Companies and organizations continuously want to create value for customers and build strong customer-relationships in order to capture value. For ages, firms and organizations have been seeking to shape their target audience’s thoughts, attitudes and behavior so that they can attract more customers and build brand awareness. One way brands are promoting their products and services is through social media influencers.
Social Media influencers are normal people, like you and me, who happen to have a passion for a certain field, such as cooking, fashion or beauty. Through posting about their passion on social media platforms, they gain internet popularity letting them act as an external stimuli to their audience’s opinions, decisions and behavior. This position is strengthened by a large number of followers and likes to provide the target audience with a form of social proof. As a benefit of their promotions, influencers either get paid for promoting and talking about the products, or they get sample of promotional products and services.
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Social Media Marketing is a new quick and effective approach to reaching a wide audience and increasing brand awareness; specially the younger age group, a demographic that is difficult to reach for marketers. They place strong value on forming their own identity, which is linked to social identity theory: part of psychology that deals with how people view themselves as belonging to a group of similar individuals, which affects part of their personal identity. In return affecting their needs and wants, and eventually their purchasing decision.
Social Media Marketing is considered to be a form of subconscious marketing. Subconscious Marketing relates to the touch-points between a company and a purchaser that is often ignored, until there is purchasing need. Unlike celebrities, influencers promote through a sense of trust, reliability and attractiveness. In the digital age, influencer marketing is becoming more relevant; as the customer perceives the influencer one of his/her in-group and which ultimately affects his/her purchasing decision.
Attractiveness Bias is defined as “subconsciously attributing attractive or charismatic people with many other qualities simply because they are good looking.” This bias can lead to positive associations between the influencer and the brand, as by using attractive personas, the brand will influence the subconscious of the viewer, potentially briefing them when faced with a product-related decision. Influencers are not only expected to be good looking, they are expected to be relatable, but appealing. It is shown in a study that 56% of customers rely on friends’ recommendation, and 43% rely on influencers, which is relatively close. These numbers show that influencers are just as valuable as friends and family when it comes to purchasing. Why? Because people trust who they trust, they follow public figures because they trust their wisdom and they believe in their authenticity.
Due to high demand of Social Influencer Marketing, a whole industry was created with intermediaries’ agencies acting as matchmakers between companies and influencers.
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