Influencer marketing is becoming a widely used strategy for online promotion. For some time now, it has been a buzzword, and the mainstream media frequently makes use of it. However, there are still some people who are confused about influencer marketing.
A decade ago, only a small number of devoted bloggers and famous people participated in influencer marketing. We now seem to have witnessed the rise of social media influencers, their saturation of the market, and even their involvement in some frauds.
If you’ve looked into influencer marketing before, you may have come across inconsistent advice, with suggestions ranging from using social influencers without a doubt to saying they’re not vital for growth.
Influencer marketing, at its core, is a form of social media promotion that relies on recommendations and mentions of products from influencers—people who have a sizable social following and are recognized as authorities in their field.
Influencer marketing is effective because social influencers have established a high level of trust with their followers, and recommendations from them provide social evidence to potential customers for your business.
Let’s first clarify the fundamentals before studying the top influencer marketing trends in the current year.
What is Influencer Marketing?
Simply described, an influencer is somebody who has the power to affect how others behave. Influencers are people who work with brands to market goods or services to their audience in the context of marketing.
Influencers are more crucial than ever since word-of-mouth praise and criticism now travel via social media like fire in a parched field. They frequently have substantial social media followings and promote both certain niches and brands.
Influencer marketing, as previously mentioned, promotes products using celebrities, athletes, bloggers, and other influential people. Influencers are people with sizable social media fan bases who can sway their audience’s opinions.
Influencer marketing is a strategy used by brands to promote their goods and services through endorsements, freebies, and sponsored commercials. Through paid or unpaid posts, they can also significantly increase brand exposure and loyalty.
The objective is to persuade people to impart insightful knowledge and generate interest in a specific subject, good, or service. The main advantage for brands is that they may advertise more effectively than in the past while spending less money.
What are the different types of influencers?
Influencers come in a variety of forms. Influencers might be famous people with millions of followers or regular people with a small number of followers. Depending on the size of their audiences, influencers are typically divided into one of the four groups listed below.
- Nano-Influencers
The smallest audience size belongs to nano-influencers, who have 10,000 followers or fewer. These persons might be rising influencers or subject matter experts in extremely specialized fields. Despite having modest viewership, they have tremendously engaged viewers. - Micro-Influencers
Micro-influencers might have an audience of 10,000 to 100,000 followers. These individuals frequently have sizable and active audiences and are specialty specialists. Since they are not well-known, you might pass them on the street without realizing who they are. - Macro-Influencers
The audiences of macro-influencers range from 100,000 to 1 million followers. These influencers have some of the largest audiences and are among the easiest to approach. They typically are influencers who were born online or B- or C-list celebrities who have put in a lot of effort to grow their following. - Mega-Influencers
The largest audiences belong to mega influencers. For an influencer to qualify as a mega influencer, they must have at least 1 million followers. Think of Ryan Reynolds or the Jenners as examples of celebrities who have achieved offline renown and successfully converted it into online riches.
How does Influencer Marketing work?
Traditional advertising fails far too frequently. Only 27% of people think the web ads they encounter are pertinent to them, and only 4% of customers think advertisers are trustworthy. In other words, communications that are unimportant to customers are frequently presented to them by sources they don’t trust.
On the other hand, influencer marketing enables brands to naturally enter the debate. There is a built-in level of trust between influencers and their audience, and in certain circumstances, the influencer has already advertised goods that their audience has used and enjoyed.
As a result, their recommendation is more credible than one from a traditional advertisement or an online banner. Why? Because their followers have likely grown to believe that they wouldn’t recommend something to them unless they believe in it.
Influencer marketing can be explained in the simplest terms by saying that someone will promote a product or brand on social media in return for a commission, gift card, or another financial reward. But there’s a lot more to it than that!
How influencer marketing operates is as follows:
- An influencer collaborates with a company.
- The influencer uses social media to advertise the brand.
- The influencer receives a tiny percentage of the sale when a follower makes a purchase.
- As a result, the brand has increased sales and gained more fans!
Who are the most successful social media influencers?
You may be wondering which influencers are the most successful after hearing so much about them. It’s only reasonable to be curious about who is at the top of the charts since there is a lot of money to be made in the sector!
The following individuals are some of the most effective influencers active today:
- Kylie Jenner (@kyliejenner)
- Huda Kattan (@hudabeauty)
- James Charles (@jamescharles)
- Kayla Itsines (@kayla_itsines)
- Lilly Singh (@lilly)
- Khloe Kardashian (@khloekardashian)
What are the top Influencer Marketing trends to watch in 2022?
The year 2022 has a lot of promise after years like 2020 and 2021, which saw firms scurrying to alter their marketing and advertising campaigns to connect with a consumer base that was unexpectedly stranded at home.
Businesses have discovered the benefits of operating virtually, but more and more customers are also using the internet to fulfill their eCommerce demands.
Additionally, because several conventional marketing strategies were ineffective in addressing the effects of a worldwide epidemic, corporations looked for influencers and content producers that are skilled at producing reactive content.
Influencers saw a significant 46% increase, which is amazing considering that the IPA reported a 20% reduction in advertising overall. Influencers have seen a brightening of the spotlight because of this.
So let’s get started with the influencer marketing trends you can rely on to keep your brand growing all year long.
- Nano and micro-influencers will become more popular
Because they have tens of millions of followers, influencers are frequently referred to as social media celebrities. Massive followings, however, are no longer as important when recommending products.
The majority of brands are currently collaborating with nano- and micro-influencers. They have a very discerning audience and a specialized community, making them perfect for influencing consumer decisions. - Live shopping will be a new phenomenon
Throughout 2021, live shopping gained traction, and it will do so into 2022. On their preferred social media platforms, influencers and other important thought leaders use live video and interactive content to market products to their communities.
According to projections, live-streaming sales are expected to surpass $500 billion by 2023. Considering how customer behavior and preferences are changing, collaborating with social commerce, fashion, and lifestyle influencers is a good method to provide content that is tailored to the needs of the audience.
- Creator-focused marketplaces will become common
TikTok’s Creator Marketplace made it simple for companies and creators to work together on campaigns after it started. Instagram wasn’t far behind either.
Instagram announced: “We’re releasing a suite of new tools that let creators and companies connect and interact on Instagram through brand collaborations, commerce, and more.” Instagram acknowledged the need for more creator tools.
- Video content will rise further
Instagram Reels and TikTok are becoming more popular. For niche communities, brief videos are incredibly compelling. In light of this, small firms in this sector should prioritize influencer marketing in 2022.
Keeping your content strategy flexible is the best way to tackle video. Allow your collaborators to express their creativity. Sincerity is rewarded on Instagram and TikTok. Perfectly crafted material repels audiences. As a strategy to engage with your community, concentrate on offering valuable and pertinent material.
- Podcasts will be the new engaging format
Do you believe that audio content is no longer in demand? If the answer is yes, you are, my friend, missing out on one of the major influencer trends of 2022.
- Influencer partnerships will be long-term
Brands are spending money on long-term connections with influencers. One-off marketing collaborations will always have their place, but ambassador programs are more likely to help businesses forge sincere bonds with their customers. These collaborations make use of influencer knowledge that gains trust over time.
Driving a long-term brand partnership can be your company’s next step. Influencers strengthen favorable brand connections when they promote various parts of their relationship consistently. As a result, action is stimulated, and patronage of the brand rises.
- Diversity & representation will have a greater emphasis
Recently, diversity and representation in society have received more attention. Therefore, it is not surprising to see this influencer marketing. Even influencer agencies exist that are committed to increasing representation.
Today, to make sure everyone is represented, influencers and consumers examine branded messages and initiatives. Companies can change their company cultures to emphasize inclusiveness and get rid of any indications of exclusivity.
- Performance-based deals will increase
As companies and influencers look for long-term collaborations, performance-based influencer marketing will probably become more prevalent. Customers will therefore anticipate influencers to fulfill their commitments, such as a predetermined volume of clicks or sales. Influencers who are faced with performance-based contracts might wish to think about converting them into regular royalties rather than taking a one-time payment. Before agreeing to anything and before promising a certain return, you should carefully read the contract you are about to sign.