate trust in the brand and among influencers, marketers and consumers.
The author is founder and CEO, Wobb
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