Dear PR Matters,
Thank you for your articles on PR and Marketing trends for the New Year. These remind us that we should always be ready for change, adapt quickly to these and constantly update our skills.
Last year you had many articles on influencer marketing. I believe this has since become part of many marketing programs. What can we expect from influencer marketing in 2019? How can we adapt these to our current programs?
Thank you. Your answer will be very helpful for us
Sincerely,
Irene F.
Dear Irene,
It was nice of you to mention that you regularly read our column in your letter. This makes my colleagues and I very happy.
You are correct in saying that influencer marketing has become mainstream in marketing and public relations programs today. Like everything else, however, this has evolved in time, and the use of influencers is approached with more caution. There are trust issues, as there is a lack of tools to measure effectivity.
“Word of mouth works, and influencer marketing has proven its worth on a wide range of channels and platforms—the latest of which is social media,” said Buzzoole, an influencer marketing platform in a Marketing Profs.com article “What’s Next for Influencer Marketing?”
We are, after all, captivated by influencers on social media. Who doesn’t want recommendations from trustworthy sources? And what brand doesn’t want to be the one recommended by influential social-media users?
Despite its current popularity, “the increasingly crowded and convoluted influencer-marketing space is facing some big challenges. Marketers and brands are starting to think about influencer marketing in a more strategic way, and they are demanding more from their partnerships: more transparency, more accountability and better education overall.”
With that, Buzzoole teamed up with Drum to survey 200 senior marketers for their insight on the state of influencer marketing in the United States and United Kingdom. The resulting report highlights some of the biggest challenges and opportunities in influencer marketing.
• Budget and strategy accountability. As the approach to influencer marketing evolves from the ad hoc to the strategic, there is a need to look into a dedicated influencer-marketing team. Establishing clear responsibility is an important step in improving the strategic value of influencer marketing.
These dedicated teams within the marketing department are tasked with managing influencer campaigns, budgets and relationships.
• Transparency both for businesses and consumers. With the social influencer-marketing space imploding as agencies, ad-tech companies, and publishers all vying to get a piece of the pie, “the proliferation of tools, tech and consultants has unfortunately done little to reduce the overall confusion around influencer marketing.”
But as brands work to build better influencer strategies, “brands and audiences alike are calling for more accountability in the influencer space. Consumer audiences want more insight into the ways brands are using influencers. Brands want more useful historical data about influencer performance.”
In fact, brands are now seeking education on best practices, influencer pricing for brands and the rules of the game.
• Fake followers and lost confidence. This leads us to the issue of influencer fraud. Buzzoole Chief Commercial Ian Samuel said, “the industry obsession with reach has driven the rise of fraud and fake followers.”
A recent report from the New York Times found that “dozens of TV personalities and athletes were customers of companies that specialized in inflating their social-media status through the use of fake followers. Those dishonest practices have resulted in a crisis of confidence in the industry.”
Samuel said the solution is to make the industry more transparent through more effective measurement and to change the definition of success.
• Turning influencers into advocates. Buzzoole’s survey also suggested a strained relationship between brands and influencers. Although brand affinity and creator authenticity are crucial for marketers, less than one-third trust influencers to create content.
That’s because many marketers still want to control and double-check influencer content before it goes live, and some even want final approval.
Having the right tools for vetting and identifying high-impact influencers could ease the tension. With better brand/influencer relationships, influencers can create more authentic messages with brands and consumers alike can trust.
• Data and accountability. While brands are happy enough to invest in influencer marketing, there is a lack of trust in measuring effectiveness.
Is it traffic? Sales? Shares? Impressions? Campaign goals?
Buzzoole said one of the biggest challenges in the area is having access to the right tools. In fact, 42 percent of survey respondents still have to find the right tools to measure the effectiveness of their influencer campaigns. What’s more, respondents also said measurement is the biggest barrier for implementing effective campaigns and increasing influencer-marketing investment.
Ultimately, “what marketers need are the right tools for gathering the right data, and they need to use that data to enhance and inform influencer strategy.”
With better tools for reporting and measurement, for content control, and for increased transparency overall, the influencer-marketing space will continue to grow and flourish.
PR Matters is a roundtable column by members of the local chapter of the United Kingdom-based International Public Relations Association (Ipra), the world’s premier association for senior professionals around the world. Millie Dizon, the senior vice president for Marketing and Communications of SM, is the former local chairman.
We are devoting a special column each month to answer the reader’s questions about public relations. Please send your comments and questions to askipraphil@gmail.com.
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