Influencer marketingis everywhere these days.According toMcKinsey, the influencer marketing economy was valued at $21.1 billion in 2023.
From beauty brands to restaurants, many companies are turning to influencers to generate business.
But I want to challenge that belief.
Rudzhan - stock.adobe.com
Thats not to say that all influencer marketing is bad and that business leaders should never use it.
Can there really be authenticity when money is on the table?
First, I want to explore the concept of authenticity in influencer marketing.
This brings me to my next point.
Ive observed that with much influencer marketing content, the line between ads and genuine content gets blurred.
In my view, there are two groups of influencers.
The Rolling Stone Culture Councilis an invitation-only community for Influencers, Innovators and Creatives.Do I qualify?
Can celebrity partnerships be more effective than other influencer arrangements?
When I was running my former business, I worked with celebrities.
I got a lot of value from those celebrity partnerships and felt more at ease about them.
How will ROI be measured?
The video might get hundreds of thousands of views.
Thats easy for the brand to track.
Other consumers, however, saw the video and didnt think about the dumbbells again for some time.
Does everything need to be so transactional?
Brands need to market themselves.
To think otherwise is to be unrealistic.
Influencer marketing is one of the leading advertising strategies today.
But often, I find myself thinking: Does everything need to be so transactional?
