More and more brands are turning towards influencer marketing as a compelling and effective part of their marketing mix. As the number of monthly active users on Instagram continues its rapid growth, reaching the 1 billion mark in June 2018 – double the amount in June 2016 – the platform becomes ever more lucrative for brands. It’s no surprise therefore that the industry has grown in value by almost 300% (282%) since 2016.
It is clear that brands and agencies are increasingly moving away from a carefree ‘test and learn’ approach to influencer marketing and instead are waking up to the fact they need to carefully and strategically manage and monitor their programs. Too right, when failure is costly.
As a result, brand managers and content creators are now taking the necessary steps to ensure sponsored content is labelled correctly, ensuring not to deliberately mislead consumers by providing false information about partnerships, gifts and endorsements – or omitting necessary detail. There is now an expected industry standard across AD labelling and the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) will not hesitate to reprimand those who aren’t playing by the rules.
As the industry matures, brands should start to consider developing longer-term engagements with influencers that involve a genuine investment in each other – and consider what consumers genuinely want. Consumers are savvier and more cautious of influencer marketing, with an improved awareness of how it works. Adweek published a study showing that 57% of millennials state they are willing to view sponsored content from a brand as long as it includes authentic personalities and is informative and entertaining.
The transparency that the industry has so clearly been craving is finally come to the fore, with the potential to significantly boost consumer trust and brands’ marketing ROI.
Leading influencer marketing service, Takumi will be taking to the stage at Advertising Week – NYC on Tuesday 24th September at 5:30PM (Story Crafters Stage). CEO, Adam Williams will be deep diving into the importance of trust with influencer marketing and revealing insights on how influencers, brands, and consumers all have trust issues. He’ll be sharing guidance on how to prevent this from breaking down and build trust back in influencer marketing.
Takumi is a leading Instagram influencer marketing service that works with global brands to deliver campaigns using the best influencers on Instagram. Founded in 2015, the headquarter is in the UK, Takumi has offices in London, Berlin and New York. Having carried out c. 2,000+ campaigns to date, Takumi works with thousands of influencers and is trusted to manage influencer relationships and deliver impactful Instagram campaigns for hundreds of the world’s biggest agencies and brands, including Clarins, Kellogg’s, Visa, Pernod Ricard and Mercedes. The platform is taking a lead in the industry alongside regulatory bodies to uphold advertising standards and combat influencer fraud.