Evolution of Influencers [INFOGRAPHIC] |

There's much more than meets the eye in the influencer market. Check out this infographic to trace the origins and also see some of the players and intricacies of the art and science of the influencer economy.

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Evolution of the Influencer

The Challenge: By 2020, ad blocking will devour $12 billion in online revenue
The Solution: People rely on people, even people they don’t know
- 88% of consumers trust online recommendations as much as personal recommendations

Brand Ambassadors through the Years
- Pioneers : Starred in early advertisements
  - Lent their names and faces to reinforce brand values
  - Branding Innovators
    - Josiah Wedgwood : Royal endorsements for his pottery in the 1760s
    - Lillie Langtry : Appeared on “trade cards” for Brown’s Iron Bitters in the late 1800s
    - Fatty Arbuckle : First recorded celebrity endorsement with Murad Cigarettes in 1905
- Characters : Created by brands to influence their image
  - Help consumers remember qualities about the company
  - Iconic Mascots
    - Santa Claus : Popularized by Coca-Cola in 1923
    - Tony the Tiger : Frosted Flakes first introduced in 1952
    - Flo : Created by Progressive in 2008
- ○ Celebrities : Famous for their offline career
  - Serve as messengers for branded content
  - Massive online followings, but typically don’t interact with fans
  - Social Media Stars
    - Selena Gomez : Coach contract
      - #1 most followed Instagram account : 122.9m
        @selenagomez
      - #15 most followed Twitter account : 48.5m
        @selenagomez
    - ● Cristiano Ronaldo : Nike contract
      - #3 most followed Instagram account : 105.5m
        @cristiano
      - #12 most followed Twitter account : 53.9m
        @Cristiano
    - ● DJ Khaled : Cîroc contract
      - “King of Snapchat” : 2m views on each post
        @djkhaled305
- ○ Influencers : Famous for their online and social media channels
  - Co-create content featuring brand-related topics and products
  - Maintain close relationships with a community of followers
  - New Faces of Influence
    - Lilly Singh : Coca-Cola contract
      - #73 most subscribed YouTube account : 11.9m
        @IISuperwomanII
      - Highest-earning woman on YouTube in 2016
    - Andrew Bachelor : Jimmy John’s contract
      - #1 most followed Vine account : 16.1m
        @KingBach
      - ○ #138 most followed Instagram account : 14m
        @kingbach
    - ● Michelle Phan : Lancôme Video Makeup Artist
      - #136 most subscribed YouTube account : 9m
        @michellephan
      - 3.2m Facebook likes

Influence Marketing in the Tech Era
- Origin of the influencer
  - Before 2004 advertisers had used celebrities, characters, or even royalty as brand ambassadors
  - The internet democratized influence and for the first time regular people could create huge followings
  - The rise of blogging and especially social media shifted advertising towards word-of-mouth with influencers
- Social media platforms support different advertising opportunities
  - Facebook (2b users)
    - Sponsored posts, video ads, banner ads
  - YouTube (1.5b users)
    - Influencer/celebrity videos, video ads, banner ads
  - Instagram (700m users)
    - Sponsored posts, video ads, stories
  - Twitter (328m users)
    - Influencer/celebrity tweets, promoted tweets
  - Snapchat (255m users)
    - Geotags, stories, celebrity accounts
- Imposing rules on influencers
  - The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) says that influencers must state when they are in contract with a company
  - Tries to ensure that consumers know they are watching an ad
  - While this is a good thought, the FTC has only enforced the rule 4 times
  - They use #ad, ‘sponsored’, ‘promoted’ or ‘ad’ in a post to fit requirement
- “Following all the legal requirements is only half of what matters. As an influencer, making sure you believe in and can stand behind not only the product but the brand you promote is crucial to trust and credibility with an already skeptical audience.” Connor Blakley, Founder-CEO of YouthLogic

Looking to the Future
- Long Term Relationships with Influencers
  - Influencers are free agents looking for better deals and can be stolen by competitors
  - Companies are creating longer contracts to ensure exclusivity and longevity
  - “Companies better be ready to commit to between 6-12 months of 5 figure checks if they want exclusivity for their industry.” Joel Contartese, Top-Rated Influencer Marketing Expert
- ○ Beyond Vanity Metrics
  - Enterprises and mid-sized businesses are beginning to demand more than just engagement
  - Influencer marketing is now about tracking performance and attributing sales
  - “Gone are the days of blindly throwing money at top-funnel metrics like views, reach, and impressions. Influencer marketing may be buzzwords, but here’re two that matter more: bottom line.” Travis Hawley, VP of Business Development at Viral Nation
- ○ Companies Focus on Micro-Influencers
  - Mega influencers are increasingly expensive and often personally disconnected from their audiences
  - Companies are turning to micro-influencers with smaller, but more responsive followings
    - Micro-influencers are 4X more likely to get a comment on a post than macro-influencers
  - “You can attain the same or larger reach when spread across a handful of micro-influencers for a fraction of the cost, while adding a more diverse, yet targeted audience.” Troy Osinoff, Author and Head of Customer Acquisition at Buzzfeed
- Authentic Relationships with Consumers
  - Millennials and Generation Z can tell when promotions are based solely on a contract
  - 84% of millennials don’t trust traditional advertising
  - Influencers are giving more authentic endorsements because they like a product, not because of compensation
  - “To quote Seth Godin, people can ‘smell the agenda of a leader.’ This has never been more true when it comes to influencer marketing. To maintain fiercely loyal fans, you must love and believe in what you’re endorsing.” Mari Smith, Facebook Marketing Expert & Author of The New Relationship Marketing

Sources:

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Evolution of Influencers [INFOGRAPHIC]

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