Under the influence

Microbloggers and social media celebs have taken the traditional endorsement industry by storm

With the rise and rise of social media, a new, powerful group of social “influencers” have emerged. Initially, companies saw the potential in taking the established practice of celebrity endorsement into the social media space, but soon the “regular Joes and Janes” with a blogging or microblogging presence began competing with the celebs.

These professional influencers are now major players, and the spend being redirected in their direction — especially in developed markets like the US — is significant. According to one estimate from digital research firm emarketer, the global spend on “influencer marketing” on Instagram alone last year was US$570M.

So what’s driving the influencer economy and how does it work? One contributing factor is the popularity and acceptance of the native content or native advertising form.

This includes old(er)-school methods like advertorials placed in traditional and online media, and covers paid-for content in the style of the editorial content in which it is placed.

Buzzfeed’s model relies on native advertising, and examples include the obvious and silly “Which donut are you?” quiz, sponsored by Dunkin’ Donuts, and the more subtle listicle (list-based article), “15 things we did at school that future students will never understand”.

The latter is a smooth, relatable list with all the makings of the kind of nostalgic, shareable content that tends to go viral on your Facebook feed, and ends with a plug for technology innovation from sponsor Intel.

Native advertising is also a solid work-around for ad blockers. Ad blockers in browsers will hide adverts on the page in your browser but leave native content untouched. Social influencer posts are a natural extension thereof, and though these categories have both coexisted and competed at different times, there are signs that social influencing may be winning — for now.

A look at a Google Trends graph comparing these two search terms over five years shows “influencer marketing” overtaking and widening the gap on “native content”.

The bread and butter of social influence marketing is paid social posts. This includes platforms like Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat and Instagram, though Instagram is currently the platform of choice.

Here you will find celebrities like the Kardashian and Jenner sisters flogging slimming teas, clothing labels, cosmetics, waist trainers and even holiday destinations for princely sums. Harper’s Bazaar reported earlier this year that Kim Kardashian can charge in the region of $500,000 for a post to her 9.4m Instagram followers.

One reason these posts are so in demand is that they offer the benefit of a self-selecting audience. One powerful group that operates in this way is the plus-size or body-positive social media movement. Here “personalities” like Tess Holliday (@tessholliday) or Georgina Horne (@fullerfigurefullerbust) are self-made content stars, rather than traditional celebrities of the entertainment industry.

Briton Horne, a relative newcomer, has a following of 151,000 fans on Instagram, while Holliday brings over 1.4m fans to her feed. If your product is plus-size lingerie, for example, you can reach potential buyers more directly and predictably than through billboard or general women’s magazine advertising.

The more niche you go, the less you pay — and the more targeted and self-selecting your audience is. Hypr, an influencer marketing firm,