Investments in Influencer Marketing continue to grow: eMarketer forecasts (Nov 2022) that companies will spend $5 billion on it in 2022, growing to $6.16 billion in 2023.
They note:
§ “74.5% of marketers are using influencer marketing today, but that will hit 88.7% in 2026
§ Instagram gets the bulk of spending, with $2.23 billion expected in 2022
§ TikTok sits in third place, behind YouTube, though it will pass the video platform in 2024”
💲 But are Brands getting the best ROI on their Influencer Marketing investments?
Harvard Business Review research report (Nov 2022) says NO, and identifies opportunities to optimize:
“… authors analyzed engagement for more than 5,800 influencer posts and identified seven key variables that drive a campaign’s effectiveness, including characteristics of both the influencer and of their individual posts.
By optimizing these variables, the average brand could boost ROI by 16.6%, suggesting that many companies are designing campaigns that leave substantial value on the table.”
They identified 7 key variables that impact ROI, and what brands should focus on:
🧏♀️ Brands should look for partners with
1. large follower bases
2. who post frequently (but not too frequently)
3. whose followers’ interests have some (but not too much) overlap with brand’s domain
4. who post a lot of original content
✍🏻 When developing posts, brands should
5. strike a medium-positive tone
6. include links when possible
7. avoid focusing on new product launches
With these specific tactics, backed by research, brands should be able to optimize with whom and how to invest to get stronger ROI!