Big Brands and Startups Are Reaping the Benefits of Influencer Marketing

The explosion in the popularity of social media has led to many significant changes in the modern world. Social networking sites have changed the way people communicate, the way news is disseminated, and they’ve also greatly impacted entertainment.

Those same sites have also altered the way that businesses market themselves.

Companies are now expected to develop a strong social media presence if they want to remain relevant in this era. That alone may not be enough though.

However, with more and more sought-after consumers becoming pickier with how they spend their money, it’s become even more difficult for businesses to connect with them.

To get around that issue, companies are increasingly turning to influencers in an attempt to bolster their online presence. Though the early returns on such a strategy were inconclusive, it’s looking like a very profitable one right now.

Big Brands Have Big Plans for Influencers

This article from Forbes highlights some very interesting facts regarding the present and future of influencer-driven marketing.

Citing a survey conducted last year by the World Federation of Advertisers, 65 percent of the world’s leading advertising brands stated that they intend to increase their investment in influencer-based marketing.

Also via the Forbes article, the influencer search tool provider known as Influencerdb is predicting that companies may spend as much as $8 billion on influencer marketing by the year 2020.

Why Businesses Have Become More Inclined to Spend on Influencers

To better understand why bigger companies have become so willing to invest so much in this type of marketing, it’s helpful to read about some recent numbers.

Per this article from the Tribe Group, a recently conducted Hashoff study revealed that consumers are now reacting more positively to influencer-created content.

Specifically, 82 percent of consumers stated that they were more likely to heed a recommendation provided to them by an influencer they follow.

It is also worth noting that 67 percent of consumers reported feeling no negative reaction of any kind to sponsored content created by an influencer. That’s in contrast to the stat saying that 49 percent of consumers found advertisements put forth by brands to either be “annoying” or “irrelevant.”

There’s one more stat worth highlighting.

According to this article from CPCStrategy, there are studies indicating that the average return on investment for influencer-driven marketing is $6.50 for every $1.

Given those statistics, it’s hard to blame big businesses for fully embracing influencer marketing.

Startups Are Benefiting from Influencers as Well

The influencer boom is benefiting more than just the heavy hitters. Even companies that are still getting started have similarly been able to profit from influencer-driven advertising.

Going back to that Forbes article from earlier, Fiit co-founder Ian McCaig told the site that influencers have been “instrumental” in the development and growth of his company. The business has already received millions in funding thanks in no small part to the benefits of influencer marketing.

Fiit is not the lone startup to benefit immensely from influencer-driven advertising. If recent trends continue, that company will also be far from the last one to do so.

Social networking sites have allowed talented and charismatic individuals to become influential in more unconventional ways. Now, businesses big and small are learning how to leverage that reality to their benefit.