Starting an Influencer Marketing Campaign is easy. But making it work? Now, that's difficult! What you need are the right strategies to make your IM campaign successful. 🙌

What we are covering in today’s issue:

• Why Are Brands Increasing their Influencer Marketing Spend? 🧐

• Strategies for Influencer Marketing 🤓

• Which Platforms are Highest Grossing in Creator’s Economy? 💸

Winning at Influencer Marketing: Tips and Tricks for running a successful campaign! 

Influencer marketing is dead! 

Nah! More like evolving. 📈

Today Influencer marketing is all about authenticity that favors real, unfiltered moments over staged perfection. 

Plug in the right strategies and mindset and you can ride the influencer marketing wave and come out on top.

Top it with the positive Industry reports and we’ve got a winner. 🙌

The bottom line is that we're looking at a massive surge in brand spending on Influencer Marketing in the near future!

In a survey, nearly 70% of brands said that they plan to increase their influencer marketing spending in 2024 or keep it at the same levels. And half of them will increase by 10%.

Why? 🤔

Because according to them non branded content outperforms branded content.

But that's not all. There are other variables too!

• Projected growth: By the end of 2024 Influencer marketing will be 2344 crores worth and in the next 2 years the market value is projected to be more than 3300 crores. 

• Consumer engagement: Influencers in India command a high engagement rate with top influencers like Dharna Durga achieving an engagement rate of nearly 49%! 

• Influencer whitelisting: This involves trusted brands gaining advertising privileges on influencers' social media accounts. This method typically surpasses traditional social media ads by 20-50% due to the organic feel of the content shared by influencers.

• Micro and nano influencers: 47% of Brands are using both large and nano influencers equally due to their lower cost per reach.

• Content Preference: Short-form video content is the preferred medium, aligning with the popularity of platforms like Instagram and YouTube among Indian audiencesInvesting into Influencers - Smartly! 😎

• Industry adoption: Categories like lifestyle, fashion, and beauty benefit the most from influencer marketing. However, Automobile, E-commerce, and FMCG are expected to increase spending on influencer marketing.

We have saved the best for the last…

The ROI !!

• Brands receive a 5-6 times return on investment by spending $1 on influencers.

• Influencers produce as much as 11x more ROI than any other digital marketing approach.

A Quick Message from Team Spreadd 🙌

Hey Brands,

Thanks to the amazing response on our previous issues, we’re all pumped up to take this to the next level! ✨

We want to provide valuable content for our invaluable readers. Which is why we’ll see you only twice a month now!

We’ll miss you all too - but we’ll be back with - more insights, more tips, and more fun. Because we want to give you the best of the creator economy! 

And while we are away, you can check out some of our old stuff…

We are waiting for you on the other side,

Team Spreadd.

The Game of Influencer Marketing! 😎

Now you know why you need influencer marketing but how do you leverage it so that you get the best out of it? 

Strategizing your influencer marketing is no less than playing a video game! With every level up - complex and difficult situations become inevitable. So buckle up and let’s play!

🎮 Level 1: Brand Positioning & Budget Allocation!

Are you asking yourself these questions before starting your influencer campaign?

• How much to spend?

• What will be the end goal? Reach, awareness, or conversions? 

• Which Influencers to pick? 

• Which platforms to choose?

If you are already asking yourself this then you missed out a question! Before thinking about others - think about yourself first! Ask yourself this….

📌 Where does your brand stand?! 

Asking this question is important as it helps define our campaign goals, determine the budget, and choose the right type of influencers!

Fact Check: 70% of brands are considering having a dedicated budget for influencer marketing in 2024.

If 70% of the brands are on it, you need to fill in too!

So be your budget high or low - It’s high time you decide what % of your budget should be locked up for influencer marketing.

Here’s what the data suggests…

With clarity on your position and your budget - it becomes easy to set your expectations! 

That being said, it is important to keep your expectations right! If you’re a startup brand with a low budget and expect Global reach or the virality factor - then you need to re-think!

Even influencers have their limitations after all!

Remember, smart budgeting + realistic expectations = influencer marketing success.

Now that you’ve figured out your brand’s position, you’re ready to level up!

🎮 Level 2: Choosing the right Social Media Platform!

Your brand positioning is clear and your budget is set. Now is the time to introspect.

Which social media platform will you be running your influencer campaign on? And with what type of influencers?

And what does the data say about that?

Let’s dive into some more figures and find out!

Instagram 

Key insights:

• Influencer Collaboration: Ideal for short-term campaigns with high engagement and quick target market reach.

• ROI on Organic Content: Instagram leads in return on investment.

• User Engagement: Over 500 million daily interactions with Stories.

• Emerging Channels: Instagram Threads growing rapidly with 130 million active users.

Instagram in India: A snapshot

YouTube

YouTube in India: Quick Facts

• Expansive user base:  With 2.6 billion global and 467 million users In India, YouTube is the fastest-growing platform. 

• Influencer marketing: 78% of marketers  endorse YouTube as an effective channel for video marketing

• GRWM videos:  a hit format boasting 13B views, featuring "GRWM" variations in titles.

• Growing trend: Podcasts- a growing niche for high engagement and monetization.

🎮 Level 3: Finally! Choosing your Influencers & Campaign Style! 

Drum rolls, please! Here comes the influencers….🥁

From nano to micro to mega influencers, your campaign strategy success is highly dependent upon the type of influencer you choose, their follower count, and their engagement rate. Because every influencer brings something unique to the table. 

The table below will help you figure out what ROI to expect from different kinds of influencers.

Now what kind of Influencers will you choose to work with?

Here's a pro tip: If you're a startup, your best bet for a successful campaign is teaming up with nano and micro-influencers. Why? Because they help you reach the right target audience and deliver a bang for your buck, especially when you're working with a tight budget.

Now when it comes to collaboration, numerous types of collaborations exist—both traditional and innovative. See what kind of campaign speaks to you and can bring the best results for your brand.

Types of collabs you can work on:

• Sponsored Content

• Affiliate Marketing

• Cause Marketing Collaborations

• Event Appearances

• Takeovers

• Live Streaming

• AR & VR Experiences

• Product Collaboration

While the above table gives an idea of how to collaborate with influencers, we’re sure you’re asking yourself how much all of it really costs? What do these influencers charge? 

Relax! We've got a dedicated segment that breaks down influencer rates and helps you plan your campaign budget like a pro!

Congratulations!! You’ve done it! You cleared all levels of Planning your Campaign! But is the game over yet?

Here comes the bonus level… and trust us…it’s not optional!

🎮 Bonus Stage: It's time to track your campaign analytics! 

Here’s how you do it…

• Measure the Impact: From the moment of approval to the final applause, track every step meticulously. 

• Analyze for Excellence: Dive deep into the analytics to understand what resonates with your audience. 

• Engagement spikes, demographic shifts, and content preferences are your guiding stars.

• Refine and Redirect: Be flexible! Be ready to pivot to new platforms, content formats, or influencer collaborations.

And lastly,

Don't be afraid to experiment and test new ideas. Stay flexible and open to change.

Oh, and building long-term relationships with top-performing influencers can pay off big time in the future. So think about that too.

For the rest of the above, Spreadd can be your ally.

Let’s Reinvent great content together!! 🙌

We hope our issue gives you fresh insights into the Indian Creator Economy!

Are you planning your next brand campaign? Let us help you Spreadd Your Story!

Let’s pair you with top creators and craft unforgettable campaigns together — all in one place.

Wait no more! It’s time to spread your wings and fly high! 🚀

We are waiting for you on the other side,

Team Spreadd. 🫶

Thanks for reading this issue of The Brand Advocate, we are bringing you hand-crafted marketing insights from the world of startups and businesses and delivering them straight to your inbox, every Thursday.

See you next week,

Team Spreadd