The Pros And Cons Of Influencer Marketing

Chapter I

THE PROBLEM AND ITS SETTING Introduction

In today’s world where technology is driven, social networking sites have become an avenue where retailers can outstretch their marketing campaigns to an expansive range of consumers. In social media, certain consumers have louder voices and reach either much niche or wider audiences than others. These people are called “digital influencers.” Influencers perform a growing and monumental part in word-of-mouth marketing. More and more marketers are involving and immersing them for different campaigns. One of the most popular advertising channels is Influencer marketing, and rightfully so, as 94% of those who used influencer marketing (Hein, 2016) believe it’s a potent strategy. It’s so popular

Companies looking to strengthen their social presence and establish consumer trust often discover themselves turning to this group of online “elites” and ‘personalities” for brand advocacy. These social media power users have the ability to bolster brands’ names through well-targeted word-of-mouth campaigns. The relationship between the influencer and the brand is mutually beneficial: as the influencer supports the brand’s credibility, the influencer’s stock arises because of its affiliation with the

According to Nielsen, 92% of consumers believe recommendations from friends and family over all forms of advertising (Whitler 2014). Advertisers are trying to capitalize on this by communicating their messaging through social media influencers, who are trusted nearly as much as a friend. According to a joint study by Twitter and analytics firm Annalect, 56% of users surveyed said they rely on recommendations from friends, while 49% said they rely on influencers (Swant 2016). Taking this trusting relationship and combining it with a large following on one or more social networks, it is no wonder advertisers are paying these influencers to post favorably about their brand or product. This marketing technique has taken off and become very popular in the advertising community. Greg Manago, co-president of content and entertainment for North America at Mindshare said, “Influencers are such an important part of what brands are doing today. The question (from clients) isn’t, ‘We want to do something with influencers; what do you think?’ It’s, ‘What’s the influencer strategy for this program?’ (“Influencer Marketing…” 2016). The large majority of advertisers are investing in influencers as a May 2015 study by Schlesinger Associates for Augure found that