How are brands and advertisers using
social media influencers to target audiences? What are the pluses and minuses
of using Instagram stars and YouTubers to promote products?Limit: 8
responses
“Influencer marketing has grown steadily in popularity over the past few years, and for good reason -- oftentimes, customers trust influencers over celebrities when choosing which products to buy, or which brands to endorse.” (Forsey, 2019)
Brands and Advertisers are using social media influencers to target their audiences in a very smart, effective way. Influencers are able to talk about products, use them, and show their viewers that they are real. This makes costumers more apt to purchase a product because their influencer said that it is good, and they have a form of trust with them. The relationship between an influencer and their viewer/subscriber is much stronger than that of someone just watching an advertisement on television.
Of course, with any form of advertising, there are both positives and negatives. The pros in my opinion outweigh the cons. First, this form of advertising really does work because of the level of credibility that comes along with it. influencers are also able to reach a specific audience, perfect for a brand. Brands can also advertise on a micro or macro level when using influencers which is imperative to get a brands name out there. The cons of social media influencers though are going with a wrong influencer. Depending on who the brand chooses it can cause problems if the influencer says rude language, not being appropriate, or misrepresenting the brand. Another con of influencer marketing is budget. “As the influencer market heats up, brands will need to spend more and more of their marketing budget on influencer marketing. This is probably not something they have a lot of control over, but is a consideration, particularly for small businesses.” (Springwise, 2020) Influencers can be paid little to lots of money. “Rates for a single sponsored post can run from $50 to more than $50,000, depending on the level of influencer. (Mic, 2019) Influencers who have a follower/subscriber base in the millions in making much more than that of someone with just 1,000. Of course, this sounds an easy job, but it is actually pretty tough. Lots goes on that people do not see. Working long hours, interacting with fans, hate comments, and criticism is just a few things an influencer has to deal with on the daily.
We can take Jeffery Star for example, Jeffery is the number three beauty influencer on Instagram with 8.8 million followers, not to mention his 17.4 million subscribers on YouTube. Jeffery deals with lots of hate comments as he is a male that likes to be identified as both he and she and is very into the beauty industry. It might seem like easy money to learn how to do makeup but there is just so much more than people don’t take into consideration.
References: Editors, M. (2019, February 13). How much money do influencers actually make? Retrieved from https://www.mic.com/articles/192799/how-much-money-do-influencers-actually-make
Pros and Cons: Social Media Influencers. (2020, January 6). Retrieved from https://www.springwise.com/pros-cons-social-media-influencers
Forsey, C. (n.d.). The Ultimate List of Instagram Influencers in Every Industry (135 and Counting!). Retrieved from https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/instagram-influencers
Influencer marketing and social media go hand in hand. With the rapid increase in social media usage since 2017, specifically regarding the usage of Instagram amongst young people, influencer marketing has skyrocketed. According to Influencer Marketing Hub, this efficient social media based marketing tactic is “expected to continue its upward trajectory this year to potentially become a $6.5 billion industry” (Influencer Marketing Hub).
According to Hootsuite, “it’s critical to work only with social media influencers whose vision aligns with your own,” which is how they target their audiences. With the wide variety of influencers on Instagram and YouTube today, companies can use specific influencers that are bound to generate interest in their products. For instance, beauty companies like Sephora or Mac use Jeffree Star and Michelle Phan to promote their new products—both of whom topped “The Ultimate List of Instagram Influencers in Every Industry,” (Forsey). Even major movie companies like Disney use influencers like The Bucket List Family and 5-year-old Claire Crosby—both recently have been using their platforms to promote Disney’s Frozen 2. These influencers get paid thousands, even millions of dollars for their involvement in social media marketing. One of the reasons for their massive paychecks is that “92% believe influencer marketing is an effective form of marketing,” revealing how powerful a simple Instagram post or YouTube video can be (Influencer Marketing Hub).
The reason for this industry’s success is because of the long list of positives that accompany using social media and users with millions of followers and subscribers to market a product. First of all, with influencer marketing, there is an “ease with which you can scale the activity,” meaning you can evaluate how effective your campaign is quickly and efficiently (Influencer Marketing Hub). It is also easy to expand or downsize a marketing campaign by adding more or decreasing the amount of influencers involved. With social media marketing, companies have the ability to reach thousands, and even millions of people from around the world. According to Mic Editors, influencers are valuable marketing tools because they “must understand their audience and put out content that is interesting and engaging” (Mic Editors). Since many users feel connected in some way to the influencers they follow or subscribe to, their promotion of a product is more effective than something like a magazine advertisement.
With the positives of influencer marketing, there are also a few negatives. First of all, a majority of the influencers used to market products on social media do not follow the guidelines set by the FCA and CMA. According to Influencer Marketing Hub, if influencers continue to brush off these guidelines, “there is a real danger that the FTC and CMA will start prosecuting, rather than just warning and educating” (Influencer Marketing Hub). There is also a challenge in finding appropriate influencers to promote specific products, something that can take a lot of time and research. Lastly, managing campaign contracts and deadlines can be difficult for companies, as well as the process of paying the influencers once they market something to their social platform (Influencer Marketing Hub).
Forsey, Caroline. “The Ultimate List of Instagram Influencers in Every Industry (135 and Counting!)” Hub Spot, 13 Aug. 2019. https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/instagram-influencers “How Much Do Influencers Actually Make?” Mic Editors, 13 Feb 2019. https://learn-us-east-1-prod-fleet01-xythos.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/5df1cdd432f98/4220691?response-content-disposition=inline%3B%20filename%2A%3DUTF-8%27%27How%2520Much%2520Do%2520Influencers%2520Actually%2520Make%25281%2529.pdf&response-content-type=application%2Fpdf&X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Date=20200225T160022Z&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&X-Amz-Expires=21599&X-Amz-Credential=AKIAZH6WM4PLTYPZRQMY%2F20200225%2Fus-east-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Signature=590560f403333be782a390875c197e680ecf91423dd1dd71674be2ff9d9e2cf2 “Influencer Marketing in 2019: How to Work With Social Media Influencers” Hootsuite, 2 May, 2019. https://blog.hootsuite.com/influencer-marketing/ “The State of Influencer Marketing 2019 : Benchmark Report,” Influencer Marketing Hub, 19 Feb, 2020. https://influencermarketinghub.com/influencer-marketing-2019-benchmark-report/
More brands today are utilizing social media influencers in order to target audiences via Instagram and YouTube. Instagram is one of the best channels for influencer marketing, because it continues to soar in popularity. The top Instagram influencer for 2020 is Amanda Cerny, who has a whooping 24.7 million followers! Overall, Instagram’s user base reached 1 billion in 2018, and their influencer market is now approaching $2.3 billion in 2020 (“30 Top Instagram Influencers”, 2020). Today, brands from all different categories imaginable are working with influencers in developing a brand campaign. In fact, 89% of marketers listed Instagram as the most important influencer marketing channel (“30 Top Instagram Influencers”, 2020). These Instagram stars are working in conjunction with top brands and advertisers on creative and impactful marketing initiatives.
Clearly influencer marketing is on the rise, but what benefits do brands receive from it? One reason is that influencer marketing allows you to build trust with a desired audience. Influencers speak to their loyal fanbase through their posts on Instagram or videos on YouTube. These followers grow to trust that influencer’s opinion. This means that once an influencer promotes a product, the followers will likely be intrigued (“Influencer Marketing”, 2019). In addition, influencer marketing can help a brand to reach a very specific group of people. For example, a fashion brand can work with fashion influencers in order to reach a greater number of individuals within a brand’s niche (“Influencer Marketing”, 2019). The brand won’t always need to spend top dollar either. Sure, some of the top influencers will demand a larger check. However, some micro-influencers will collaborate with brands in exchange for product samples, or some type of experience (“Influencer Marketing”, 2019).
Still, influencer marketing is not always a perfect system for every brand. One big reason is that many business traditionalists still do not know about influencer marketing, or trust it fully. There are still some businesses which rely heavily or even solely on traditional marketing methods. (“The State of Influencer”, 2019). The concept of influencer fraud can also be a red flag for brands who wish to use influencer marketing. In a 2019 survey, 64% of respondents said that influencer marketing fraud, or fake influencers concerns them in some capacity. In addition, 63% of respondents also said they had personal experience with influencer fraud in past campaigns. (“The State of Influencer”, 2019). Choosing the right influencer for your campaign may not always be a walk in the park either. On one hand, there are now so many different platforms and tools to assist brands in their influencer search. (“The State of Influencer”, 2019). However, only 20% of the respondents in the same 2019 survey, considered influencer selection as being easy (“The State of Influencer”, 2019). Without a brand aligning their campaign with an appropriate influencer, there’s a slim chance that the campaign will prove fruitful. It is clear that the desire for influencer marketing will only increase in the coming years. When it comes to promoting your brand through Instagram, YouTube, or other social media, there is much to be excited about. However, brands must also be aware of the challenges that come with influencer marketing, if they hope to be successful in their campaigns.
Works Cited
Influencer Marketing: Advantages and Disadvantages. (2019, June 7). Retrieved February 20, 2020, from https://homebusinessmag.com/marketing/internet-marketing/influencer-marketing-advantages-disadvantages/
The State of Influencer Marketing 2019: Benchmark Report . (2019, May 28). Retrieved February 20, 2020, from https://influencermarketinghub.com/influencer-marketing-2019-benchmark-report/
30 Top Instagram Influencers Who Rise Above The Rest In 2020. (2020). Retrieved February 20, 2020, from https://mediakix.com/blog/top-instagram-influencers/
Alexis Tinney Brands and advertisers using social media influencers to target audiences is becoming very common. The way they target these audiences is by picking an influencer that actually relates to or uses what the brand is selling. “They must be excited about their content and their posts must be real, authentic and honest” (Mic, 2019). When someone sees an influencer they admire using a product that can be a green light to them to purchase it. The goal of influencer marketing is to show people that this big or small influencer is using the product so it must be amazing. This builds trust between the customers and the influencer and makes them more likely to buy the product then if the brand itself was to promote it. In 2017 ninety two percent of marketers found influencer marketing to be effective. It is critical to keep up on the current trends by working with influencers and developing a strategic campaign (Forsey, 2019). Brands using influencers to promote content is still a fairly new trend therefore it comes with positives and negatives. One of the biggest positives would be gaining consumer’s trust. When followers seeing their favorite influencer promoting a brand they are going to be intrigued to try it. With that comes another positive which is discount codes. In some cases, brands pair up with the influencer and give them a discount go to share with their followers. Types of partnerships like those will not only boost engagement but gain new loyal customers that they wouldn’t have reached without that influencer. Another benefit when working with influencers would be hitting your target audience. Collaborating with an influencer in the same industry can lead to an increased audience (Influencer Marketing, 2019). Although in my opinion, there are not many disadvantages of working with influencers it is still important to highlight a few. Sixty-one percent of marketers struggle to find the correct influencer to represent their brand (Influencer Marketing, 2019). It’s not as simple as it seems to pick an influencer that will correctly represent your brand. Everything this influencer does is now part of your brand and its important to have full trust in the influencer you pick. Another disadvantage of working with influencers is not knowing the outcome. Just because an influencer has been successful in the past does not mean they will always be effective for your business. If your audience isn’t engaging with the influencer the money you invested may end up becoming a big profit loss (Influencer Marketing, 2019). Lastly, there is no set payment when using an influencer which can be considered a disadvantage. “The range of payment is so wide these days, I’ve personally done deals for hundreds of dollars and hundreds of thousands,” Micheli said. Rates for a single sponsored post can run anywhere from $50 to more than 50,000, depending on the level of the influencer (Mic, 2019). Overall, using social media influencers to promote a product can have a positive outcome or fans may not engage the way you expected.
Editors, M. (2019, February 13). How much money do influencers actually make? Retrieved from https://www.mic.com/articles/192799/how-much-money-do-influencers-actually-make
Forsey, C. (n.d.). The Ultimate List of Instagram Influencers in Every Industry (135 and Counting!). Retrieved from https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/instagram-influencers
Influencer Marketing: Advantages and Disadvantages. (2019, June 7). Retrieved February 20, 2020, from https://homebusinessmag.com/marketing/internet-marketing/influencer-marketing-advantages-disadvantages/
Social influencers are not something new but are on the rise for their credibility, reliability, and authenticity when endorsing products. Brands and advertisers are choosing social influencers to target their audiences based on the concept that opinions we can trust move us to action. The rise of social media has given power to the everyday consumer who has expertise in an area to endorse a product and be completely transparent. Most social influencers have started from nothing and do not have access to products other celebrity influencers have. They are perceived as down to earth people and known to be transparent. A perk in choosing an influencer is that they stay connected with their followers daily to keep the connection going, this allows them to build a greater relationship. The top reason that brands have been investing into influencers is because they have expertise in the area that they are endorsing. According to HubSpot’s Ultimate List of Instagram Influencers, influencers are in all industries. For brands who may not know what type of influencer may best fit their brand, HubSpot compiled a list of the top 10-20 influencers in every industry including: travel, food, beauty, fitness, and more (Forsey). Influencers thrive off of their authenticity, something you may not always see in celebrity endorsements.
Over the past five years, social influencers have become more popular and a great asset for brands to continue to grab consumer attention. By 2020, influencer marketing is projected to become a $10 billion industry (Bailis). The benefits of having influencers promote products are their ability to reach a relevant audience, the ability to grow your audience, and to build better credibility for your brand. While celebrity endorsements can reach a greater audience yet lack authenticity since they come with a high price tag. Celebrities can endorse any product however if it is “off-brand” it is less likely to be effective. What makes influencer so powerful today is their credibility in their niche industry. Makeup guru Jeffree Star is an example of an influencer who holds a high credibility standard in the beauty industry. Star began on YouTube posting makeup tutorials and product reviews, who later turned into an internet sensation building a beauty empire. Jeffree Star holds a lot of credibility in the makeup world, to receive a “Jeffree Star approved” review holds a lot of value in a brand's eye. With over 17 million YouTube subscribers (Socialblade), Jeffree Star can make or break a product’s success. The proof is in the pudding: “an influencer marketing platform reported that 92 percent of customers trust recommendations from strangers (i.e. influencers) over brand advertisements” (Weinswig). Consumers do not want to be lied to when being advertised a new product, they want organic content that they can relate to.
Alternatively, when choosing an influencer to promote your brand you want to make sure you are choosing a credible and reliable person. While it may seem like the more followers the better you need to stay make sure that their followers are real before investing into one. It is so easy today to buy followers as well as be followed by fake accounts. Doing your research into your influencer your best option to avoid damage to your company’s reputation. The last big con when looking at influencer marketing is that feeds are becoming so heavily saturated lately with sponsored content that their followers may not want to see it anymore. It is easy to unsubscribe/unfollow YouTube and Instagram profiles today that organizations and influencers must always make sure they are doing what is right for the overall brand.
Work Cited: Bailis, R. “Influencer Marketing Statistics in 2019 (Trends + Key Takeaways).” The BigCommerce Blog, 24 Jan. 2020, www.bigcommerce.com/blog/influencer-marketing-statistics/#what-is-influencer-marketing. Forsey, Caroline. “The Ultimate List of Instagram Influencers in Every Industry (135 and Counting!).” HubSpot Blog, 2019, blog.hubspot.com/marketing/instagram-influencers. Socialblade. “Realtime Youtube Subscriber Count.” SocialBlade, Feb. 2020, socialblade.com/youtube/user/jeffreestar/realtime. Weinswig, Deborah. “Influencers Are The New Brands.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 5 Oct. 2016, www.forbes.com/sites/deborahweinswig/2016/10/05/influencers-are-the-new-brands/#7f9d84d07919.
Influencer marketing allows brands and advertisers to hand pick the exact audience they’d like to target. Many influencers have developed niche communities that feel tight-knit. Brands have discovered that if they can advertise through an influencer, they can also hit their exact target market. For example, a traditional ad, like a TV commercial, can be strategically bought on a specific network but the audience of that network is still so large. When brands advertise through influencers, they are reaching a controlled audience that has already shown clear interest in their industry by following or engaging with said influencer.
Another positive factor of influencer marketing is that influencers have developed relationships with their followers. These followers trust the influencer’s opinions and are more likely to take action from an endorsed post. This is extremely beneficial in a time when “people no longer trust ads, but they do trust people” (Newman). From my own experience, I pay a lot more attention to the products advertised by influencers I’ve been following for a long time than any traditional ad I would see online.
The main downside to influencer marketing is that it’s still so new. This means that regulations are still being put in place and it’s easy for influencers and brands to mess up. Influencer marketing gets tricky when social media posts are not explicitly marked as endorsed. The FTC has published Endorsement Guidelines, but even those include a lot of grey areas. However, The FTC is “cracking down on influencers who don’t properly disclose paid partnerships”, which can mean trouble for the influencer, as well as the brands (Mic Editors).
Another disadvantage of influencer marketing is how expensive it is. Forbes says that “influencer-created content ranges anywhere from $500 to upwards of $20,000, or more, for each sponsored post”, but these numbers most likely refer to micro or macro influencers (Meltzer). Influencers who have traditional celebrity status and millions of followers can cost more in the range of millions of dollars.
In total, I think that influencer marketing is a huge industry for brands and advertisers to tap into. When someone that I’ve been keeping up to date with for years promotes sponsored content, it feels like a word of mouth recommendation. I put my trust in the influencers I follow and, most of the time, really believe that their sentiments about the products they promote are honest. Influencer marketing is the best way to get consumers to trust what people are saying about products.
Works Cited
Meltzer, Lauren. “Social Media ‘Influencers’ Add a New Twist to Advertising.” CBS News, CBS Interactive, 8 Feb. 2018, www.cbsnews.com/news/social-media-influencers-brand-advertising/.
Mic Editors. “How Much Money Do Influencers Actually Make?” Mic, Mic, 13 Feb. 2019, www.mic.com/articles/192799/how-much-money-do-influencers-actually-make.
Newman, Daniel. “Love It Or Hate It: Influencer Marketing Works.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 24 Aug. 2016, www.forbes.com/sites/danielnewman/2015/06/23/love-it-or-hate-it-influencer-marketing-works/#7589c606150b.
Social media is constantly changing. From new apps like TikTok to the classics of Instagram and Twitter, users can practically have the world at their fingertips. A recent social media trend has been the integration of influencers. These influencers are meant to work with brands and advertisers to target users and get more people invested in what the brand is attempting to promote. These ideas work in many ways because it allows for a more personal connection between the brand and consumer and it’s often less expensive than traditional advertising. However, there are also some negative impacts that can damage the brands reputation, or the popularity of influencing will grow and become more expensive than the old ways of advertising.
While many say that the influencer market is becoming less popular, there are many statistics that prove the opposite. The popular faces are certainly one reason, but a big example surrounds the well-known app Instagram. Instagram is the hub for social media influencers because the apps photo-heavy format allows for visuals and direct links to allow for more interaction between brands and audiences. According to a study done by Influencer Marketing Hub, Instagram’s usage statistics grew 10x over the span of 5 years. The study says, “Instagram is the fastest growing social network in 2019, continuing its phenomenal expansion in 2017 and 2018. Its older sibling, Facebook, may still have the largest user base, but Instagram is rapidly catching up” (IMH). The reason for this success is most likely the age demographic. Instagram is primarily younger audiences, which is the age range that brands are trying to reach. The study also determined the incredible increase in the number of new platforms and agencies active in the markets, with over 300 new “influencer marketing focused” groups.
There’s no doubt that influencers have done incredible things for social media, brands and audiences. One person I find to be the best at “influencing” is Liza Koshy. She initially got famous from an app called Vine and has since transitioned to YouTube and Instagram. According to mediakix, “She gained subscribers on the site rapidly, reeling in 6 million in 2016 and another 6 million in 2017. The draw of her content is decidedly her explosive, witty humor. Today, she has 16.7 million followers on YouTube and has built an even stronger Instagram presence” (mediakix). I find these statistics to be particularly interesting because for someone who just used her humor and unique personality to make others happy, she grew tremendously into an influencer who spreads positivity and only works with brands that will be beneficial to her audience.
Where there’s good, there must also be bad. Influencer marketing is a smart way to help brands but it also comes with a number of risks that can both damage the influencer, damage the brand and even damage the social media platforms that are used. According to Springwise, scandals happen more often than people realize and the biggest mistake is using an influencer that gets caught in a bad light. “Making racist statements, not disclosing that a post is sponsored, making insensitive posts, using bots to inflate follower numbers or accidentally posting the brands instructions in the post can all make the influencer, and any associated brands, look bad” (Springwise). The hardest thing for a brand is not being able to have control over what the influencer does outside of the partnership. The pros of influencer marketing may outweigh the cons, but the cons are more detrimental. Yet, as long as the demand is there, influencers will continue to have control over most social media platforms.
Works Cited
“Pros and Cons: Social Media Influencers.” Springwise, 6 Jan. 2020, www.springwise.com/pros-cons-social-media-influencers.
“The State of Influencer Marketing 2019 : Benchmark Report [ Infographic].” Influencer Marketing Hub, 19 Feb. 2020, influencermarketinghub.com/influencer-marketing-2019-benchmark-report/.
“Top Instagram Influencers: 30 Instagram Stars to Follow in 2020.” Mediakix, 31 Jan. 2020, mediakix.com/blog/top-instagram-influencers/.
As we move forward into a more social media age of branding, we tend to see a lot of people promoting products through their pages such as with Instagram. The other day I watched World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) star Lana promote Bang Energy drink on her social media. The logo was always in the shot and always had a smile on her face when drinking it. The question though is how much she made for this shameless promotion. Perhaps the most visible way that influencers make money is through sponsored posts; but while that may be the most common revenue source, it’s not the only one. (Editors M, 2019) Not only this but we tend to see a lot of swipe up links in things such as stories on both Instagram and Snapchat. With these links these influencers also receive a commission whenever the link is followed through on. When it comes to someone like Lana you are more likely to get someone to swipe up, because she is promoting a well-known product such as Bang and has a mass following from her job at WWE. She is likely to receive a lot more money because of the factors just stated, but is this too much of a niche market? Sure, you have a popular celebrity promoting a product but look who it is in this case. It’s a WWE women’s wrestler, which means she is most likely going to reach the wrestling audience than anything. This limits the reach that a lot of the influencers have, greeting a product endorsement for a niche audience. It’s with this that advertisers have to be careful with who they are going to go with when it comes to promoting their product. In this case its an ok product placement. The energy drink is more of a pre workout and just from my perspective some fans shouldn’t drink it. On the other hand, not all wrestling fans are out of shape like some stereotype may entail. There’s a little bit of good and a little bit of bad in promotion like this. That’s the thing though is that a lot of these stars. Influencer marketing has grown steadily in popularity over the past few years, and for good reason -- oftentimes, customers trust influencers over celebrities when choosing which products to buy, or which brands to endorse. (Forsey C, 2019) It’s a good industry to be a part of however there is the issue with the niche market. Going through the list of influencers, I have not heard of a single person on any of these lists. Sure, the argument can be made that they are not trying to advertise to me but wouldn’t they want to expand their product to other markets? That’s the underlying problem I see with Influencers is that they will only be able to market to a certain bubble of people. If they are making money regardless however can you really fault them?
Editors, M. (2019, February 13). How much money do influencers actually make? Retrieved from https://www.mic.com/articles/192799/how-much-money-do-influencers-actually-make
Forsey, C. (n.d.). The Ultimate List of Instagram Influencers in Every Industry (135 and Counting!). Retrieved from https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/instagram-influencers
Influencer Marketing: Advantages and Disadvantages. (2019, June 7). Retrieved February 20, 2020, from https://homebusinessmag.com/marketing/internet-marketing/influencer-marketing-advantages-disadvantages/
Brands and advertisers using social media influencers is fast growing. Brand influencers help companies so much that they are being paid hundreds of thousands of dollars per post. Essentially what these brand influencers do is post media content promoting a product or service in exchange for money. For example, on the highest of promotional paychecks is Cristiano Ronaldo. Ronaldo reportedly gets paid over 1 million dollars per post and makes a cool 48 million dollars a year for advertising other products or services (Adejobi, 2019). Ashley Hajjar, director of influencer marketing at Rakuten Marketing, explained that sponsored posts isn’t the only way the influencers make their money. “Influencers also make money through affiliate partnerships…like those “Swipe Up” links on Instagram — and earn a commission when followers click through and make a purchase,” Mic Editors writes (Mic Editors, 2019). The same article also explains other ways of revenue such as traditional banner ads on their blogs as well as in person appearances.
Something I found interesting was that followers don’t mean everything. I thought they would considering some of the top paid influencers have the largest following on social media but that isn’t quite the case. I learned in the article written by Mic Editors that there is much more than having a lot of followers. It’s more important to have higher engagement percentages, which is having followers click and comment on things that are posted. The reading actually explained that many times, a micro-influencer tend to drive performance percentages higher because of how much easier it is to be engaged with their audience on a personal level.
There are many pros and cons to having star influencers promoting your product. The biggest pro is how it allows you to reach a relevant audience quick. Influencers have built a trusted community around themselves. Because of this, their audience will feel more comfortable using the product or service that is being promoted. Another one is that it broadens rand reach. This is self-explanatory, product or service have potential to reach millions within a few hours.
Along with the pros, there are cons. One con that we see every once in a while, is influencers making a mistake. Let’s take Logan Paul for an example, he Influenced many brands before he posted a controversial YouTube video. After the whole ordeal, he lost all of the brands he was influencing. This not only affected Logan, but it affected the brands. The brands lost millions in reach and Logan lost millions in potential money.
Work Cited Adejobi, Alicia. “Kendall Jenner 'Earns More than Sister Kylie' for Sponsored Instagram Posts.” Metro, Metro.co.uk, 29 Oct. 2019, metro.co.uk/2019/10/29/kendall-jenner-earns-16m-year-paid-instagram-posts-leaving-kylie-dust-11004524/. Editors, Mic. “How Much Money Do Influencers Actually Make?” Mic, Mic, 13 Feb. 2019, www.mic.com/articles/192799/how-much-money-do-influencers-actually-make. Shane Barker. “The Pros and Cons of Using Influencer Marketing for Your Brand.” Shane Barker, Shane Barker, 24 Feb. 2020, shanebarker.com/blog/pros-and-cons-of-influencer-marketing/.
“Influencer marketing has grown steadily in popularity over the past few years, and for good reason -- oftentimes, customers trust influencers over celebrities when choosing which products to buy, or which brands to endorse.” (Forsey, 2019)
ReplyDeleteBrands and Advertisers are using social media influencers to target their audiences in a very smart, effective way. Influencers are able to talk about products, use them, and show their viewers that they are real. This makes costumers more apt to purchase a product because their influencer said that it is good, and they have a form of trust with them. The relationship between an influencer and their viewer/subscriber is much stronger than that of someone just watching an advertisement on television.
Of course, with any form of advertising, there are both positives and negatives. The pros in my opinion outweigh the cons. First, this form of advertising really does work because of the level of credibility that comes along with it. influencers are also able to reach a specific audience, perfect for a brand. Brands can also advertise on a micro or macro level when using influencers which is imperative to get a brands name out there. The cons of social media influencers though are going with a wrong influencer. Depending on who the brand chooses it can cause problems if the influencer says rude language, not being appropriate, or misrepresenting the brand. Another con of influencer marketing is budget. “As the influencer market heats up, brands will need to spend more and more of their marketing budget on influencer marketing. This is probably not something they have a lot of control over, but is a consideration, particularly for small businesses.” (Springwise, 2020)
Influencers can be paid little to lots of money. “Rates for a single sponsored post can run from $50 to more than $50,000, depending on the level of influencer. (Mic, 2019) Influencers who have a follower/subscriber base in the millions in making much more than that of someone with just 1,000. Of course, this sounds an easy job, but it is actually pretty tough. Lots goes on that people do not see. Working long hours, interacting with fans, hate comments, and criticism is just a few things an influencer has to deal with on the daily.
We can take Jeffery Star for example, Jeffery is the number three beauty influencer on Instagram with 8.8 million followers, not to mention his 17.4 million subscribers on YouTube. Jeffery deals with lots of hate comments as he is a male that likes to be identified as both he and she and is very into the beauty industry. It might seem like easy money to learn how to do makeup but there is just so much more than people don’t take into consideration.
References:
ReplyDeleteEditors, M. (2019, February 13). How much money do influencers actually make? Retrieved from https://www.mic.com/articles/192799/how-much-money-do-influencers-actually-make
Pros and Cons: Social Media Influencers. (2020, January 6). Retrieved from https://www.springwise.com/pros-cons-social-media-influencers
Forsey, C. (n.d.). The Ultimate List of Instagram Influencers in Every Industry (135 and Counting!). Retrieved from https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/instagram-influencers
Influencer marketing and social media go hand in hand. With the rapid increase in social media usage since 2017, specifically regarding the usage of Instagram amongst young people, influencer marketing has skyrocketed. According to Influencer Marketing Hub, this efficient social media based marketing tactic is “expected to continue its upward trajectory this year to potentially become a $6.5 billion industry” (Influencer Marketing Hub).
ReplyDeleteAccording to Hootsuite, “it’s critical to work only with social media influencers whose vision aligns with your own,” which is how they target their audiences. With the wide variety of influencers on Instagram and YouTube today, companies can use specific influencers that are bound to generate interest in their products. For instance, beauty companies like Sephora or Mac use Jeffree Star and Michelle Phan to promote their new products—both of whom topped “The Ultimate List of Instagram Influencers in Every Industry,” (Forsey). Even major movie companies like Disney use influencers like The Bucket List Family and 5-year-old Claire Crosby—both recently have been using their platforms to promote Disney’s Frozen 2. These influencers get paid thousands, even millions of dollars for their involvement in social media marketing. One of the reasons for their massive paychecks is that “92% believe influencer marketing is an effective form of marketing,” revealing how powerful a simple Instagram post or YouTube video can be (Influencer Marketing Hub).
The reason for this industry’s success is because of the long list of positives that accompany using social media and users with millions of followers and subscribers to market a product. First of all, with influencer marketing, there is an “ease with which you can scale the activity,” meaning you can evaluate how effective your campaign is quickly and efficiently (Influencer Marketing Hub). It is also easy to expand or downsize a marketing campaign by adding more or decreasing the amount of influencers involved. With social media marketing, companies have the ability to reach thousands, and even millions of people from around the world. According to Mic Editors, influencers are valuable marketing tools because they “must understand their audience and put out content that is interesting and engaging” (Mic Editors). Since many users feel connected in some way to the influencers they follow or subscribe to, their promotion of a product is more effective than something like a magazine advertisement.
With the positives of influencer marketing, there are also a few negatives. First of all, a majority of the influencers used to market products on social media do not follow the guidelines set by the FCA and CMA. According to Influencer Marketing Hub, if influencers continue to brush off these guidelines, “there is a real danger that the FTC and CMA will start prosecuting, rather than just warning and educating” (Influencer Marketing Hub). There is also a challenge in finding appropriate influencers to promote specific products, something that can take a lot of time and research. Lastly, managing campaign contracts and deadlines can be difficult for companies, as well as the process of paying the influencers once they market something to their social platform (Influencer Marketing Hub).
Forsey, Caroline. “The Ultimate List of Instagram Influencers in Every Industry (135 and Counting!)” Hub Spot, 13 Aug. 2019.
Deletehttps://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/instagram-influencers
“How Much Do Influencers Actually Make?” Mic Editors, 13 Feb 2019.
https://learn-us-east-1-prod-fleet01-xythos.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/5df1cdd432f98/4220691?response-content-disposition=inline%3B%20filename%2A%3DUTF-8%27%27How%2520Much%2520Do%2520Influencers%2520Actually%2520Make%25281%2529.pdf&response-content-type=application%2Fpdf&X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Date=20200225T160022Z&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&X-Amz-Expires=21599&X-Amz-Credential=AKIAZH6WM4PLTYPZRQMY%2F20200225%2Fus-east-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Signature=590560f403333be782a390875c197e680ecf91423dd1dd71674be2ff9d9e2cf2
“Influencer Marketing in 2019: How to Work With Social Media Influencers” Hootsuite, 2 May, 2019.
https://blog.hootsuite.com/influencer-marketing/
“The State of Influencer Marketing 2019 : Benchmark Report,” Influencer Marketing Hub, 19 Feb, 2020.
https://influencermarketinghub.com/influencer-marketing-2019-benchmark-report/
Anthony Galler
ReplyDeleteMore brands today are utilizing social media influencers in order to target audiences via Instagram and YouTube. Instagram is one of the best channels for influencer marketing, because it continues to soar in popularity. The top Instagram influencer for 2020 is Amanda Cerny, who has a whooping 24.7 million followers! Overall, Instagram’s user base reached 1 billion in 2018, and their influencer market is now approaching $2.3 billion in 2020 (“30 Top Instagram Influencers”, 2020). Today, brands from all different categories imaginable are working with influencers in developing a brand campaign. In fact, 89% of marketers listed Instagram as the most important influencer marketing channel (“30 Top Instagram Influencers”, 2020). These Instagram stars are working in conjunction with top brands and advertisers on creative and impactful marketing initiatives.
Clearly influencer marketing is on the rise, but what benefits do brands receive from it? One reason is that influencer marketing allows you to build trust with a desired audience. Influencers speak to their loyal fanbase through their posts on Instagram or videos on YouTube. These followers grow to trust that influencer’s opinion. This means that once an influencer promotes a product, the followers will likely be intrigued (“Influencer Marketing”, 2019). In addition, influencer marketing can help a brand to reach a very specific group of people. For example, a fashion brand can work with fashion influencers in order to reach a greater number of individuals within a brand’s niche (“Influencer Marketing”, 2019). The brand won’t always need to spend top dollar either. Sure, some of the top influencers will demand a larger check. However, some micro-influencers will collaborate with brands in exchange for product samples, or some type of experience (“Influencer Marketing”, 2019).
Still, influencer marketing is not always a perfect system for every brand. One big reason is that many business traditionalists still do not know about influencer marketing, or trust it fully. There are still some businesses which rely heavily or even solely on traditional marketing methods. (“The State of Influencer”, 2019). The concept of influencer fraud can also be a red flag for brands who wish to use influencer marketing. In a 2019 survey, 64% of respondents said that influencer marketing fraud, or fake influencers concerns them in some capacity. In addition, 63% of respondents also said they had personal experience with influencer fraud in past campaigns. (“The State of Influencer”, 2019). Choosing the right influencer for your campaign may not always be a walk in the park either. On one hand, there are now so many different platforms and tools to assist brands in their influencer search. (“The State of Influencer”, 2019). However, only 20% of the respondents in the same 2019 survey, considered influencer selection as being easy (“The State of Influencer”, 2019). Without a brand aligning their campaign with an appropriate influencer, there’s a slim chance that the campaign will prove fruitful. It is clear that the desire for influencer marketing will only increase in the coming years. When it comes to promoting your brand through Instagram, YouTube, or other social media, there is much to be excited about. However, brands must also be aware of the challenges that come with influencer marketing, if they hope to be successful in their campaigns.
Works Cited
Influencer Marketing: Advantages and Disadvantages. (2019, June 7). Retrieved February 20, 2020, from https://homebusinessmag.com/marketing/internet-marketing/influencer-marketing-advantages-disadvantages/
The State of Influencer Marketing 2019: Benchmark Report . (2019, May 28). Retrieved February 20, 2020, from https://influencermarketinghub.com/influencer-marketing-2019-benchmark-report/
30 Top Instagram Influencers Who Rise Above The Rest In 2020. (2020). Retrieved February 20, 2020, from https://mediakix.com/blog/top-instagram-influencers/
Alexis Tinney
ReplyDeleteBrands and advertisers using social media influencers to target audiences is becoming very common. The way they target these audiences is by picking an influencer that actually relates to or uses what the brand is selling. “They must be excited about their content and their posts must be real, authentic and honest” (Mic, 2019). When someone sees an influencer they admire using a product that can be a green light to them to purchase it. The goal of influencer marketing is to show people that this big or small influencer is using the product so it must be amazing. This builds trust between the customers and the influencer and makes them more likely to buy the product then if the brand itself was to promote it. In 2017 ninety two percent of marketers found influencer marketing to be effective. It is critical to keep up on the current trends by working with influencers and developing a strategic campaign (Forsey, 2019).
Brands using influencers to promote content is still a fairly new trend therefore it comes with positives and negatives. One of the biggest positives would be gaining consumer’s trust. When followers seeing their favorite influencer promoting a brand they are going to be intrigued to try it. With that comes another positive which is discount codes. In some cases, brands pair up with the influencer and give them a discount go to share with their followers. Types of partnerships like those will not only boost engagement but gain new loyal customers that they wouldn’t have reached without that influencer. Another benefit when working with influencers would be hitting your target audience. Collaborating with an influencer in the same industry can lead to an increased audience (Influencer Marketing, 2019).
Although in my opinion, there are not many disadvantages of working with influencers it is still important to highlight a few. Sixty-one percent of marketers struggle to find the correct influencer to represent their brand (Influencer Marketing, 2019). It’s not as simple as it seems to pick an influencer that will correctly represent your brand. Everything this influencer does is now part of your brand and its important to have full trust in the influencer you pick. Another disadvantage of working with influencers is not knowing the outcome. Just because an influencer has been successful in the past does not mean they will always be effective for your business. If your audience isn’t engaging with the influencer the money you invested may end up becoming a big profit loss (Influencer Marketing, 2019). Lastly, there is no set payment when using an influencer which can be considered a disadvantage. “The range of payment is so wide these days, I’ve personally done deals for hundreds of dollars and hundreds of thousands,” Micheli said. Rates for a single sponsored post can run anywhere from $50 to more than 50,000, depending on the level of the influencer (Mic, 2019). Overall, using social media influencers to promote a product can have a positive outcome or fans may not engage the way you expected.
Alexis Tinney
ReplyDeleteWorks Cited:
Editors, M. (2019, February 13). How much money do influencers actually make? Retrieved from https://www.mic.com/articles/192799/how-much-money-do-influencers-actually-make
Forsey, C. (n.d.). The Ultimate List of Instagram Influencers in Every Industry (135 and Counting!). Retrieved from https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/instagram-influencers
Influencer Marketing: Advantages and Disadvantages. (2019, June 7). Retrieved February 20, 2020, from https://homebusinessmag.com/marketing/internet-marketing/influencer-marketing-advantages-disadvantages/
Lisa Ferrara
ReplyDeleteSocial influencers are not something new but are on the rise for their credibility, reliability, and authenticity when endorsing products. Brands and advertisers are choosing social influencers to target their audiences based on the concept that opinions we can trust move us to action. The rise of social media has given power to the everyday consumer who has expertise in an area to endorse a product and be completely transparent. Most social influencers have started from nothing and do not have access to products other celebrity influencers have. They are perceived as down to earth people and known to be transparent. A perk in choosing an influencer is that they stay connected with their followers daily to keep the connection going, this allows them to build a greater relationship. The top reason that brands have been investing into influencers is because they have expertise in the area that they are endorsing. According to HubSpot’s Ultimate List of Instagram Influencers, influencers are in all industries. For brands who may not know what type of influencer may best fit their brand, HubSpot compiled a list of the top 10-20 influencers in every industry including: travel, food, beauty, fitness, and more (Forsey). Influencers thrive off of their authenticity, something you may not always see in celebrity endorsements.
Over the past five years, social influencers have become more popular and a great asset for brands to continue to grab consumer attention. By 2020, influencer marketing is projected to become a $10 billion industry (Bailis). The benefits of having influencers promote products are their ability to reach a relevant audience, the ability to grow your audience, and to build better credibility for your brand. While celebrity endorsements can reach a greater audience yet lack authenticity since they come with a high price tag. Celebrities can endorse any product however if it is “off-brand” it is less likely to be effective. What makes influencer so powerful today is their credibility in their niche industry. Makeup guru Jeffree Star is an example of an influencer who holds a high credibility standard in the beauty industry. Star began on YouTube posting makeup tutorials and product reviews, who later turned into an internet sensation building a beauty empire. Jeffree Star holds a lot of credibility in the makeup world, to receive a “Jeffree Star approved” review holds a lot of value in a brand's eye. With over 17 million YouTube subscribers (Socialblade), Jeffree Star can make or break a product’s success. The proof is in the pudding: “an influencer marketing platform reported that 92 percent of customers trust recommendations from strangers (i.e. influencers) over brand advertisements” (Weinswig). Consumers do not want to be lied to when being advertised a new product, they want organic content that they can relate to.
Alternatively, when choosing an influencer to promote your brand you want to make sure you are choosing a credible and reliable person. While it may seem like the more followers the better you need to stay make sure that their followers are real before investing into one. It is so easy today to buy followers as well as be followed by fake accounts. Doing your research into your influencer your best option to avoid damage to your company’s reputation. The last big con when looking at influencer marketing is that feeds are becoming so heavily saturated lately with sponsored content that their followers may not want to see it anymore. It is easy to unsubscribe/unfollow YouTube and Instagram profiles today that organizations and influencers must always make sure they are doing what is right for the overall brand.
Lisa Ferrara
DeleteWork Cited:
Bailis, R. “Influencer Marketing Statistics in 2019 (Trends + Key Takeaways).” The BigCommerce Blog, 24 Jan. 2020, www.bigcommerce.com/blog/influencer-marketing-statistics/#what-is-influencer-marketing.
Forsey, Caroline. “The Ultimate List of Instagram Influencers in Every Industry (135 and Counting!).” HubSpot Blog, 2019, blog.hubspot.com/marketing/instagram-influencers.
Socialblade. “Realtime Youtube Subscriber Count.” SocialBlade, Feb. 2020, socialblade.com/youtube/user/jeffreestar/realtime.
Weinswig, Deborah. “Influencers Are The New Brands.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 5 Oct. 2016, www.forbes.com/sites/deborahweinswig/2016/10/05/influencers-are-the-new-brands/#7f9d84d07919.
Influencer marketing allows brands and advertisers to hand pick the exact audience they’d like to target. Many influencers have developed niche communities that feel tight-knit. Brands have discovered that if they can advertise through an influencer, they can also hit their exact target market. For example, a traditional ad, like a TV commercial, can be strategically bought on a specific network but the audience of that network is still so large. When brands advertise through influencers, they are reaching a controlled audience that has already shown clear interest in their industry by following or engaging with said influencer.
ReplyDeleteAnother positive factor of influencer marketing is that influencers have developed relationships with their followers. These followers trust the influencer’s opinions and are more likely to take action from an endorsed post. This is extremely beneficial in a time when “people no longer trust ads, but they do trust people” (Newman). From my own experience, I pay a lot more attention to the products advertised by influencers I’ve been following for a long time than any traditional ad I would see online.
The main downside to influencer marketing is that it’s still so new. This means that regulations are still being put in place and it’s easy for influencers and brands to mess up. Influencer marketing gets tricky when social media posts are not explicitly marked as endorsed. The FTC has published Endorsement Guidelines, but even those include a lot of grey areas. However, The FTC is “cracking down on influencers who don’t properly disclose paid partnerships”, which can mean trouble for the influencer, as well as the brands (Mic Editors).
Another disadvantage of influencer marketing is how expensive it is. Forbes says that “influencer-created content ranges anywhere from $500 to upwards of $20,000, or more, for each sponsored post”, but these numbers most likely refer to micro or macro influencers (Meltzer). Influencers who have traditional celebrity status and millions of followers can cost more in the range of millions of dollars.
In total, I think that influencer marketing is a huge industry for brands and advertisers to tap into. When someone that I’ve been keeping up to date with for years promotes sponsored content, it feels like a word of mouth recommendation. I put my trust in the influencers I follow and, most of the time, really believe that their sentiments about the products they promote are honest. Influencer marketing is the best way to get consumers to trust what people are saying about products.
Works Cited
Meltzer, Lauren. “Social Media ‘Influencers’ Add a New Twist to Advertising.” CBS News, CBS
Interactive, 8 Feb. 2018, www.cbsnews.com/news/social-media-influencers-brand-advertising/.
Mic Editors. “How Much Money Do Influencers Actually Make?” Mic, Mic, 13 Feb. 2019,
www.mic.com/articles/192799/how-much-money-do-influencers-actually-make.
Newman, Daniel. “Love It Or Hate It: Influencer Marketing Works.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 24
Aug. 2016, www.forbes.com/sites/danielnewman/2015/06/23/love-it-or-hate-it-influencer-marketing-works/#7589c606150b.
Social media is constantly changing. From new apps like TikTok to the classics of Instagram and Twitter, users can practically have the world at their fingertips. A recent social media trend has been the integration of influencers. These influencers are meant to work with brands and advertisers to target users and get more people invested in what the brand is attempting to promote. These ideas work in many ways because it allows for a more personal connection between the brand and consumer and it’s often less expensive than traditional advertising. However, there are also some negative impacts that can damage the brands reputation, or the popularity of influencing will grow and become more expensive than the old ways of advertising.
ReplyDeleteWhile many say that the influencer market is becoming less popular, there are many statistics that prove the opposite. The popular faces are certainly one reason, but a big example surrounds the well-known app Instagram. Instagram is the hub for social media influencers because the apps photo-heavy format allows for visuals and direct links to allow for more interaction between brands and audiences. According to a study done by Influencer Marketing Hub, Instagram’s usage statistics grew 10x over the span of 5 years. The study says, “Instagram is the fastest growing social network in 2019, continuing its phenomenal expansion in 2017 and 2018. Its older sibling, Facebook, may still have the largest user base, but Instagram is rapidly catching up” (IMH). The reason for this success is most likely the age demographic. Instagram is primarily younger audiences, which is the age range that brands are trying to reach. The study also determined the incredible increase in the number of new platforms and agencies active in the markets, with over 300 new “influencer marketing focused” groups.
There’s no doubt that influencers have done incredible things for social media, brands and audiences. One person I find to be the best at “influencing” is Liza Koshy. She initially got famous from an app called Vine and has since transitioned to YouTube and Instagram. According to mediakix, “She gained subscribers on the site rapidly, reeling in 6 million in 2016 and another 6 million in 2017. The draw of her content is decidedly her explosive, witty humor. Today, she has 16.7 million followers on YouTube and has built an even stronger Instagram presence” (mediakix). I find these statistics to be particularly interesting because for someone who just used her humor and unique personality to make others happy, she grew tremendously into an influencer who spreads positivity and only works with brands that will be beneficial to her audience.
Where there’s good, there must also be bad. Influencer marketing is a smart way to help brands but it also comes with a number of risks that can both damage the influencer, damage the brand and even damage the social media platforms that are used. According to Springwise, scandals happen more often than people realize and the biggest mistake is using an influencer that gets caught in a bad light. “Making racist statements, not disclosing that a post is sponsored, making insensitive posts, using bots to inflate follower numbers or accidentally posting the brands instructions in the post can all make the influencer, and any associated brands, look bad” (Springwise). The hardest thing for a brand is not being able to have control over what the influencer does outside of the partnership. The pros of influencer marketing may outweigh the cons, but the cons are more detrimental. Yet, as long as the demand is there, influencers will continue to have control over most social media platforms.
DeleteWorks Cited
“Pros and Cons: Social Media Influencers.” Springwise, 6 Jan. 2020, www.springwise.com/pros-cons-social-media-influencers.
“The State of Influencer Marketing 2019 : Benchmark Report [ Infographic].” Influencer Marketing Hub, 19 Feb. 2020, influencermarketinghub.com/influencer-marketing-2019-benchmark-report/.
“Top Instagram Influencers: 30 Instagram Stars to Follow in 2020.” Mediakix, 31 Jan. 2020, mediakix.com/blog/top-instagram-influencers/.
Brett Gosselin
ReplyDeleteAs we move forward into a more social media age of branding, we tend to see a lot of people promoting products through their pages such as with Instagram. The other day I watched World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) star Lana promote Bang Energy drink on her social media. The logo was always in the shot and always had a smile on her face when drinking it. The question though is how much she made for this shameless promotion. Perhaps the most visible way that influencers make money is through sponsored posts; but while that may be the most common revenue source, it’s not the only one. (Editors M, 2019) Not only this but we tend to see a lot of swipe up links in things such as stories on both Instagram and Snapchat. With these links these influencers also receive a commission whenever the link is followed through on. When it comes to someone like Lana you are more likely to get someone to swipe up, because she is promoting a well-known product such as Bang and has a mass following from her job at WWE. She is likely to receive a lot more money because of the factors just stated, but is this too much of a niche market? Sure, you have a popular celebrity promoting a product but look who it is in this case. It’s a WWE women’s wrestler, which means she is most likely going to reach the wrestling audience than anything. This limits the reach that a lot of the influencers have, greeting a product endorsement for a niche audience. It’s with this that advertisers have to be careful with who they are going to go with when it comes to promoting their product. In this case its an ok product placement. The energy drink is more of a pre workout and just from my perspective some fans shouldn’t drink it. On the other hand, not all wrestling fans are out of shape like some stereotype may entail. There’s a little bit of good and a little bit of bad in promotion like this. That’s the thing though is that a lot of these stars. Influencer marketing has grown steadily in popularity over the past few years, and for good reason -- oftentimes, customers trust influencers over celebrities when choosing which products to buy, or which brands to endorse. (Forsey C, 2019)
It’s a good industry to be a part of however there is the issue with the niche market. Going through the list of influencers, I have not heard of a single person on any of these lists. Sure, the argument can be made that they are not trying to advertise to me but wouldn’t they want to expand their product to other markets? That’s the underlying problem I see with Influencers is that they will only be able to market to a certain bubble of people. If they are making money regardless however can you really fault them?
Editors, M. (2019, February 13). How much money do influencers actually make? Retrieved from https://www.mic.com/articles/192799/how-much-money-do-influencers-actually-make
Forsey, C. (n.d.). The Ultimate List of Instagram Influencers in Every Industry (135 and Counting!). Retrieved from https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/instagram-influencers
Influencer Marketing: Advantages and Disadvantages. (2019, June 7). Retrieved February 20, 2020, from https://homebusinessmag.com/marketing/internet-marketing/influencer-marketing-advantages-disadvantages/
https://mediatrends1230s20.blogspot.com/2020/02/lifestyle-niche-media-blog-4-question-3.html#comment-form
ReplyDeleteBrands and advertisers using social media influencers is fast growing. Brand influencers help companies so much that they are being paid hundreds of thousands of dollars per post. Essentially what these brand influencers do is post media content promoting a product or service in exchange for money. For example, on the highest of promotional paychecks is Cristiano Ronaldo. Ronaldo reportedly gets paid over 1 million dollars per post and makes a cool 48 million dollars a year for advertising other products or services (Adejobi, 2019). Ashley Hajjar, director of influencer marketing at Rakuten Marketing, explained that sponsored posts isn’t the only way the influencers make their money. “Influencers also make money through affiliate partnerships…like those “Swipe Up” links on Instagram — and earn a commission when followers click through and make a purchase,” Mic Editors writes (Mic Editors, 2019). The same article also explains other ways of revenue such as traditional banner ads on their blogs as well as in person appearances.
ReplyDeleteSomething I found interesting was that followers don’t mean everything. I thought they would considering some of the top paid influencers have the largest following on social media but that isn’t quite the case. I learned in the article written by Mic Editors that there is much more than having a lot of followers. It’s more important to have higher engagement percentages, which is having followers click and comment on things that are posted. The reading actually explained that many times, a micro-influencer tend to drive performance percentages higher because of how much easier it is to be engaged with their audience on a personal level.
There are many pros and cons to having star influencers promoting your product. The biggest pro is how it allows you to reach a relevant audience quick. Influencers have built a trusted community around themselves. Because of this, their audience will feel more comfortable using the product or service that is being promoted. Another one is that it broadens rand reach. This is self-explanatory, product or service have potential to reach millions within a few hours.
Along with the pros, there are cons. One con that we see every once in a while, is influencers making a mistake. Let’s take Logan Paul for an example, he Influenced many brands before he posted a controversial YouTube video. After the whole ordeal, he lost all of the brands he was influencing. This not only affected Logan, but it affected the brands. The brands lost millions in reach and Logan lost millions in potential money.
Work Cited
Adejobi, Alicia. “Kendall Jenner 'Earns More than Sister Kylie' for Sponsored Instagram Posts.” Metro, Metro.co.uk, 29 Oct. 2019, metro.co.uk/2019/10/29/kendall-jenner-earns-16m-year-paid-instagram-posts-leaving-kylie-dust-11004524/.
Editors, Mic. “How Much Money Do Influencers Actually Make?” Mic, Mic, 13 Feb. 2019, www.mic.com/articles/192799/how-much-money-do-influencers-actually-make.
Shane Barker. “The Pros and Cons of Using Influencer Marketing for Your Brand.” Shane Barker, Shane Barker, 24 Feb. 2020, shanebarker.com/blog/pros-and-cons-of-influencer-marketing/.