While most digital marketing trends emerged and made an impact in 2022, we expect them to continue evolving and transforming the industry in 2023, with new trends providing a distinct experience.
While we can’t predict where digital marketing will go or what it will look like in five years, keeping up with current developments will provide industry professionals an idea of the possibilities the industry will face in the future.
According to a recent survey, most B2C marketing specialists anticipated an increase in expenditure in 2022, with approximately 11% considering influencer collaborations as their primary marketing channel. (Statista)
We anticipate that more brands will invest in influencer marketing in 2023, as it may be a highly successful strategy to contact many potential customers. It is not only effective, but it has also become one of the most popular kinds of digital marketing on social media today.
Influencer marketing continues to play a vital role in boosting sales and engagement. But what are the important themes to keep an eye on? Keep reading to find out!
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360 degrees of influencer-generated content
With social media users clamouring for more ‘’real’ individuals to promote things, marketers will look for new and more creative methods to incorporate influencers across their channels, including those beyond social media.
Highlighting influencer-generated content (IGC) on brand websites will become more regular, and we’ll see influencers pop up in email campaigns, be blown up in shops or on billboards, and even make appearances at brand-owned events.
Brands will not only be maximising their investment and increasing the peer-to-peer effect that influencer marketing provides by repurposing IGC across numerous channels and platforms, but they will also provide their audience exactly what they want.
Furthermore, the rise of TikTok and Instagram Reels has introduced a completely different approach to sponsored content: many influencers enjoy expressing themselves by making an amusing, easy-to-consume videos. Of course, the Instagram algorithm supports it as well!
Influencers are utilising Instagram Reels and TikTok to express themselves and share more aspects of their lives, but marketers are also leveraging both platforms to assist their campaigns, for example, by leveraging influencers’ personalities through video-based content to promote their products and services.
The rise of multi-channel campaigns
The average social media user interacts with 6-7 social media networks. Cross-channel campaigns are increasingly unavoidable for marketers as the average user adopts more platforms in their everyday lives.
It is feasible to reach a significantly larger audience by collaborating across channels. TikTok, for example, is mostly utilised for fun, but Instagram is used for socialising, inspiration, and product suggestions. In other words, while working together on TikTok and Instagram, the product might be shared in a fun, creative way on TikTok but in a more aesthetic and instructive way on Instagram.
Remember, each social platform is designed for different purposes – So, your brand must take advantage of creating different communities on these platforms to reach desired audiences.
Niches are getting niche-r
Finding your niche has always been the first advice given to wannabe influencers. Whether you were a fashion expert, a restaurant expert, or a craft enthusiast, clearly indicating what social media viewers could anticipate from your feed was critical to growing a following.
But, like the insatiable need for authenticity, consumers will become even more selective, and artists will double down to separate from the crowd, refining their speciality and delivering greater specificity in their content. Fashion influencers, for example, could focus their content on sustainable fashion or affordable fashion, whereas foodie accounts could focus on street cuisine or home cooking.
Goodbye, vanity metrics!
The majority of marketers manage influencer engagements via email and direct messages. A difficulty arises here: the lack of real-time data and reporting makes it difficult to determine whether or not the collaboration was successful.
When Instagram introduced the ability to hide the number of likes a post earned from your followers, it was praised as a step away from some of the social media’s less desirable aspects. We anticipate seeing a greater number of influencers take advantage of the tool as a harsher emphasis is placed on the emotional burden of putting your life online for approval.
While we don’t expect this to apply to the majority of creators, it is something that brands should keep in mind, especially as Instagram moves toward the full-screen format, which is already in testing and in which ‘likes’ do not appear on the main view, hidden or not.
When selecting influencers, ensure their audience matches the brand’s target group. This is one of the reasons why leveraging influencer marketing platforms and hiring professionals (like us!) is becoming increasingly popular: we can provide real-time audience demographics as well as measure campaign analytics such as clicks, reach, impressions, and engagements directly from the influencers.
Check out our blog on measuring ROI from influencer marketing campaigns to ensure your campaigns are a success!
Building long-term relationships with influencers
As with other marketing strategies, more and more brands are using influencer marketing on a regular basis, not only around major holidays.
Long-term influencer connections are usually recommended: they not only stand out on social media, but they also feel more trustworthy, resulting in greater outcomes for the company. Not to add that long-term partnerships need less time from marketing.
As influencer marketing has grown in popularity, more brands are competing for high-quality influencers. Once the brand has identified its influencers, it should turn them into brand ambassadors.
Final thoughts
For brands and the marketing teams responsible for keeping them current and engaging, the never-ending cycle of customer behaviour can feel like a nightmare. When you factor in platform modifications – or even entirely new platforms – individuals operating in the influencer marketing area have their work cut out for them.
However, for brands that adapt, particularly those who invest budget, resources, and creativity into their channel activities, influencer marketing still has a lot to offer.
If you’re ready to start your influencer marketing campaigns in 2023, get in touch with us!
