The Age of the Influencer

By now we’re all familiar with the term “influencer.” Influencer marketing has actually been around for many years and most market historians will trace it back to the 1920s. Though times have definitely changed – that 1920s influencer marketing obviously didn’t consist of viral TikTok dances and grids full of coffee and sunsets!

Today, the term is most commonly defined as someone that affects others’ purchasing decisions typically through social media platforms. Over the past five years, brands and companies have really started to recognize, and take seriously, the direct impact of investing in influencer marketing. They are taking it so seriously that according to one survey* 86% of the 4,000+ brand marketers asked intend to dedicate 2020 budget dollars to influencer marketing. 63% of those companies that currently have influencer dollars plan to increase their spending within the next year.

Back to what an influencer is…or does. Most categorize influencers by the size of their social media following, and that’s definitely a good place to start.

Nano Influencers – 100+ followers
Micro Influencers – 1000+ followers
Macro Influencers – 10,000+ followers
Mega Influencers – 100K+ followers

But what most advertisers care about more than their following size is the level of engagement meaning how many people are liking, commenting, sharing and following links to products. A common way to evaluate your return from influencer marketing is by figuring earned media value. Influencer Marketing Hub defines earned media value as monetary representation of publicity.

Though statistics can range, the average earned media value per dollar spent is $5-6. Companies that have a good understanding of influencer marketing and truly understand how to navigate the space have reported up to $18 in earned media.

On the flip side (using stats from the same survey mentioned earlier), 25% of companies either lost or broke even on the dollars invested in influencer marketing. What contributes to such a big swing in profits or loses? It’s simply understanding this ever evolving influencer world. With more traditional advertising mediums, the rules have relatively stayed the same; but as with anything in social media world, your whole strategy can change based on one little algorithm tweak.

Influencer marketing is powerful and here to stay – the format might change but we will always look to others to help guide our buying decisions.

*Influencer Marketing Hub; Influencer Marketing Benchmark Report 2020