Are influencers influential?

Welcome to the second installment of “Between Meetings,” a weekly newsletter that captures serendipitous conversations Daphne and Vanessa are having on marketing, strategy, growth, and insights—chats maybe you too have had, or want to have, when that office meeting ends. These are the ‘wait a moment, what about this’ topics we have in the office hallway, the bathroom while washing our hands, at the gym, or while waiting for the?next meeting to start. “Between Meetings” conversations are often (cough) more interesting than the meeting we were having, and we want to give those thoughts more room to breathe. We also want “Between Meetings” to serve as sparks that encourage you to share your own thoughts on these as well as other subjects.?

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Each week we introduce:?

• The WHAT. Or the essence of what this conversation/question really is all about.
• The SO WHAT. Our honest POV on the topics at hand with an open invitation for you to?dive in too.
• And the NOW WHAT. Our thoughts on steps to take in the future.?

At the bottom, we will add a few extra reads if you want to go down the proverbial rabbit hole on a topic (because what’s not to love about that…when you find the right rabbit hole).?

So let’s get to it!?

The start of the conversation?

We were idly walking through Fulham on a Sunday morning, looking for coffee a couple of weeks back, when Vanessa came out with a whopper. “Do you think influencers are influential,” she asked.

What Daphne’s LinkedIn profile won’t tell you is that pop culture and obscure (and maybe pointless) celebrities could very well be her top subject on Jeopardy.?She whirled and said, “Vanessa! In a post-Trump era, in the age of Greta and Malala, of Mormon mum bloggers and TIBAL surely the point is moot. Of course they do.” Daphne explained, “Look at the furor over TikTokers and YouTubers being invited to the Met Gala—the sanctum of fashion. Ultimately, how else would you explain the phenomenon that is the Kardashian family or Love Island?”?

Vanessa, not overly convinced, continued to muse on the point. “But are influencers influencing us? Or are they informing us?”?Where should they sit on the awareness-engagement-conversion-advocacy marketing spectrum? And are all influencers the same?

?The WHAT: these are the burning questions?

We are betting that many of us have been in a meeting that has discussed influencers and an influencer strategy and that we are not alone in the “Between Meetings” discussions on the topic - of who is an infleuncer, what do we needc them to do, who does what and what is the cost and yes the ROI. ?In this “Between Meetings” we are starting with the question of are influencers influential? Firstly, who is an influencer? What’s the criteria cut off line—the point when a person can now say she/he/they is an influencer? Is it a massive following, a point of view, an expertise?

And if they do actually influence others, who exactly are they reaching and how? Ultimately why should brands partner with influencers???

The SO WHAT: Unpacking our points of view?(and we would love to hear yours!)

There wouldn’t be a decade-long influencer market if we (marketers, brand managers, and brand custodians) did not think it works. And if the idea of influencing is getting a shift in “before” to “after,” then yes Madonna was an influencer and so was Jackie O.??

So after much back and forth we came to an idea. All influencers are not equal. It is a big “influencer Swiss Army Knife” with many tools that each do different things. So just saying we need an “influencer strategy” means as much as get me that Swiss Army Knife. What exactly are you looking to do, and then let’s go from there.???

And that’s the crux of the matter here. We are seeing many influencer partnerships appearing and they seem to be (mostly) surface deep because we tend to be very broad and generic in defining the job to be done. To keep with our Swiss analogy often we merely ask for someone to ‘help us fix something’ rather than specify what needs to be fixed—critical info that can determine which tool in the knife you’d use.?

We started to think about how we might segment influencers. Would our list be something like this, less related to number of followers and more about intent and purpose? (and we want to hear your definitions/list/archetypes too)

?1. The Curator: A leader of a loyal tribe?(large or small) who is?telling the group what they like and what they don’t. ?They are wading through all the stuff on the internet and sorting it out for you. You trust them because they align with your “views” and “style.” ?Curators are good for connecting your brand with the tribes that matter to you and to them.?

2. The Expert: Known for their expertise in something (vegan food, interior design, running, the perfect latte for you). Experts demystify, guide and educate. They help to build your brand's credibility and deeper connection to your story (aka running performance shoes and Kipchoge). Use these infleucners when you are building your brand fan base, point of difference and credentials in a competitive area.

3. The Buzzer: This influencer archetype has a lot of followers and they just let you know what’s happening and great Buzzers shake it up and get that viral “did you see that” sharing which creates awareness momentum. Buying the services of the Buzzer is similar to a media buy in the traditional sense. The Buzzer gets the word out and is great for awareness. And what happens once the word is out? People tend to fire up their search engine and start searching for more info. When using a Buzzer its a good idea to have somewhere concrete for them to land when they search. the next step in the customer journey (that is integrated and doesn't feel fake).

4. The Amplifier: A loud voice on a point of view or a certain topic (a mix between the Expert and the Buzzer maybe). Clearly known for something (expertise, a POV) and they are great at gathering attention. Use the Amplifier when you know the message you need to share loudly to the crowd. As with the Buzzer, the Amplifier builds up interest and is the search and connection starting point. Having a next place to land to "connect more" is needed to continue the connection.

As we mentioned earlier, getting the purpose right matters too. As an example, recently whilst plumbing the depths of Instagram, Daphne came across a series of stories from a London fashion influencer who was documenting her trip to NYC. Between stories of martinis overlooking Brooklyn Bridge and of cute stoops in West Village, there were three stories of said influencer wearing a pair of white sneakers from a Milan-based brand. The quick shift stood out, but not in the best sense of the word. Now if the brand’s ambition was to raise awareness of the sneaker, maybe that was an okay partnership. But if the intent—the job shall we say—was to influence conversion (i.e., get Daphne to buy a pair), then it was not clinching the deal as none of the more candid, authentic shots included the shoes nor have any stories or posts since. The credibility?wasn’t there and hence credibility for any future recommendations were lost?in Daphne’s eyes. It was clearly “paid to place.” ?So why would we trust this curation? Awareness - check. Conversion, credibility - nope.

Let’s be honest. That lack of integration and authenticity ultimately shows - no matter how good our creative team. Our?human ability to distinguish real from fake, authentic from spurious is hard-wired in or brains—we operate in the?details and the decimal places, not in the 1s and 0s of coding.?

Our?final thought (for now!) on the topic of influencers is that we typically look at their merit and existence as?brand influencing and reaching out to consumers. But what about the reverse: what do those influencer partnerships tell the world about our brand??We recently had a conversation about partnering up with celebs which are often Amplifiers or Buzzers—what does partnering up with “voices like Donald Trump, Elon Musk, Yee, etc” do for your brand image beyond getting noticed (aka reach). And for that matter how do we think about them? Is there are new archetype? The Agitator or is the a subtype of the Amplifier or Buzzer. I feel another big discussion coming on.

NOW WHAT? The Challenge/The What if?

Instead of selecting influencers based on their sheer following, what if we chose them on the basis of the issues they stand for and build with them long, minimum 6-month partnerships? And then we added the extra lens of information/awareness vs conversion so we could really hone our selection criteria.?

Taking this a step further, we debated what would happen if we took a bit more time to vet the influencers we were engaging with for fit—beyond surface authenticity and sales. We could recruit someone into our team by moving past what they simply do to also take into account how they do it. We would explore elements of cultural fit, values and beliefs. After all, one could argue that influencers are an extended part of the brand team—this should be a good fit.?

If it hadn’t been for Zoom and Hangout calls looming for both of us, we had a final question. How does the research process reflect these needs for a deeper understanding of an influencer’s essence? What needs to change and how? What tracking do we have in place to measure beyond simple “likes,” clicks, and sales?

?(For a future “Between Meetings,” maybe we should talk about influencers who got it wrong or who said something that seriously disengaged us!)

?But no, now it’s your turn! We have only scratched this topic’s surface. We’d love to hear your thoughts - as we think this discussion deserves much more time. Thanks for reading and digging into the topic with us!

?If you have a “Between Meetings” topic to suggest, here is the Google form.

?More to Read (for those who want to disappear down the rabbit hole)

?Entry level reading: 2-5 minute snack time?

Snack 1: Read the Statistica article released in June 2022 for the current data on influencers. It highlights that most people trust the opinion of their social circle when making purchasing decisions. As data from the?Statista Global Consumer Survey?shows, many also trust the friendly people who freely share their lives with us on social media and at least feel like our acquaintances: influencers. Influencers?currently yield the biggest power over people’s purchasing decisions in Brazil, China and India, according to the survey which is representative of the countries’ online populations.

Snack 2. PGA golf decided that ranking its players by money and wins alone was not the way to go. The player impact award, which you can read about here, is a combination of earned, paid and awareness.?“It’s a reward for being a great ambassador of the game and for remaining visible.” A thought-provoking?read on how to measure the impact of influencers.

Keep up with the Kardashians…who of course can teach us all a thing or two about influencer impact: 30+ minutes

You ready to go deep? Whip out the headphones and take a listen to this podcast on the Influencer marketing machine that is the Kardashians. Vanessa ‘fessed up that she is?not an avid watcher of “Keeping up with the Kardashians,” but this podcast cemented a new curiosity and out her down the absolutely fascinating Kardashian Rabbit hole. Listen to a deconstruction of the road to influencer stardom by this family that is “famous for being famous.”?

And just for fun:?

Click on the?story of?Oober Butler and his restaurant, “The Shed at Dulwich.” Butler showed just how “non-credible” reviews can be on the Trip Advisor platform by fooling foodies, celebrities, and bloggers with bogus reviews. The eatery truly was only a shed, but soon it became London’s #1 rated restaurant on ginned up word of mouth alone. Alternate title, “Why you should not believe everything an influencer says.” The discussion on credibility starts here and the role of influencers to help curate the wheat from the chaff.

?About the Authors?

Daphne is a passionate Greek who is always musing “Yes, and what if?” Her two law degrees cemented a lifetime need for rigor and a belief in the need for continual improvement. This has led her to join innovative, disruptive, and growth-hungry teams and organizations that look to apply advances in science and technology to new, never-tried-before industries. She’s had a squiggly career (read more here) that’s seen her delve into the world of banking, neuroscience, digital strategy, machine learning and AI, e-commerce, and angel investing.?

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Driven by and fascinated with evolution, Vanessa has famously said her least favourite Japanese phrase is "reinen dori" (let's do what we did last time). She is on a constant path to discover the world and consumers around her, to analyze the brands she works with, and to further her personal journey. Vanessa has a t-shirt (check the LinkedIn profile) that simply says "WHY"—she combines this base curiosity with her passions for branding, marketing, insights, action, and a desire to make a difference in the world. Her experience spans strategy, research and insights, marketing, social impact, PR communications, and senior leadership for some of the world’s most recognized brands. She serves on the council of ESOMAR and is an avid runner and cancer awareness advocate who produces the podcast #outruncancer.