Adsider

The industry is projected to grow to $9.7 billion

65% of marketers track conversions and sales from influencer marketing, according to the recent survey conducted among 4000 marketers by Influencer Marketing Hub and Creator IQ. The average Earned Media Value (EMV) per $1 spent amounts to $5.78, and 91% of marketers are satisfied with their influencer campaign effectiveness.

Moreover, 66% of respondents will increase their influencer marketing budgets in 2020. The industry, therefore, is projected to grow to $9.7 billion.

Influencers have the biggest impact on Gen-Z. According to Mobile Marketer, 44% of this cohort has made a purchase following an influencer’s review of a product, while only 26% percent of the general population displays similar behavior.

The study also found that micro-influencers (<5000 followers) and nano-influencers  (<1000 followers) bring higher engagement rates across all platforms. This is becoming more apparent, as last year, 4 times more large companies invested into micro-influencer campaigns.

Shane Barker, Digital Strategist, Brand & Influencer Consultant agrees:

“Bigger is not always better when it comes to growing your Instagram following. I’ve found that collaborating with micro-influencers works well in most cases.”

As per the influencer marketing platforms, Instagram dominates the market and is used by 87% of all respondents. 46% of marketers use Facebook, 6% – YouTube, 22% – Twitter, 16% – LinkedIn, and a 15% turn to niche platforms.

However, the industry is not flawless. More than ⅔ of marketers have experienced influencer fraud, e.g. influencers’ purchasing followers, likes, and shares in an attempt to disguise the real results of their campaigns. Besides, only 14% of influencers comply with the Federal Trade Commission guidelines on sponsorship disclosure.

Chris Vickery, Director of Cyber Risk Research at Upguard twitted:

“I’ve come to the conclusion that the Influencer Marketing industry is operating unbelievably far beyond legal boundaries. If you are an Influencer Marketing company- you guys are going to have problems at some point when enough people realize what’s happening behind the scenes.”