Is influencer marketing “stonks”?
- Instagram: 80% of people use it to search for products or services.
- YouTube: 90% of internet users say they discover new brands and products thanks to YouTube.
- TikTok: average engagement rate per post of 29%.
Influencer marketing in B2C? Yes, please!
It’s important to understand that in B2C, purchases are primarily driven by consumer emotion. Over time, social media platforms have developed highly sophisticated and effective targeting algorithms. The efficiency of these algorithms ensures a certain return on investment for campaigns based on influencers and social media. With B2C, a good ROI can be achieved quickly if you invest in the right influencers at the right time. According to Hootsuite, the three most effective networks for B2C are currently Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube. TikTok is currently ranked 6th, likely due to its relative newness.
B2C influencers have a profile that is more or less representative of their community. Their core content consists of photos, live streams, and videos posted at regular intervals. According to a survey of marketers from various companies, influencers and celebrities are prioritized for B2C campaigns. For 71% of them, micro-influencers who target a very specific community are the most interesting. Let’s keep in mind two interesting statistics: 61% of internet users interact with at least one influencer per day, and consulting reviews on social media has increased by an average of 45% since 2020.
And what about B2B?
Unlike B2C, B2B purchases are much more rational and practical than emotional. In B2B, being a true expert is essential for making a sale. The three most effective networks for B2B are LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter. The typical profile of a B2B influencer differs somewhat from that of a B2C influencer: 25-45 years old with niche expertise on a specific topic and an average community of 1,000 to 10,000 followers. For B2B campaigns, marketers prioritize established journalists and bloggers.
It has been observed that 61% of B2B decision-makers begin their research for a purchase online and through a search engine. Furthermore, a decision-maker trusts a subject matter expert more than a company, because they know the latter will implement digital marketing strategies to attract them. We can conclude that for a company, an influencer brings:
- up to 51% of its visibility,
- up to 70% of its commitment,
- up to 51% increase in customer trust in the company and its services.
It is observed that overall, influencer marketing is just as relevant in B2C as in B2B…
However, it’s essential to adapt your strategy to your target audience. Influencer marketing isn’t a magic bullet for success. You need to target and adjust your investments across different types of influencers and networks, depending on whether you’re doing B2B or B2C. Therefore, it’s safe to say that influencer marketing will become a major component of any marketing strategy, even more so than it is today.