Influencer Marketing: 8 Trends to Follow in 2020

Influence marketing is a communication strategy based on the dissemination of information about a brand by a recognized and influential person on the web and social networks. And in recent years, influencers have become the new brand ambassadors.

If influencer marketing is so successful today it is because it differs from sponsored content and traditional advertising by a more human approach.

If you too want to use it to promote your brand, here are 8 trends to help you set up an influencer marketing strategy.

1. Proximity and authenticity

The influencer conveys an image of authenticity and sincerity. But this was undermined by the behavior of major influencers, accused of chaining partnerships without even testing the products. Some have even gone so far as to resort to fake subscribers and the purchase of likes. Many brands have decided to unite to fight against this dead end practice.

This is why “micro-influencers” and “nano-influencers” are currently making a place for themselves in influencer marketing.

Micro-influencers, for more credibility

In recent years, brands have turned to micro-influencers , that is to say people with accounts on social networks comprising between 1,000 and 100,000 followers.

If they do not have as many fans as big stars who can sometimes exceed a million subscribers, this type of influencer generally enjoys great credibility and a very committed audience. Marketers have understood this and are increasingly betting on this kind of partnership.

Nano-influencers, for more proximity

The emergence of nano-influencers is only very recent. They are opinion leaders who bring together a smaller community (less than 1,000 followers) but more loyal and enjoying very high credibility in their field.

This type of influencer often evolves in a very targeted niche and is recognized for his mastery in this precise field . The nano-influencers are closer to their followers , they favor exchange and sharing and even organize meetings.

Most :

The return on investment at low cost is very attractive for brands. It is therefore more strategic to work with more “small” influencers.

2. Transparency

You may have noticed that many influencers post some of their content as sponsored.

Increasingly, the “post sponsored” label is finding its place without it affecting the image of the influencer or the conversion rate. Brands and influencers have understood the importance of being completely honest and honest with their audience, who will continue to trust them.

For followers, it doesn't matter if the content is sponsored if it is qualitative.

Did you know ?

In the United States, the mention “sponsored post” is compulsory.

3. Influencers and storytelling

Do you like to be told stories? Influencers and brands have noticed this since storytelling-based advertising campaigns generate more ROI. Building a relationship of trust between a brand and an influencer is essential. If the brand tells its story with authenticity, the influencer will be more inspired to talk about it and generate emotions.

A good relationship with influencers in a sector improves brand awareness and of course increases sales.

Indeed, a sponsored publication with qualitative content and a more human approach will have more impact than a simple product test. The quality of content becomes essential in 2020.

Thus, a format like the podcast is attracting more and more interest. Even big names in journalism like the New York Times have launched into this audio format. Individuals are looking for intellectualization, this is why shared content is more and more informative, including on social networks.

4. Ambassador influencers

If it was customary until now to think about partnerships in the short term, the time of a “one shot” campaign, the situation has changed.

With the advent of influence marketing, influencers find themselves in a position of strength. For brands, the fear that they will choose the companies with which they wish to work or that the most requested will find themselves "overbooked" and no longer have a place in their editorial calendar is a real concern.

With this in mind, brands invest in long-term partnerships with influencers. A technique already used with celebrities.

The benefits are twofold:

• For the influencer, talking about the same brand several times gives him even more credibility. His subscribers will not think he is sharing a post just for the money.
• Conversely, the brand is part of a continuity and if a partnership is successful, it reassures the success of the following campaigns.

One goal: to disseminate the same information over a year with always different content. Thus, there is no risk of tiring the audience and this leaves creative possibilities for the influencer to talk about the brand.

5. Instagram is essential

To date, Instagram is the most lucrative and sought-after social network in influencer marketing. It's simple, the network continues to grow! Widely acclaimed by young people, the platform has been able to provide many tools for influencers and offer users a summary of all their important applications ( stories , IGTV, Instagram live), etc.

The IGTV format for long videos offers more possibilities for influencers and brands. Instagram's bet to offer its video platform in vertical format has paid off: the tool is growing at high speed in influencer marketing.

 

6. Emergence of new social networks…

TikTok and its short video formats panic Generation Z and benefited from the biggest growth on the market in 2018. It is a leading marketing platform for brands wishing to reach an audience of less than 30 years.

The Twitch platform is gaining momentum in the world of video games. Its partnership program has become important over the past two years.

It can be interesting to bet on these platforms on your target belongs to generation Z.

7.… and decline of the Facebook giant

Since 2018, Facebook has seen its number of subscribers drop. It must be said that the Cambridge Analytica data leak scandal has hurt Mark Zuckerberg's business very much. Many people have left the social network when others are skeptical and abandon it. In short, the time is not for trust.

In addition, the Facebook population is aging. Young people do not find this network attractive. It must be said that their parents are also registered.

In addition, the increase in the number of negative posts does not match the expectations of the public regarding social networks. The latter indeed hopes to escape from his daily life.

Facebook is therefore slowly being divested, and continues to fall in the face of the emergence and growth of more dynamic networks.

8. Influence marketing and video

It's a fact, the video format generates more engagement with followers. The success of Instagram stories , Youtube and other platforms specializing in video is proof of this. We now have to go through influence agencies to “upgrade” content and allow influencers and brands to find their place.

Gamers are also recognized as great influencers. Brands unrelated to the game world no longer hesitate to integrate their marketing strategy into the world of video games to reach a younger audience.