Influencer marketing has taken social media by storm in the last five to 10 years. Since COVID-19, more talented people have joined the Creator Economy and revolutionized the way brands connect with audiences online.
These 101 influencer marketing statistics demonstrate that creators set the tone for brand sentiment on social media. The data also demonstrates that social media is a marketplace where digital word-of-mouth can “make or break” brands in the 21st Century.
How to use these stats to improve your influencer marketing campaign
As you go through this list of influencer marketing statistics, look for answers to some of the biggest questions in the industry:
Why does influencer marketing work?
What are reasons why some influencer programs are more successful than others?
What do consumers think of social media creators?
Where are consumers most likely to engage their favorite influencers?
How many brands use influencer marketing?
What types of creators/social channels/content perform best for audiences?
Once you have answers to these questions, you can also leverage these statistics to do the following:
Set reasonable expectations for your current influencer program
Plan influencer campaign budgets
Get a better understanding of your audience
Target the right audience, channel, and creators online
Pitch new ideas to your boss or team
Expand your reach to new channels
Find new ways to repurpose influencer-generated content (i.e., paid ads) for greater ROI
16 Statistics proving influencer ROI
1. Influencer-generated posts consistently outperform branded posts, according to 60% of marketers.
Influencer whitelisting occurs when a creator gives a brand they trust advertising permissions on their social media account. The brand uses that creator’s content to promote ads to new audiences from the creator’s profile. These ads feel more organic to consumers and as a result, perform better than traditional advertising.
5. 90% of influencer marketers find that creator campaigns produce as good or better returns than all other marketing mediums.
EMV calculates the value of all third-party mentions. Social accounts with high EMV achieve significant ROI from a single post, whereas those with low EMV have little to no impact.
9. Influencer marketing increased from a $1.7 billion to a $13.8 billion dollar industry in the last five years.
Even though influencer marketing was growing rapidly in 2019, lockdowns and safety protocols associated with a global pandemic further elevated the role of social media creators among consumers.
10. Experts predict that marketers will collectively spend more than $4.5 billion dollars on influencers by 2023.
The social proof associated with an authentic brand endorsement by an influencer can shorten the buyer’s journey, lower customer acquisition costs (CAC), and increase customer lifetime value (CLV).
15. The percentage of marketers using influencer marketing in the U.S. is predicted to increase by 17% between 2019 and 2022.
An additional 20% of marketers said that they would keep their 2020 influencer marketing budget intact for the new year. Only 19% of brands either planned to decrease their budget or were undecided.
21 Statistics on why consumers trust social media influencers
1. 80% of consumers complete a purchase after seeing an influencer recommend that product on social media.
Though followers may not know their favorite creators personally, they see those creators as honest and trustworthy. Influencer marketing is an effective way to spread digital word-of-mouth.
2. More than half of consumers state that word-of-mouth and social media are their preferred ways to discover new brands.
It’s not that consumers hate being marketed to, it’s that they want brands and influencers to be up front about what they post and why. Adding the appropriate hashtags (#sponsored) and disclaimers helps you and your creator partners be transparent with your audience.
4. As many as half of social media users don’t equate followers size with influencer trustworthiness.
When it comes to follower counts, bigger isn’t always better. By taking a closer look at how that influencer connects with their followers, you can get a better sense of how they can help you reach your goals.
5. 46% of consumers prefer to follow creators that look and act like “everyday people.”
6. More than half of social media users report that an influencer’s follower count does not impact their decision to take action on product endorsements.
Online buying can be tricky for those who prefer to see or handle products in real life before making a purchase. But when a creator that they trust uses and praises a product, consumers are more likely to take a chance on that brand.
16. More than 90% of consumers engage influencers on a weekly basis on Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and Snapchat.
These consumers reported that they “often” or “sometimes” sought recommendations from travel influencers, while an additional 22% stated that they also do so on rare occasions. Of all those surveyed, only 15% said that they didn’t consult influencers at all before planning trips.
18. 70% of social media live stream viewers in the U.S. said they were “likely to buy products from influencers.”
Strong brand-influencer relationships keep campaigns authentic and creator excitement high. The “middle man” approach to influencer marketing often results in transactional relationships that alienate buyers.
2. More than 15% of brands spend over half their marketing budget on creator partnerships.
Many marketers are still trying to track their creator campaigns across several different tools and spreadsheets. Creator management is shifting toward leveraging intuitive automation tools that can accurately attribute influencer performance.
4. More than ¾ of influencer marketers use social post engagement as their main approach to tracking campaign performance.
Brands that are investing more resources into creator management are learning how to measure campaign performance across all stages of the marketing funnel. This approach allows them to gather more metrics to better calculate influencer ROI.
5. Nearly 60% of influencer marketers say they have difficulty identifying the right creator for their brand.
Recruiting the right creators makes all the difference in your campaign performance. Scaling your program often means incorporating better outreach and relationship management tools for your brand.
6. 30% of influencer marketers work with celebrities.
The average micro influencer video costs $261, compared to $170 per sponsored post. This cost gap increases among macro and celebrity influencers. That said, most influencer marketers consider creator videos their most profitable campaigns on social media.
6. The percentage of marketers who use TikTok for creator partnerships jumped by more than 50% between 2020 and 2021.
7. With the exception of Twitter and Facebook, brand-influencer partnerships have increased in every leading social media channel between 2020 and 2021.
In the last few years, Twitch has become home to thousands of talented live streamers across several industries, including gaming, music, food, and more.
Thanks to more calls for inclusivity among creators, influencer marketing is one the first marketing tactics to specifically target minority groups and marginalized communities.
9. 75% of creators are only interested in working with brands that align with their values.
Creators understand their audiences better than most brands. That’s why partnering with the right influencer is the most critical part of any campaign.
10. Nearly 80% of creators generate additional income on top of brand partnerships.
Nearly 70% of all reported influencer income comes from brand-creator partnerships in 2021. Affiliate partnerships account for another 10% of creator income.
12. Half of the top 10 wealthiest YouTube creators are gamer influencers.
For the first time in history, being a full-time social media creator is a viable career option for the current and next generation of teens and adults.
3. 70% of TikTok users in the U.S. are under the age of 40.
This data reveals that many brands are unsure about how to utilize this new channel. Brands that leverage this platform early have a clear advantage over their competitors, particularly when reaching younger audiences.
14. Facebook has the highest conversion rate for brands leveraging social commerce tools.
High conversion rates for Facebook and Instagram result primarily from Facebook Marketplace’s advanced social commerce features.
Conclusion
The evidence for influencer marketing as a leading digital marketing strategy is overwhelming. As traditional marketing tactics lose effectiveness, it is more important than ever that brands find better ways to connect with their customers. These influencer marketing statistics demonstrate that creator partnerships pave the way for better brand-consumer relationships.
Updated: November 2021
Special thanks to our friends at Grin.co for their insights on this topic.
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