Influencer Marketing Trends: Q+A With, Chantel Cassar. VP at Talk Shop Media

With new Instagram timelines on the horizon, new trends on TikTok, and increased demand for brand transparency, the role of influencer marketing continues to change in regards to marketing. Marketing News Canada had the opportunity to speak to Talk Shop Vice President, Chantel Cassar, and ask her about current trends in influencer marketing. Read the Q+A below:

Why is it important to know your audience to get the most out of your influencer marketing efforts?

When a client engages Talk Shop for an influencer marketing campaign, the first question we always ask is, "who are you looking to speak to with this campaign?". This is because the most successful influencer campaigns start with audience insights. Once we determine the primary and secondary audiences, we conceptualize a creative campaign, choose the best fit for influencer partners, and determine which platform is the best fit for the campaign and the types of content that will resonate with consumers. It is our job to carefully select influencers using an advanced audience demographics tool, giving us insights into their followers' geographic locations, age, shared interests, and more, to ensure they are the right fit for our client's consumer profile. Reviewing engagement and analytics is vital to ensuring the campaign is primed for success and resonates with the right audience. For clients who are unsure of their target audience or are seeking more insight into consumer behaviours of a new or existing audience, we turn to our research partner, GWI, to gain a deeper understanding of purchasing interests, social behaviours and trends to correctly conceptualize campaigns that will make an impact.

How can brands stand out in a sea of other creators, and how can they leverage the authenticity of influencer marketing?

Influencer marketing is a powerful marketing tactic, but it needs to be done in an authentic way to see success. That is true for all content marketing - either from the brand side or through influencer content. Consumers can feel it when influencer marketing comes off as inauthentic, generic, or sponsored. We encourage brands to explore ambassador-style programs with influencers rather than one-and-done project pushes. This relationship between brands and creators creates the space for audiences to become familiar with seeing the brand in the creator's feed, provides opportunities for organic product insertion, and presents the influencer as a more authentic ambassador.

What do you think the top influencer marketing trends will be in 2022?

1. Increase in affiliate programs: Many retailers are driving traffic to their e-commerce sites and more social platforms are introducing social shopping functions. As a result, affiliate programs, where the influencer gets a commission of sales, are becoming more popular and more powerful. For example, the Instagram affiliate program rollout in 2022 will also provide an in-app shoppable tool, creating a streamlined experience for the end-user and revenue opportunities for influencers. Building relationships with influencers who are priming audiences for consumption habits will surely work in their favour and the brands.
2. Micro-influencers & employees as Influencers: When finding influencers to work with, it is easy to get caught up in metrics such as the number of followers - but bigger does not always mean better. More brands see the value in partnering with micro-influencers because their niche and highly engaged audience enables them to foster a strong community. Further, employer branding has been top of mind in 2022 as they try to attract top talent in a tough job market. Using your employees as internal and external influencers to share more about your company culture, products or services can have a lot of impact. We can look to brands like Duolingo or RyanAir that have relied on their internal marketing team to bring their brand messaging to life, establish a true brand voice and keep audiences coming back for more. Influencers still play a part here in crafting supplemental user-generated content (UGC) that can be utilized across the brand's platforms.
3. Video content will continue to rise: Video continues to be the most engaging content on social media. With the rise in popularity of TikTok and Instagram Reels, these short-form video clips are here to stay in 2022. Influencers are increasingly more comfortable with video production, and we have seen more authentic brand messaging and consumer engagement through influencers' video content.

Chantel Cassar is the Vice President at Talk Shop, an award-winning, full-service integrated communications agency with expertise in public relations, social media, digital marketing, influencer relations, branding and creative execution. We create ideas that inspire while driven by goals that produce results.