What’s Trending in Influencer Marketing

1. Increased demand for authenticity

Today’s consumers are savvier than ever when it comes to social media, so they can tell when an influencer’s endorsement of a product or service is authentic or merely transactional. People are looking for influencers they can trust to provide honest product recommendations with transparent sponsorship disclosure.

When selecting influencers for a campaign, consider how the brand can be seamlessly integrated into the content that the influencer creates organically. Look for influencers who are already fans of your brand or recruit new partners who can naturally incorporate it into their daily routines. By engaging authentic brand advocates, content will ultimately resonate more with consumers and achieve greater ROI for your business. This can also help foster an ongoing partnership with potential for organic advocacy beyond a single sponsored post.

2. The rise of de-influencing

With the meteoric rise of TikTok and other emerging social platforms, consumers are feeling fatigued from the number of products they are seeing promoted across social every day. In response, people are creating “de-influencing” content that highlights products they were influenced to buy but didn’t live up to the hype. To avoid this, ensure influencer content shows a realistic review of the product without false promises or exaggerations about its benefits.

3. Paid amplification is key

Using influencer content for paid ads often outperforms brand-owned assets, yielding measurable results at an efficient price point. Boosting influencer content on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok can help extend the reach beyond the influencer’s existing audience and directly to your target consumer.
In addition to paid ads, consider repurposing influencer assets in other brand materials to extend the reach of the influencer content beyond social. Repost content on your owned social channels or include images in brand collateral.

4. Closing the influencer pay gap

Over the last year, the conversation about influencer pay transparency has continued to develop. With the introduction of resources like Clara for Creators and Influencer Pay Gap, influencers are having open and honest conversations about what they should be charging for brand partnerships and what brands are paying other influencers. From this, racial pay gaps have become alarmingly noticeable, and it is clear that this is a major issue in influencer marketing today.

Establishing clear parameters for how influencer rates are determined (i.e. based on following, engagement, etc.) is imperative for ensuring that influencer are being compensated fairly for their work on a campaign. Diversity should also be prioritized when building out an influencer list, creating a roster of brand advocates that is representative of your consumer group and the Canadian population in terms of race, gender identity, sexual orientation, and more.

5. Paid subscriptions for creators

Following in the footsteps of Twitter and Snap, Meta recently announced that it is testing a subscription service called Meta Verified in Australia and New Zealand that offers a verification badge, designated support for account issues and other related tools. The service is targeted to influencers and creators, helping them increase visibility and reach with a badge.

Meta will be gradually rolling out the service in other countries, so keep an eye out for the Canadian launch!

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Harbinger is a Toronto-based North American marketing agency with expertise in product launches. We help brands get noticed and purchased.