How the influencer marketing changed creative thinking? | by Influ.ai | Mar, 2023

How the influencer marketing changed creative thinking?

Creativity is the ability to consider something in a new way. It is so multidimensional that it applies to everything. From writing a “thank you” note to how you decorate your apartment or even finding a solution to a fundamental problem. The more creative, the better.

When I put it that way, it seems as if the world revolves around creativity!?

Jokes aside. When you think about a sphere where you need to be creative, most probably, the first thing that comes to your mind is marketing. Imagine how creative you must be to have the ability to sell anything

Not to bore you, but a little historical overview may be helpful here.

It has been argued that the earliest occurrences resembling today’s marketing started as early as 1500 BCE. Back then, Mesopotamian societies began mass production of goods that required quality control. Producers of goods would stamp their products with a signature mark (the earliest form of a logo).

Afterwards, the invention of the printing press accelerated the process significantly. In the 18th and 19th centuries, inventions like magazines and billboards completely changed the industry and how advertising and marketing work. Initially, magazines were mainly about book reviews, court decisions, politics and anecdotes. However, in time, advertisements appeared more often in magazines. Such as print ads of products that often run in local or national magazines. Think of all the pretty faces and new products in Vogue, Glamour, and almost every other magazine. The same is valid for billboards. A billboard is similar to an oversized poster used to promote a brand, offering, or campaign by displaying advertisements. Mind that the location of the billboard is an essential part.

Just imagine you have a billboard on Times Square in NYC, which is the advertising Mecca since it is one of the world’s busiest tourist attractions.

Let’s not forget what took place afterwards — Radio and Television advertisements became a significant part of the marketing industry. All in all, the sphere of advertising has changed drastically since its creation, and it is continuing to grow at the same pace.

Fast forward to now, where the holy grail of advertising and marketing is none other than Social Media. Suppose you use Facebook or Instagram to post pictures of family vacations, goofy pics of your children or the occasional selfie when you look good. And you do not get paid for it?! Then it would be best if you rethink your choices. Currently, influencer marketing is the most trending way of promoting products and one of the most valuable ways.

Wait, wasn’t this blog about creativity?

In advertising, creativity is the thing that makes you stand out to your customers the most. Gigantic billboards, well-written magazine articles, funny but strange television ads — behind all this, there is a group of people trying to find the most creative ideas to promote their brands. And I can indeed say that it is not as easy as it sounds. If you are a brand owner and want to advertise your brand, you would likely pay a lot of money for a billboard or a television ad. The problem here is that there are boundaries to your creativity. You need to present the entirety of your brand in only one image or ten-second video. That means you put your creativity in a box, which is counterintuitive to the meaning of creativity.

With social media, the boundaries are limitless. It gives us a platform to introduce our brand and, most importantly, directly grow with our customers. If until now, influencers were underestimated and considered more like ambassadors, now the brands understand their true potential by giving them more creative freedom. And the outcomes are convincing.

How much creative freedom should I give them? To what extent should that freedom be overseen?

Well, influencers are the new creators. But sometimes, giving them too much freedom can cost you a lot. We all have heard of “cancel culture”, haven’t we? As intelligent and innovative as they are, they need to gain substantial knowledge of how the industry works. And I am not talking about the “influencer industry”; of course, they know that. I refer to the hundreds of requirements brands have or, most simply put — their do’s and don’ts, the way that the customers would react, or to what extent it is acceptable to push boundaries, or how to reach the most people. They most likely need to learn about ROI, Outbound marketing or metrics.

Should I let them be creative, or should I not?

Fortunately, there is a straightforward solution to that problem — Influ.ai. Our experts will help you handle your marketing campaigns instead of wondering how to handle the creativity problem and many others. We do it for you. And not only in the beginning but throughout the whole process.

With us, you get

• Professional treatment
• An understanding of the market
• Knowledge about influencers
• Metrics about the campaign ( yeah, before the campaign, during and even afterwards)
• Outstanding soft skills ( we know how to handle our audience)
• Not to mention the saved time from administration work, contracts, invoices and IP rights on the phone

Those are not even half of the benefits you get from working with Influ.ai. Why not get the best of both worlds?

What are the advantages of giving the influencers more creative freedom?

Let’s start by saying that the cost of acquiring customers online is increasing. After the pandemic and the ongoing privacy law changes, it is harder for marketers to obtain valuable information to do their job sufficiently. They need help to predict the influencer’s landscape or where the influencer’s marketing fits in the ecosystem of advertising and promotion. This unpredictability is what makes marketers sceptical of influencers.

In 2023 we are leaving scepticism behind.

There is already a shift from influencers as media channels into influencers as creatives. And that creativity has always been there, but now, brands are starting to appreciate it. Influencers usually already have an established audience that follows them and trusts them. This trust is based on the personality that the influencer shows online. Each influencer has a niche in which they are developing. It can be anything from lifestyle and clothing to travelling.

This is not anything new.

The innovative part is that influencer marketing works differently than the original marketing. Usually, brands already have ideas on how they want their products to be portrayed, the target audience and the creative. Before, the marketers and the people responsible for the ads were the sources of the idea. They hire actors for their TV ads or a designer to create their pictures. With influencers, they give them the overview of their concept, and the influencers need to bring that idea to life with their own twist. They have to be involved in the campaign process more than ever before.

The marketers have the knowledge and the experience when it comes to promotion, but the influencers have the authenticity. And both of those things lay at the core of influencer marketing. It is like Anton de Bary explained symbiosis — interaction between two organisms living in close physical association, typically to the advantage of both.

For example, Dyson has gained much attention over the past years.

But how did that happen?

You guessed it right — Influencer Marketing.

During the last few years, the brand decided to take advantage of the ongoing pandemic and focus on promoting cleanliness. What Dyson did, however, was their most brilliant move. They chose to focus on influencer marketing instead of spending tons on TV ads. They invested that money in self-made people who created their content in their homes’ comfort. Well, that is relatable.

Exactly! That is what skyrocketed this campaign.

The brand gave influencers a very loose creative brief, giving them creative control over the posts. The posts had to be humorous and show how they cleaned up with the Dyson vacuum cleaner.

Source: 8 Insane (But True) Influencer Marketing Case Studies | Trend

Isn’t that an ROI to die for?

So does the power of creativity lie within influencer marketing?

There is no definitive answer to that question. Although by using the facts mentioned earlier, the brands should give more insight into the creative process to the influencers, include them more directly in it and provide them with the chance to shine.

Bizarre TV ads and huge colourful logos are so outdated now. People need something more tangible, something relatable. They need someone genuine to whom they can come for advice, and they need friends. And influencers are the new online friends of consumers.

The moral of the story is that less is more. And with Influ.ai, you can surely get a return on your investment.