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Do you want to fight a horse-sized duck or a hundred duck-sized horses? It’s a silly and subjective question that pops up at parties with no right answer… but when applied to influencer marketing, hundred ponies is the correct answer. To understand why, you must consider the broader customer conversion context.
More brands are starting to see a shift in how to effectively reach audiences as the cookie approach is starting to go awry. Pixel tracking, traditional cookie technology, and mobile tracking (IDFA, AAID) are on the decline after a decade of infuriating users. Safari and Firefox have implemented some blocking for third-party tracking cookies, while Chrome, the most popular desktop browser by far, will start blocking their cookies in the middle of next year.
These are all signs that they are simply not the future for marketers.
Therefore, an urgent question that big brands need to answer in the immediate future is how they can understand the tastes, wants, desires and needs of consumers in the future if they cannot follow are they the same as before?
The answer is simpler than you think. The real opportunity in marketing – which few are talking about these days – is influencer marketing at scale, especially for video creators, streamers, and broadcasters. I’m talking about a class of creators with strong, stable community ties who know and love their fans – fans who return adoration built on authenticity. and respect.
These aren’t just giant influencers; Creators of all sizes have a strong symbiotic relationship with their audience. This relationship is formed by trust with many responses if that trust is broken.
Therefore, if Creator Y doesn’t like Brand X, they won’t promote Brand X. Why? Because creator loyalty is like brand loyalty. And if audiences supporting Creator Y feel betrayed, even a little, they’ll support another creator. The risk of raising something that doesn’t match the hype isn’t worth getting a paycheck to plug it in. Therefore, creators must always believe in or at least connect with what they are promoting.
Furthermore, because of the relationship with the audience, creators are more likely to self-select the offers their fans will appreciate and deliver it in a compelling way. This means marketers don’t have to work as hard on targeting and messaging, and they don’t have to struggle through one-size-fits-all taglines.
Rethink your streaming strategy
Building awareness by matching big name influencers with brands is a key approach for brands trying to break into the live streaming space. Getting an established creator to drink a branded sports drink is a tried-and-true strategy to draw users’ attention to a product. But with many brands selling directly to customers, there is a drastic shift to driving direct sales growth. This is where performance marketing comes in.
Today, as brands and marketers rethink performance marketing strategies, they tend to view the top 1% of streamers as the “end-all” for their campaigns. In fact, mid- and micro-creators are connecting with their audiences on a personal level. Even though they have a smaller audience, they can still make that intimate connection, speak to their community on a personal level, and drive real engagement with the brands they’re working with. advertisement.
Combining these campaigns delivers a stronger message that helps to find a better buyer audience.
Direct thinking
No one likes the beginning of the video. It’s one of those successful video standards that everyone despises, yet brands are targeting a generation with no attention span and expect them to sit through a boxed commercial, assuming they don’t block that ad.
Giving content creators the tools to promote products and engage with brands they like while engaging their audience directly is fundamentally more elegant and a powerful addition. for other inventory around the creator. It is also more competitive when compared to acquisition costs on major ad display platforms.
Influencer marketing has been able to rapidly evolve and adapt to audience dynamics. The ground is always moving under our feet. That is the time we live in. Bringing together creators and their audiences at scale with the right brands and tools to engage with live installations will be the next great step forward in consumer marketing. creation.
Gil Hirsch is the co-founder and CEO of StreamElements.
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