How the different brands will be shaping their Influencer Marketing Strategy after the lifting of the lockdown finally arrives.
The Influencer marketing was worth about $1.7 billion in the year 2016. This year, it is expected to reach about $13.8 billion. That is a considerable growth.
We have witnessed a seismic shift in the marketing capabilities when the pandemic first hit. The physical stores were simply shut down, and all of a sudden the brand marketers were unable to execute their pre-planned above the line campaigns the way that they thought they would be able to do, so, many of them had to turn to creators. Capable of producing creative and very innovative content at a high production value right from their own homes, creators proved themselves to be an invaluable marketing tool while we were all spending the large parts of the day on the social media.
Unsurprisingly, the influencer marketing campaigns has increased in the year 2020, and that momentum has carried through to this year 2021. According to a recent report, about 75% of brands intend to dedicate a standalone budget so to the influencer marketing in 2021.
But still, a lot of brands are just missing a trick as they are not taking the industry seriously. For you realising the power of influence is a surefire way to drive success. Take a look at Gymshark – a brand that has nailed the influencer engagement right from the beginning and has curated a successful ambassador programme to reach an engaged and an active audience. It is a case of a disruptive brand investing that is in a strategy and sticking by it. Now, the Gymshark has taken the mantle from legacy brands in the space. Its founder, whose name is Ben Francis, has created a billion dollar brand and recently has made The Sunday Times Rich List.
Maintaining strategy relevance
In a digital-first world, it is very difficult to imagine the possibility of gettling a further digital boom. But the impact of the Covid-19 forced all of us to take to the social media to connect with one another. And it was not just the Gen Z and millennials – take Grandad Joe, for example. In the year 2020 he became one of the TikTok’s most popular UK creators and he featured in the platform’s first TV ad.
As TikTok has now exploded in the popularity over the last year, different platforms have realised that they need to compete for consumer and also for creator attention. Just recently, Instagram has announced a host of new functionalities now, focused on putting the creator first, including its normal native affiliate programme, putting a marker in the ground to become the platform of choice.