2021 : A Round-Up of the Influencer Marketing Industry, Future Trends & More

Key Insights -

• Majority of respondents were female and were from the age group of 18-40. The youth of today are taking up Influencer as a full fledged career as compared to before.
• Beauty, Fashion and Lifestyle categories continue to rule the roost while Travel has taken a backseat the past year due to travel bans and lockdowns.
• The TikTok ban has paved the way for the rise of many new apps.?The most popular upcoming app according to the survey is Clubhouse. On the other hand, along with Clubhouse, Trell and Roposo seem to be popular too.
• Instagram is the platform with the most engagement and reels has been a clear winner to effectively boost reach and engagement on the platform.
• As per the report, 76% of the respondents agree that video content performs better than static content.
• Many of the respondents feel that the new Instagram algorithm has affected influencers’ reach and engagement.
• Influencers prefer long term relationships over short-term projects. This is win-win for both parties as long-term collaboration with specific influencers establish brand credibility and trust.
• According to the survey, a vast majority of influencers feel that the new ASCI rules are important and would be following the rules as well.

2021 vs 2020

• In comparison to last year, almost 54% of the respondents were from non-metros. The choice of becoming an influencer has trickled down to Tier 2 and 3 cities with the majority of the upcoming influencers from there.
• There has been significant growth for Roposo and Trell in the past year with a leap in user count. Clubhouse doesn’t seem far behind.?Roposo and Trell have a better reach in non-metros as compared to last year.
• Fashion and beauty continue to rule the roost but Travel has taken a backseat due to the Pandemic and lockdowns. Travel influencers have broadened their strategy to engage their audiences the past year.

Conclusion :

Consumer behaviour is ever-changing, however, influencer marketing is here to stay throughout these behavioural changes as customers still buy products that are recommended to them. Due to the decreased attention span of users, brands need to communicate in an easy-to-understand and concise manner as such a format has proven to be most effective in engaging consumers.

While the algorithm of any social media app is susceptible to change,?it is vital to stay on-trend and keep updating your brand’s way of communication. Follow all ethical practices, be consistent in your efforts and conduct basic hygiene checks for all your content. Through such habits, slowly but surely your brand’s engagement on your social media pages will pick up. It must be noted that while your format may keep changing, what you bring to the table need not be transient. Your consumers value your brand for its own uniqueness and authenticity, so ensure to keep that as a constant.

Making the right connections and developing a lasting relationship with influencers will not help you tap into their audience base and increase your reach, but create a community of people who can vouch for your brand.

The most important takeaway for brands looking to leverage influencer marketing is that: “People do not buy goods and services, they buy relations, stories and magic.”

Read the detailed report here - https://www.influencer.in/blog/influencer-marketing-report-2021-for-india/