Out of Many, Only a Few Social Media Influencers A Conceptual Framework for Jamaica
Ashleigh E. Gardner S16146273 Birmingham City University Master of Arts Global Media Management September 2017
Out of Many, Only a Few Social Media Influencers A Conceptual Framework for Jamaica
Word Count = 7915
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Abstract This report analyses influencer marketing as determined by current industry practices in order
Acknowledgements I would like to begin this process, acknowledging and expressing my sincerest gratitude to
to assess the possibility of applying this framework in Jamaica by ascertaining the threats and
the following people, as without them none of this would have been possible and as such I am
opportunities for the widespread acceptance and assimilation of this branch of marketing by
eternally grateful and will forever feel very blessed by your contributions and continued support.
interviewing and ethnographically studying existing Jamaican home-community and diasporabased social media influencers.
Firstly, I would like to start off by thanking my dad, Ansel Gardner, the believer and supporter of all my dreams - the real-life embodiment of my #1 fan. Thank you for everything you’ve done,
Given the nature of this fast-growing industry, this investigation focuses primarily on social media (Instagram) influencer marketing applications powered by content marketing strategies to
always praying for me, being there to cheer me on and never being afraid to push me - I love you!
offer a distinct but internationally competitive position when compared to other studies. Rachel Osbourne, thank you for being the best editor and friend any person could ask for Although recognised for its renowned cultural products, research findings indicate that the
- I got through this in one piece because of you - I appreciate all your inspiring ideas, sound
Jamaican market and as such its marketers, on a whole, fail to consider digital and social media
questions, thoughtful suggestions, and honest critiques and basically just for being my sounding
and its respective outputs as viable contributors of the Jamaican creative ecosystem. Therefore,
board for any and everything.
highlighting an area of untapped potential which, if maximised, can increase and fuel the country’s cultural and content production, generating added job and economic opportunities and in turn creating suitable conditions for practices like influencer marketing to thrive.
Thank you to Oneil and his RIzzen team for your creative input throughout this process - you guys are winning!
Special thanks to all the willing interview participants and parties of this report: Natasha-Lee Key words: Influencer Marketing, Social Media Influencers, Influence, Trust, Engagement, Authenticity, Content Marketing, Social Media, Creative Ecosystem, Instagram, Digital Entrepreneur
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Duhaney, Shea Powell and Alyson Robinson of Mouthamassi - you guys are amazing, and I appreciate your time, effort and contribution.
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Heartfelt thanks to my program advisor, Yemisi Akinbobola for your endless encouragement and support throughout the entirety of this year and this chapter of my life.
To my project supervisor, Philip Young - thank you for your guidance, feedback and insight. It was truly appreciated, and it made a big difference!
Table of Contents
Last but not least, thanks to my classmate Bola who has stuck through the ups and downs of this year and report process with me. I am thankful for your companionship.
And to anyone that I missed - thank you all!
-
Ashleigh, September 2017
1
Executive Summary
6
Introduction
13
Literature Review
26
Methodology
38
Results
44
Discussion
51
Conclusion
57
Bibliography
66
Appendix Appendix 1: Natasha’s Interview Appendix 2: Shea’s Interview Appendix 3: Mouthamassi Interview Appendix 4: Mattie James’ Klear Profile Appendix 5: Warc Huawei Case Study
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Personal Evaluation
VII
these technologies empower individuals, and on a holistic level, online based communities to connect, create, share, and collaborate on user-generated content. Emphasising that social networks aren’t about the platforms themselves, but instead,
Executive Summary
they’re all about shared experiences and ‘the easier it becomes to create content; the more consumers will create it – particularly as another generation of ‘digital natives’ grows up” (Lieb, 2011). Instead of just buying Reid Hoffman, co-founder and chairman of LinkedIn, noted
people’s attention, social
that “the ability to leverage relationships embodied in social
media influencers aim to
networks will become one of the most transformative uses of
create branded content,
the Internet in the years to come. As content in the form of
allowing associated brands
social networks and blogs enables individuals to create, share
to amplify their message
and recommend information, therefore, extending the spheres
while attracting their target
and 39 minutes each day to
of marketing influence, with a wide variety of social media
audience. However, it is much
sources of advertising towards various types of online and social
consuming media,” (CNN,
platforms providing the tools necessary for these important
more than just producing
media enabled searches, marketers and other communication
2016) which is longer than
and meaningful firm-customer exchanges” (Hanna, Rohm, &
great user-generated content,
professionals understand the need to invest in a strategy that not
the total time they spend on
Crittenden, 2011, p. 266).
companies needed to figure
only influences but also shapes consumers’ buying motivations
work, sleep, or any other
and behaviours.
habitual or leisure activity.
As the world continues to turn away from conventional
Nowadays, consumers are adopting more active roles in
This restructured model
out ways to captivate their In response, marketers quickly realised the opportunity in
audience by creating content
this strategy and sought to tap into and leverage individuals
that is also informative,
who were early adopters of social media with significant and
valuable and compelling,
the co-creation and distribution of content, and in response
defined by unencumbered
growing audience followings who could provide social proof of
thereby positively affecting
companies are looking to online and social marketing
social interactions and driven
a more educated consumer, leading other users closer to more
the lives of potential prospects
programs, campaigns and the creators of such strategies to
by levels of engagement goes
informed purchasing decisions. As on a grand scale, it was
and customers, thus driving
reach consumers where they ‘live’. A recent Nielsen report
further than facilitating modes
assumed and accepted that the higher the social presence, the
the works of these influences
suggests that “adults in the United States devote about 10 hours
of communication, but rather
greater the social influence – logically dubbing these individuals
with the principles of content
as ‘social media influencers’.
marketing.
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STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM & AIM OF STUDY
While the popular press has spent
media influencers could feasibly create and
countless hours and resources investigating
sustain successful web presences that sell,
this phenomenon, collecting an array of data
affording them the opportunity to expand
and information about social media practices
their personal online brands to national and
and usage, as well as the varying principles in
international audiences within this advancing
which this medium is utilised; this proceeding
high-grossing industry.
research typically focuses on persons from developed countries, instead of developing
In response to this problem and in realising
ones such as Jamaica where there is fettered
the purpose of this research, the following
access to information.
objectives have been established and outlined in order to provide a reasonable investigation
In consideration of these presumed differences, the primary purpose of this
scope: 1. Review and analyse the current state of
research was devised to examine the shift in
influencer marketing, specifically social
consumer behaviour in response to influencer
media (Instagram) influencer marketing
marketing trends, by providing a detailed
programmes powered by content marketing
industry review of the present state of this
strategies.
practice from which to investigate the possibility
2. Identify differences between practising
of applying this framework in Jamaica. Thereby,
Jamaican home-community and diaspora-
exploring a means by which Jamaican social
based social media influencers.
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3. Assess potential threats and opportunities
context to the following report, helping them to
for the acceptance and assimilation of this
understand the nature and environment of this
strategy within the Jamaican market.
practice on a whole.
4. Make recommendations for the optimisation of this practice in Jamaica.
Chapter 2: Methodology This chapter includes the review and
This report will take the following structure:
application of the selected qualitative methodological tools of study, a combination
Chapter 1: Literature Review This chapter involves an in-depth evaluation,
of virtual ethnography and semi-structured interviews which were used to investigate
adaptation and reference (overview) of
this practice by offering an open re-telling of
contributing secondary sources (theoretic
experiences, personal accounts and teachings
and methodological supplements) used
by these identified thought-leaders and their
to establish the present-day framework of
relevant bodies of work. This chapter also gives
influencer marketing by specifying the research
context to the justification and limitations of the
parameters, core theories and points of
above research methods as well as the selected
interest as determined by existing academia.
sample and their contribution to the subject
As such, this chapter offers readers a defined
matter at hand. 4
Chapter 3: Results This chapter details the significant responses and subsequent information (findings) obtained through the conducted semistructured interviews with the selected influencers for later analysis and discussion.
Chapter 4: Discussion (Analysis) This chapter is a detailed and critical breakdown of the identified key issues (presumed and experienced) hindering the
Introduction
assimilation and optimisation of this practice within the Jamaican landscape.
Chapter 5: Conclusion The final chapter highlights future areas of research and implementation needed to advance this practice, thereby, contributing to the nation’s creative economy and cultural & content footprint.
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VIABILITY OF INFLUENCER MARKETING IN JAMAICA
content for an agreed form of compensation. This amplified
these trends based on weak
message not only fits in alignment with maintained company
infrastructures and unengaged
goals and tactics but is also designed to optimise audience
social interactions with their
reach and impact consumers in a more credible and trusting
customers. As such, the
way, generating positive reviews, and as a result increasing
literature will discuss the
the brand’s following, driving buzz, hitting KPIs and ultimately
substantial power consumers
boosting revenue earnings (The Power of Influencer Marketing:
have in guiding formulated
Taking the Luck Out of Word of Mouth, 2017).
marketing strategies and how these marketers respond by
Existing literature explores how these principles are ordinarily
partnering with influencers
implemented in thriving developed countries by examining
as a part of their marketing
best practice applications and teachings to analyse and
mix as a way of filling the
been an increase in the study and use of content and influencer
propose a means by which these principles can be used in
gap by strengthening these
marketing (Google Trends, 2014 - 2016) to reach audiences
underdeveloped or developing countries who have yet to adopt
relationships.
in this overly cluttered and connected world. Current literature
or capitalise on this practice.
As the marketing landscape continues to evolve, there has
This study will include
probes a shift towards targeted media and marketing strategies, however, this review will specifically focus on consumers’ use
Small countries are often slow adopters to emerging
thorough research into the
of social media and their ever-changing online purchasing
technologies and industry improvements because of outdated
conditions that create a viable
behaviours shaping the way marketers approach content,
infrastructures and lack of access to capital. Despite these
atmosphere for influencer
thereby, impacting the transformative practice of influencer
limitations, we often find that consumers tend to adapt to new
marketing to thrive by
marketing in reaching discerning audiences.
technologies and social media faster than corporations (Berthon,
exploring the benefits and the
Pitt, Plangger & Shapiro, 2012). In return, consumers aim to
top drivers of this decision.
Influencer Marketing represents a devised strategy that
assume more active roles within the media process. Therefore,
focuses on the works of identified thought leaders who have
requiring new approaches to former media strategies that
already attracted the ear of their desired target audience via
do not simply replace traditional media, but rather expand
a designated communication channel; and as such can bring
these choices to capture reach, intimacy and engagement
attention and interest to sponsored business products and or
(Hanna, Rohm, & Crittenden, 2011). However, this can pose
services by producing or curating some form of user-generated
a problem for organisations who lack the human, financial, and technological resources to move quickly to readjust to
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Although acknowledged and compared in
THE ISLAND OF JAMAICA
viewership increased as the age range fell,
many areas, “over the last four years, Jamaica
crowning it as the most used platform with
has tumbled 28 places on the World Economic
users in the 18 to 24 year old demographic,
Forum’s Networked Readiness Index (NRI)
the youngest persons included in this study. Of
which compares the level of preparedness for
this group, these individuals often viewed this
investment and development of the information
platform quite frequently. In fact, it was the
and communication technology (ICT) sector
most frequent of any users, namely more than
in more than 138 countries” (The Jamaica
20 times per day” (Dichter & Neira Research
Gleaner, 2011). These results are disconcerting
Network, 2015).
as it highlights the country’s lack of propensity to exploit the opportunities offered through ICT infrastructures. It also an area of major concern considering the significant multiplier effect such results will have on the Jamaican economy based on the linkages between this sector and other interdependent industries.
While the state of the ICT sector points to some of the country’s technology and communication challenges, on a more singular level Jamaica’s social media usage according to a study done by Dichter & Neira Research Recognized for its strong
people (STATIN, 2016), Jamaica’s creative industry is marked
Network (2015) suggests that “most persons
sense of self-identity expressed
as a key growth sector representing the third largest contributor
reported accessing the internet every day,
through its sports, music, food
to its GDP supplying approximately 5% and generating between
with approximately half doing so several times
and rich cultural mix, Jamaica’s
US$15 and 20 million in revenues annually as determined
per day. And of all the social networking
influence extends far beyond
by the 2010 Creative Economy Report by the United Nations
platforms, Facebook was the most commonly
its island’s border. With a
Conference on Trade and Development (JAMPRO).
used, followed by Google+, Instagram and
population of only 2.8M 9
Twitter respectively. However, Instagram’s 10
This data begins to paint a clear picture that although on a larger scale Jamaica may be a marginal contributor to production because of the “high cost of equipment, high cost of Internet service, lack of interest and the fact that it is not available in some areas” (The Jamaica Gleaner, 2011), but as a country and moreover it’s people they do indeed have the accessibility and desire to utilise modern digital platforms and tools and as such can be influenced by them.
Fueled by Jamaica’s societal high masculinity pre-disposition driving their competitive nature and desire to achieve success (Geert-Hofstede), it is essential that on a national scale industry leaders explore, exploit and maximise any and all areas of potential growth in order to improve their ‘developing’ country status; especially as the world continues to change and advance at a rate parallel to the rise of social media technologies and e-commerce trends.
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CREATING AUTHENTIC BRAND CONTENT
Literature Review
Social media has amplified the voice of the consumer and as such the influence it has on business-to-consumer marketing strategies. Propelled by access to raw data on how buyers feel and interact with businesses (Laroche, Habibi & Richard, 2013) has not only catapulted the dynamics of these consumer-toconsumer exchanges but has also created what some view as a hybrid form of communication. While in a traditional sense it enables companies to talk directly to their customers, moreover in a nontraditional sense it also allows customers to inform and influence each other (Mangold & Faulds, 2009) as praise, feedback or comments about brands are distributed through social channels to tens of thousands of users within a 24-hour cycle. A recent Klaassen report suggests an unprecedented growth in marketers’ analysis of “the frequency in which people relay their affinities for brands on such sites;” (Dickey & Lewis, 2010) thereby deepening their understanding of the merit and trust associated with consumer reviews and recommendations. With the overwhelming results of such studies contributing to the meteoric rise of influencer marketing as “the ‘nobodies’ of the past become the new ‘somebodies’ of tomorrow (Booth & Matic, 2011).
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For the idealistic marketer, the rise of social media influencers creates a world of possibilities by providing a designed strategy for brands to connect with consumers ‘more directly, more organically, and at scale.’ Therefore, contributing to the ever-growing community of ‘influencers’ who wield significant power over the perceptions of brands and companies, and in turn demand the attention of communication professionals who seek continuous and targeted engagement with its consumers While the savvy consumer lives in a world saturated with
“A brand is no
online and offline advertising, these digital natives find direct
longer what we tell
hard-sell messages of all forms less trustworthy and easier to
the consumer it is - it
ignore (Digital News Report, 2016). As a result, brands have
is what consumers tell
learned to compensate for low traction from direct online
each other it is.”
throughout the various channels of the social web (Booth & Matic, 2011).
Given the power of such influences and the potential return of such investments, these days, a lot of corporate
advertising by reallocating ad spend to programs that leverage
communication campaigns are widely executed by social
the trusted personal brands of freelance bloggers, content
media influencers practising content marketing strategies
creators, and pseudo public figures who create authentic
(Tomoson, 2015). These contributions are not only critical to
lifestyle content for their personal brand as well as sponsored
the development of quality content but also improves site and
products and services. “Long gone are the days when media
audience optimisation as well as SEO ranking, all of which
would communicate a brand’s message to its consumers.
drive the core objectives of content marketing principles through
Nowadays consumers are the individuals broadcasting personal
rendering increased brand awareness and lead generation for
or second-hand stories to their social networks and the world -
companies that were once struggling to capture and engage
They are a brand’s storytellers and the new brand ambassadors”
their target audience.
(Booth & Matic, 2011, p.85). The founder and retired CEO of Intuit, Scott Cook, probably said it best -
While not new, content marketing is described as the “marketing and business process for creating and distributing relevant and valuable content to attract, acquire and engage a defined and understood target audience – with the objective of driving profitable customer action” (Content Marketing Institute, 2015). In the book, Content Marketing: Think Like a Publisher
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– How to Use Content to
Social media influencers (SMIs) therefore, serve as an
Market Online and in Social
independent third party endorser operating at arm’s length from
Media, Lieb (2012) suggests
the brand, outside the realm of traditional advertising through
that content marketing answers
the production and dissemination of crafted messages by blogs,
not only fundamental questions
tweets, and other social media avenues (Freberg, Graham,
but also provides foundational
McGaughey & Freberg, 2011). According to a 2016 survey,
information, making customers
86% of marketers used this channel, with content being the
and clients more educated and
top driver for this platform. And of those marketers who used
informed, thereby prompting
influencer marketing in 2016, 89% of them did so to create
and directing their subsequent
authentic content about their brand, 77% used influencer
purchasing decisions.
marketing to drive engagement around their brand, and 56% used the channel to drive traffic to their websites or landing pages (The State of Influencer Marketing 2017, 2016).
Going forward, in 2017 and beyond, it is expected that these sorts of collaborations between big brands and influencers will continue to increase, with “84% of marketers stating that they plan on launching at least one influencer campaign within the next 12 months” (eMarketer, 2015). With such data big data in mind, it suggests that “if influencer marketing is indeed only the beginning, then what’s next is the shift from social media to social marketplaces” (Forbes, 2017) where consumers actively congregate to either contribute (post) or consume (observe) brand-related content (Bolton, Parasuraman, Hoefnagels, Migchels, et al., 2013).
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agencies. This aggregation of talent helped
IDENTIFYING INFLUENCERS
Marketing through
But in the end, it all comes down to
legitimise the practice while consequently
becoming familiarised with the popularised
driving costs upward as more persons entered
voices within your industry, understanding what
this growing field. Regardless, the major benefit
gives these individuals the power to influence
to marketers turned out to be the ability to study
other users; thereby allowing marketers to
influencer analytics and past projects without
properly vet and align their brands with
having to increase internal bandwidth. As
partners that can honestly communicate shared
marketers can now list a project on platforms
brand values and perspectives.
like Revfluence or Famebit and receive
influencers can be a costly
pitches from interested content creators. In this
With the continued growth in the
business when taking factors
intersection, content marketing and influencer
industry enabling more ease of initiation and
like reach, content production,
marketing become aligned in this modern-day
implementation, this process can be further
celebrity status and frequency
marketing arena, setting the stage for future
accelerated, measured and documented with
for various programs into
successful collaborations.
the use of expert-based technologies and tools.
account. Therefore, finding key influencers that will
Still, “75% of marketers consider finding the
amplify content is a challenge
right influencers as the most challenging aspect
that weighs heavily on
of this strategy,” (Content Marketing Institute,
the success or failure of a
2016) and while there is no correct way to
campaign. However, what
initiate and cultivate these relationships, the best
was once a challenge for
collaborators are those individuals who have
marketers eventually became
built and established their personal brands into
an opportunity for eager
relevant business models on multiple platforms
entrepreneurs and agencies
driven by relevance, reach, and resonance
answering this ‘call to action’
(The Power of Influencer Marketing: Taking the
with the development of digital
Luck Out of Word of Mouth, 2017). These
influencer marketing platforms
digital entrepreneurs have proven track records,
supported by offline influencer
not just in traffic, but also revenue.
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SOCIAL MEDIA MIX
“Influencers have long-standing relationships with their audiences and provide a platform for brands to have the appropriate voice, time and lasting influence with consumers. As social media has progressed from a marketing afterthought to an integrated strategy, today’s influencers have expanded onto digital platforms, bringing unprecedented value to a particular audience segment through their large communities of trusting followers, authentic personal experience and expertise on a variety of social networks” (American Marketing Association).
In acknowledging and understanding the value of offered social media sites, marketers and influencers alike overwhelmingly cite Instagram as one of the most important social platforms for their influencer marketing programs given the range of built in services that can be leveraged towards this initiative (Bloglovin’). Boasting more than 700 million global active users monthly and competing against its now parent company, Facebook for popularity (acquired in 2012 for $1 billion), Instagram continues to stand out amidst these stream of networks with its image and video based application, echoing the trend in content marketing where video content reigns supreme (TechCrunch).
Unlike Facebook’s visuals which are candid and casual, Instagram, on the other hand, displays more stylish and mood-appropriate photos to evoke a particular or prescribed style warranting user captions, comments and likes; with the most successful Instagram accounts eliciting a recognisable style and in turn reflecting the engagement to prove it.
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Apart from its robust user numbers, the height of Instagram’s potential lies more in its user behaviour versus the numbers, as research (Buffer, 2016) shows that brands enjoy some distinct benefits and advantages on this network such as: • Brands enjoy regular engagement with four percent (4%) of their total followers. On networks like Facebook and
CASE STUDY: HUAWEI TAPS INFLUENCERS AND CONTENT MARKETING
Twitter engagement is less than 0.1 percent (Forrester) • 70% of Instagram users report having looked up a brand on the platform (Iconosquare, 2015) • 62% of users follow a brand on Instagram (Iconosquare, 2015) • Only 36 percent of marketers use Instagram compared to 93% of marketers who use Facebook (Selfstartr, 2017)
This overview references a case study excerpt outlining how Huawei, a Chinese telecommunications brand challenged international rivals in Western Europe amidst the launch of its new P9 smartphone in 2016 by implementing a content and influencer marketing focused strategy (WARC, 2016).
With results like this, the practice of influencer marketing on Instagram has unquestionably attracted the attention of brands seeking to capitalise on the benefits of this platform.
In the overly-saturated telecommunications industry where brands tend to lead with a laundry-list of tech specifications as their primary selling approach, understanding the social motivations of its target audience was particularly critical to the formation of Huawei’s strategy. As Huawei knew it would need to capture attention in a new and impressive way in order to attract and ultimately acquire customers from their competitors who had a greater market share, namely Apple and Samsung.
The use of branded content was utilised across four key verticals – “passion content, hygiene content, the hero content, and the expert content” which played a significant role in reinforcing the key capabilities and features of the phone, thereby, tying the campaign altogether which was partially distributed by selected recognised influencers. 23
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Not only did the campaign bring in new interest from women, but the overall sales exceeded expectations, garnering just under 40 million YouTube views, 20.5 million Facebook actions, and 8.5 million Instagram actions; therefore, increasing Huawei’s
Methodology
‘Share of Voice’ application in five target markets to nearly 40% - its highest claim ever. *The full case study sample is included/ provided in Appendix 5.
This research utilises a qualitative mixed-design methodology of virtual ethnography and semi-structured interviews designed to provide a systematic empirical analysis of the current state of influencer marketing in Jamaica against the global sphere by examining the “complex textual descriptions of how people experience this research issue” (Mack, Woodsong, Macqueen, Guest & Namey, 2005, p.1).
The selected methods of study allow for an in-depth exploration of the research problem based on expert and personal point-of-views, insights, and teachings from the chosen interviewee population; which can be particularly useful in circumstances where there is little, or no structured research readily available. Additionally, this approach also helps to develop concepts that will contribute to the examination and understanding of the subject matter given the nuance, experiences and perspective attached to these ideologies by these identified thought leaders.
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VIRTUAL ETHNOGRAPHY
Ethnography is a qualitative mode of research used to construct depictions of people’s everyday life events through
SEMI-STRUCTURED INTERVIEWS
well as their respective onlinebody of work.
All interviews will be executed in a semi-structured (informal) manner in order to gather unfiltered and honest responses
active researcher-participant interaction and engagement.
based on the verbal exchange between both parties, wherein
Similarly, the concept of ‘virtual ethnography’ includes the
the researcher/interviewer attempts to elicit information from
application of this process aimed at answering various complex
the participant/interviewee by asking him or her a series of
research theories within a digital environment. This method lends
predetermined questions. Although a list of relevant questions
itself to the formation and investigation of a contextual reality
has been pre-prepared, the interview is intended to unfold in
informed by cyber social interactions (Domínguez, Beaulieu,
a conversational manner offering participants the chance to
Gómez, Bernt & Read, 2007). Furthermore, it is reasonable
explore and elaborate on issues they feel important (Longhurst,
to assume that by observing this process within its natural
2003). This process will, therefore, allow respondents the free-
setting (online), maintains some level of consistency, therefore
will and the opportunity to answer without any preconceived
strengthening the reliability given to the mode of practice in
limitations and judgements, while still aiming to fulfil the
question (Chrichton & Kinash, 2003).
requirements of the study in question.
Through this method, the researcher and participant actively engage in conversations through repeated and jointly interpreted communications, prompting further reflection and revision based on this conducted exchange. Applying virtual ethnography to this circumstantial study serves as a means of qualitatively inquiring about the routines of these individuals as
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the Klear.com platform which is designed to vet and provide detailed user profile site reviews. The platform renders an indepth breakdown of each influencer’s analytics including overall influencer scores, engagement rates, network and demographic statistics to name a few, thereby, ensuring their influence and
RESEARCH PROCESS
credibility.
Upon verifying these persons as influencers and in Given the researcher’s
implementing the ethnographic process, communication was
access and understanding of
initiated and maintained through this forum over a given period,
the online community involved,
before formally reaching out to them via email to request an
the researcher began with a
official interview about their online personas and relevant
pre-study ‘insider’ analysis of
bodies of work. Each interview was carried out based on a set
players in the space, using
of prescribed questions (see Appendix for a complete transcript
Instagram to identify potential
of these various interviews) while still allowing for free-flowing
interview subjects based
commentary and the addition of other meaningful points by the
on contextual and apparent
interviewee.
‘influencer’ traits. This activity was the first step in gathering
During these discussions, all differing data was addressed in
further knowledge and
an abductive manner in order to establish added concepts by
insight into how the chosen
drawing preliminary thoughts and ideas for further generalisation
field of study holds up in the
about the subject in question while remaining flexible and
determined market.
open to alternative explanations (Hyde, 2000). However, the primary aim of these interviews was established to deduce and
As a means of validating
interpret the individual responses of these thought-leaders by
the relevance and status of
understanding the differences of humans as social actors, their
these persons, each selected
motives and meanings as well as other accounted experiences
user was cross-analysed by
(Bryman & Bell, 2015).
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NATIONAL (HOME-COMMUNITY) VERSUS DIASPORA INFLUENCERS
POPULATION SAMPLE
The constituents of the population sample
influencer marketing agency, providing talent
are made up of individual social media
to brands. The goal here was to gather
influencers from the Jamaican home-community
information from the company’s leadership
to those based in the Diaspora in order to
about the state of influencer marketing across
produce comparative evaluations of the distinct
the island based on their experience in the field
macroenvironmental factors that define and limit
and the current corporate climate, while also
the use of influencer marketing from a small
speaking to how the practice is approached
country’s ‘under-developed’ market to a wider,
locally and their perceived insights on its future.
more globalised space. Collectively, all of these interviews were In characterising and validating persons
meant to work together to present a holistic
appropriately as social media influencers, all
overview of the subject in question by allowing
persons had received a significant influence
the researcher to find a deeper and central
rating reinforced by outstanding levels of
analysis of this practice from the collated points
engagement as established by the Klear rating
of reference (facts) by exploring the interplay
system.
between theory and data gathered (Dubois & Gadde, 2002) in order to establish a coherent
The final interview was with a Jamaicanbased marketing company with a newly established business model, acting as an
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framework.
Over the years, migration has been a
however, more recently the term has been
long-standing component of many developed
broadened to refer to mass migration groups
and thriving multi-cultural societies, with a mass
in general, inclusive of second, third, and
mobility of millions of people moving across
later generation descendants (Ancien, Boyle &
the planet to assume new lives motivated
Kitchin, 2009).
by complex variables and or opportunities. Originally the concept of the diaspora was conceived to refer to populations living in exile,
Despite Jamaica having the lowest reported shares of citizens abroad, given its size of 32
approximately 2.8 million people in 2009 — it remains one of the most significant origin contributing countries in the region. While many destination countries have limited labour migration, especially given the global economic downturn, migration and ‘brain drain’ is still a significant constituent in the Jamaican society as it remains dependent on services,
PARTICIPANTS
tourism, and remittances for expectant growth. Notwithstanding its political stability, Jamaica is still considered an emerging country faced with high unemployment rates and limited employment opportunities for its most skilled citizens. As a result, a substantial number of residential Jamaican households (homecommunity) have one or more members abroad, contributing to the significant and growing number of diaspora-based migrants (Ancien, Boyle & Kitchin, 2009).
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Interview 1
Interview 2
Natasha-Lee Duhaney (@natashaleeds)
Shea Powell (@theworldupcloser)
Home Community Social Media Influencer
Diaspora Based Social Media Influencer
Natasha, the creator of fashion, beauty
56.1k followers at the time of this writing.
and lifestyle blog StylishLee, is a realtor by day and a highly-engaged influencer. The Jamaican
A breakdown of her Instagram statistics
blogger offers her audience style, hair and
according to Klear.com (2017, July 11) is as
beauty content across her various platforms with
follows:
A Jamaican national and travel blogger,
A breakdown of her Instagram statistics
Shea is the creator and adventurer behind the
according to Klear.com (2017, July 3) is as
blog ‘World Up Closer’ with 64.4k followers
follows:
on Instagram at the time of this writing.
her Instagram following topping the charts at
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36
Interview 3 Mouthamassi (@mouthamassi) Influencer Marketing Agency
Results
Mouthamassi is a newly established marketing agency located in Kingston, Jamaica dedicated to identifying the “right influencers and advocates to collaborate with potential brands through the implementation and management of their various executive service offerings.�
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38
Having completed interviews with the identified participants/interviewees, offered responses (see Appendicies 1- 3 for complete interview transcripts) indicated the following points for further consideration and analysis.
It is this developed rapport that then helps direct and drive content production strategies as added by both Natasha and Shea -
Emphasizing the importance of garnering trust between the creator/influencer and their followers in order to foster meaningful relationships, as one interviewer said –
Natasha: “...I realised that those following me believed and trusted my opinion and with that, I
Natasha: “But as my audience continues to grow, so has their needs. That said, my audience somewhat drives my content production.”
Shea: “I listen to my audiences’ needs and try to yield to their request. You have to produce something your audience will be interested in.”
launched my blog, www.stylishlee.com. I’ve only been blogging for two years, but I have established credibility
But ultimately while audiences’ may determine the type of content, although differing in core
among my audience, and through that, we have
subject areas, both influencers admitted to being aware and taking content marketing principles
connected somewhat on a personal level which in turn
into account when formulating and producing their respective user-generated content outputs -
has allowed me to have some level of command among them.”
Natasha: “I am very familiar with content marketing, and it is something I occasionally take into consideration, and I learned the principles through my own
With that level of influence, “The real value of influencer
research.”
marketing comes in the subtler approach. That is, when influencers seamlessly blend products into their content as
Shea: “Yes, now is the time I’m pretty much familiar with the principles. When I first
well as, show their genuine support for the brand so as not to
started out, it was not introduced to me. Over time, I have taken the necessary steps to
appear as a paid agent” (Mouthamassi).
learn, review and implement it within my strategies.”
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40
However, even with these principles in play,
be interested in. 99% of the time it’s
And while these differences, point to
both influencers remain mindful of the brands
about my audience. You want to have
accessibility challenges, Natasha revealed that
that they partner with, to ensure that they fit
to make sure you’ll get the maximum
–
in line with their style and values so as not to
engagement possible when considering
lose their authenticity and authority within their
partnering with a brand. There are
international brands or audiences, but
respective domains:
always new brands showing up that
oddly enough I have more followers
I’d like to partner with. If I see an
outside of Jamaica than I do here
opportunity, I make sure to pitch.”
at home. This is something that just
Natasha: “Yes, I am very particular with the brands I partner with. Trust among my audience is very
happened organically with time.” In working with brands, Shea
important to me and being credible is
acknowledged that there was “there is a big
what allows me to have some form of
difference” between local and international
the connection powers of social media has
influence over my audience. So, I think
brands -
propelled their reach and engagement and in
of my audience when deciding to work with a brand. I receive daily emails from
Moreover, both influencers agreed that
theworldupcloser). I use all these
turn their influence opportunities.
three as my main medium as the
“Usually, there are way more
engagement, feedback and reach are
Natasha: “Though I do use
brands hoping to work with me and I
options where the international brands
typically politely decline the majority of
are concerned. Most brands which
Facebook, Twitter and Snapchat,
pretty great. I get to see the questions
them because they are not in line with
work with influencers are located
Instagram is my primary platform to
and interact with my audience as that is
my personal aesthetic. I know what
internationally and are sometimes only
reach my audience. People are very
very important for me.”
works best for my content style and
looking for influencers within certain
visual, and since Instagram is a photo
audience so if a brand has an idea that
locations, therefore excluding influencers
sharing app, Instagram provides a great
doesn’t work with my channel I’ll either
like myself. Most of the travel-related
platform to share quick messages and
associations, as for operating and thriving in
attempt to pitch them a new idea or
brands I work with; I only gained the
photos to my audience which gives
the Jamaican landscape, it was unanimously
decline the offer entirely.”
opportunity to work with them as I
them better insight into my life, my blog
put forth that while there is an opportunity for
usually pass through the US to get my
and even the brands I work with.”
growth, it is not without its challenges and
Shea: “I do have specific types of brands that I work with. The brand
41
“I actually don’t consciously target
Despite their international interactions and
setbacks hence the lack of adaptation in this
hands on their product.” Shea: “My blog (www.
has to be a perfect fit for my audience
theworldupcloser.com), Instagram (@
and something I know they would
theworldupcloser), and Facebook (@
area -
Natasha: “I do think there is a 42
potential for growth, but there is quite a
companies here still have no clue what
bit of growing left to do.”
‘a blogger’ or ‘influencer’ is, and as a result, they do not understand our value.
In consideration of the country’s and in
More recently I have noticed a rise in
turn, brands’ perceived old-fashioned thinking
brands wanting to use influencers to help
is believed to be the main factor affecting the
promote their products and services but
acceptance and prevalence of this practice -
because they still don’t fully recognise the value of using an influencer they also
Mouthamassi: “In Jamaica,
don’t believe in compensation...I strongly
the marketing kings are known to
believe that if a blogger becomes a part
be generally from a previous way of
of the marketing plan for any company,
thinking. Traditional marketing will,
they should also fit into the company’s
therefore, be at the forefront of their
marketing budget.”
Discussion
to-do list.” Despite these limitations, Mouthamassi Shea: “To be honest, I am not
is confident that companies “...understand a
really sure. I think sometimes we are
certain need for online/social media efforts but
afraid to stray from the norm to try
are somewhat doubtful about the possible ROI
something different and something that
of employing digital strategies. It is becoming
is not so mainstream. That’s my best
a little more prevalent because of the reach of
guess.”
certain powerful influencers and larger brands who have teamed up to create well-structured,
Natasha: “Though we now
successful campaigns. So, yes it really is a
live in the era of digital space, many
challenge to justify influencer usage, but we believe that this practice will soon become widespread, rather than questioned when it comes to marketing in Jamaica.”
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demand theory, but rather by the production
sports, omitting other areas of grave potential,
and consumption actions of others in this
such as digital networks, its products and talent
popularised digital social arena in which an
accordingly. As such, practices like influencer
individual’s payoff is an explicit function of their
marketing (‘Instagram Influencer Marketing is a
influence. The transformation of this approach
$1 Billion Dollar (USD) Industry, Mediakix) and
continues to align with the natural evolution
the unique and globalised cultural products it
feature of democratised societies, formed on the industrial
of advancing marketing and communication
can yield are often neglected
classification of creative inputs and intellectual property outputs.
trends, powered by technology and formed
However, since then “the economic system has become
social interactions - the underlying basis of what
considerably more complicated and service-oriented, and as
we now refer as to as the ‘digital era’.
Over the years, creative industries have evolved as a focal
“Though we now live in the era of digital space, many companies here
such can probably be better defined as a class of markets characterised by both supply and demand as (complex) as
As reiterated in Natasha’s interview -
Despite this re-categorisation, the value and
(Jamaica) still have no clue what ‘a
social networks” (Potts, Cunningham, Hartley & Ormerod,
effects of such influences are often overlooked
blogger’ or ‘influencer’ is, and as a
2008, p. 168).
or undermined, with digital, and in turn, social
result, they do not understand our value.
media outputs not readily being considered
More recently I have noticed a rise
viable or as expressed contributors of emerging
in brands wanting to use influencers
media production generates significant economic and cultural
creative industries. Therefore, hindering the
to help promote their products and
value; as consumers are now seen as participatory co-creators
growth of many developing economies by
services but because they still don’t
of media cultural products and as such are deemed major
limiting their prospects and opportunities as a
fully recognise the value of using an
contributors to the creative ecosystem. The shift towards this
result of adhering to antiquated societal notions
influencer they also don’t believe in
more open network is not only a direct result of technology
and business practices.
compensation...I find that the creative
Recent studies suggest that consumers’ participation in new
industry is exploited on a much larger
but moreover is seen as “a significant cultural phenomenon in which we’re seeing what happens when the means of cultural
In line with this train of thought, although
scale than traditional industries. I
production and distribution are co-evolving between producer,
Jamaica’s political standpoint is that it views
suppose it’s due to its ambiguity, but I
aggregator and user” (Cunningham, 2007, p. 12).
“creativity as one of its most distinct assets,
also think it’s due to ignorance.”
solidifying the country’s reputation as a cultural As a result, the very act of consumer choice is no longer governed primarily by the set conventions of consumer
45
superpower” (JAMPRO). The island’s marginal
As influencer marketing matures from an
success in this regard is primarily attributed to
experimental channel to a strategic part of
the areas of film, animation, music, fashion and
the marketing mix, if marketers and other 46
communication professionals fail to acknowledge the practice of influencer marketing as an ‘investment rather than expenditure,’ as a country, Jamaica will continue to be left behind. This condition is symptomatic of the country’s failure to quickly adapt to
This lack of support and incentive could easily dissuade
new ways of strengthening
working creatives and potential influencers from embarking on
on Instagram than Mattie);
its intellectual property
this preeminent entrepreneurial venture of increasing the level
or Shea who more readily
output from individuals to
of valuable content they create with a consistent monetisation
considers herself a ‘travel
businesses alike, therefore,
structure in place, thus, limiting their income potential in
enthusiast’ who engages in
capitalising on these economic
comparison to their international counterparts, who already have
influencer marketing.
opportunities. Simply put,
many advantages. The distinction between
local marketers will miss out on opportunities to learn about
47
she has a larger following
By contrast, international based influencers like Mattie
these groups of influencers
and upsell their audience if
James (MattieJames.com, n.d.) have turned lifestyle content
goes beyond location and
the number of touchpoints
production into full-time businesses, earning ‘influential’ status
even titles, but rather this
and avenues for feedback
(see Appendix 4) by finding ways to monetise their strategic
differing perspective also
loops does not evolve. The
processes and growth experiences from practising in this field,
speaks to the way in which
tone is therefore set from
as a supplement to their partnerships with brands. Mattie James,
Mattie and others like her
institutional, educational and
for instance, hosts webinars and creates digital courses to the
earn additional revenue from
corporate organisations, thus
entrepreneurial segment of her growing audience; which is a
various sources, instead of
trickling down to citizens
significant difference in business model, revenue streams, and
providing free-services, such
and reinforcing the country’s
time dedicated to growing within influencer marketing when
as Shea’s account of her
renowned ‘developing’ status.
compared to influencers like Natasha who focuses on content
relationship with her audience
creation rather than the business operations (even though
- “They are more like friends. 48
They ask a travel-related question. I answer.
brands for endorsement and collaboration
They need help with planning a trip or ideas
opportunities, instead of working with and
for a trip. I try to help.” And yes, influencer
contributing to their own growing economy.
marketing encourages personal and intimate
“...As the creative industry represents an
social-based relationships, and as such it’s
important pillar of the country’s growth agenda,
Shea’s choice whether or not to monetise the
and so we are committed to supporting its
travel consulting she does with her audience
growth and development through action. This is
when asked. However, it is also important to
an area in which we have a strong competitive
see this practice for what it ultimately is - a
advantage,” as said by Industry, Investment,
profession, which will grow more prevalently
and Commerce Minister Anthony Hylton at a
when it is treated as such by the business
local forum (Jamaica Observer, 2015).
community but also by those practising it.
With creatives and influencers alike While our competitive advantage comes
persons with offline and online brands, there
looking to international partners and vice a
was a unanimous vote of confidence that
in the prominence of our renowned cultural
versa, Jamaica will therefore only harness and
there is a place for this influencer marketing in
low value ascribed to the work product from
properties, dubbed ‘Brand Jamaica’ which is
capitalise on a small fraction of its real value,
Jamaica’s untapped developing market. And
influencers is a possible high contributor to
“one of the most recognised brands globally.
which according to Interband is estimated to
with the support of established agencies, like
local bloggers like Natasha’s decision to
And while this has created opportunities that
be a US$20 billion loss annually (The Jamaica
Mouthamassi advancing the practice locally,
pursue their digital careers on a part-time basis
have the potential to generate substantial
Gleaner, 2014). Amidst such losses, influencers
there is a chance the greater population of
or just for fun. Natasha adds that -
economic benefits for the island, it has also
are unable to fully maximise the power of their
marketers can one day seize and optimise
presented local leaders of government and
nationality, whether home-community or in the
this prospect by tapping into and build
full-time (in Jamaica), but perhaps if I were to
industry with a growing challenge - that of
Diaspora, thereby stunting their true earning
upon this opportunity, so that influencers like
take it more seriously and treat it more like
effectively monitoring and protecting the
potential. Shea accounts her national origin as
Natasha and Shea may be able to maximise
a job I could if I focused on working with
brand from exploitation by some in the global
a ‘useful’ trait that she readily acknowledges
their curated presence to compete on an
international companies.”
marketplace, which is resulting in Jamaica
and promotes when approaching brands.
international level, not just in content but also
The lack of monetary compensation and
“...I somehow don’t think I could ever blog
losing out on billions in potential earnings...As This statement in itself identifies one of the
Jamaica’s brand value is two and half times its
key local challenges that interested influencers
gross domestic product,” social entrepreneur Dr.
(existing and prospective) face as they feel
Henley Morgan told The Gleaner in a previous
that they need to look outside to international
interview” (The Jamaica Gleaner, 2014).
49
revenue earnings while working with local Despite these conditions, with the “constant
brands as partners.
flow of information” and the vast number of
50
Taking into consideration and accepting the changes in our modern-day communication practices, the primary purpose of this research was devised to examine the shift in consumer behaviour in response to influencer marketing trends, by providing a detailed industry review of the present state of this practice from which to investigate the possibility of applying this framework in Jamaica. Thereby, exploring a means by which Jamaican social media influencers could feasibly implement, maximise and hence capitalise on this opportunity by using their unique social voice and experience to strategically monetise this process of creative content production and distribution to build and sustain a profitable personal and online brand.
While this research indicated that there are a ‘few’ Jamaican social media influencers (home community and diaspora based) openly practising in this space, it’s widely accepted that this
Conclusion
practice and those in it are nowhere close to realising their full potential. As marked by the actual and presumed challenges emanating from traditional mindsets and limited support, both governmental and fiscal; especially when compared to those
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Understanding that this is
In challenging and transmuting the business models of many industries (not just media),
not a static or linear situation
it is important to understand not only the value in these practices by analysing the potential
in which we can readily
contribution of such undertakings but creating the conditions for the promotion and assimilation
identify the market or non-
of such practices. However, to ascertain the real potential of influencer marketing in Jamaica, it
market motivations, incentives,
is necessary for the corridors of power to adjust their perspective on the implementation of this
behaviours or results of such
practice to that of an ‘investment rather than expenditure.’ By allocating resources to ensuring its
origination, adoption and
marketers are trained in and consistently informed about growing and emerging digital and new
retention; this research is
media trends and their respective cultural productions, the industry will provide creatives with
not merely proposing that
the relevant opportunities, support and channels to embark on these ventures. This industry-wide
these practices be seamlessly
buy in, will, in turn, promote distinct cultural features, distinguishing them from an increasingly
appropriated into these
competitive space unencumbered by geographic limitations, both physical, economic as well as
existing market institutions.
metaphorically.
As even with the necessary buy in from marketers, there
As creative industries tend to rely on “word of mouth, taste cultures, and popularity, such that
(foreigners) on a similar trajectory propelled by the innovation
will be significant differences
individual choices are dominated by information feedback over social networks rather than innate
and appropriations of living in the digital era.
when competing against
preferences and price signals,” (Cunningham, 2007, p.13) the prevalence and notoriety of this
more established and globally
trending practice should help in swaying and encouraging change-makers looking for ways to
rampant industrial media
introduce and justify these moves.
Given the delays in adopting this contemporary practice, and in understanding the challenges of undertaking and
economies; however, the hope
promoting new technologies, methods and modes of
is that through this and future
operations, especially within developing markets, it is necessary
discussions, emerging digital
starting at the most basic level in order to support and maintain these changes. The scope begins
for officiating advisors, professional bodies, and creatives to
marketing solutions such as
with the addition of curricula that prepares students for careers in creative fields to the government
However, in conjunction with these direct efforts, there needs to be a complete restructuring,
collectively recognise and demand these advancements for what this will potentially redefine our
and corporations working together to build infrastructure to support this skilled workforce.
could be broadly seen as strides towards ‘social innovation’.
understanding of the impact
Leadership with this foundation in mind is the foremost way to alter how people view and even
As new, mobile and interactive digital media markets, such as
and importance of adoption in
approach these types of forward-looking opportunities. Creatives also have a role to play and
social networks, are necessary for the innovation and economic
developing markets.
need to take part in the evolution of marketing locally. The practitioners of digital marketing
growth of a country and in turn, its effectual value in the creation
must feel empowered to contribute to the growth of this space through continued professional
of new and viable opportunities.
undertakings or self-education, resulting in individuals being more adept and confident about building and sustaining marketable online presences and brands by fostering an entrepreneurial
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eliminating presumed and pre-conceived biases and inferences as a consequence of the open nature of semi-structured interviews.
While this report only focuses on the application feasibility of one nation, which is restrictive in itself, there is much to gain in studying this practice more in-depth given that it is still a ‘new’ concept. As there spirit and encouraging them to be local change
for developing countries such as Jamaica
agents who are more strategic in the way in
poised to explore and utilise untapped areas of
which they seek out and capitalise on these
potential growth.
presented opportunities. Due to limited time and resource constraints, Furthermore, these undertakings, will not
the sample size is small in comparison to the
only create added opportunities for those
breadth of this issue. As such, the research
directly involved but other professionals
could have benefited from interviews with other
needed to support this mission, all of which
influencers, marketers, governing officials, and
can be sourced locally, thereby, strengthening
other creatives to embody a more diverse and
our creative and cultural imprint as well as
representative population sample, which in turn
deepening and broadening peoples’ skill and
calls into question the generalisations that can
industry experience.
be made from the presented findings.
Although the proposed analyses and
Also, as this research was only conducted
recommendations of this report are subjective
based on a qualitative mode of study, it is
and open to interpretation given the mode
logical to assume that by pairing this process
of research, the basis of these findings and
with a quantitative tool would have bolstered
furthered discussions are critical considerations
results with more scientific data, thereby
55
are opportunities to delve further into the contributing factors within the country in question as well as exploring a cross-sectional study of other developing nations.
Although the above limitations point to areas of further improvement, as well as indicating areas for future research, influenced by continued advancements in this field and
if the results of globalisation can be optimised
individuals’ ability to seize these opportunities,
through current and future sources of value
there is no apparent limit to the potential of this
creation with the nature and structure of such
practice as new media and technologies are
markets continuing to come from a variety
perpetually improving and evolving. And so,
sources; it is our duty as a developing nation to
I am enthusiastic to witness as Jamaica moves
optimise and maximise all available possibilities
towards a more robust ‘competitive advantage’
in order to generate local opportunities for
both on a local and international scale, never
growth, change and innovation.
being afraid to ask themselves, “Where are the untapped cultural and creative sources of future economic potential and gain?” After all,
56
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Cunningham, S., 2007. WIPO International Conference on Intellectual Property and the Creative Industries.
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Appendix
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Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism., 2016. Reuters Institute Digital News 2016. [online] Available at: http://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/sites/default/files/Digital-NewsReport-2016.pdf?utm_source=digitalnewsreport.org&utm_medium=referral [Accessed 29 Jul. 2017].
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b) What is your relationship with your audience? Where do you get the most feedback from them? How do they reach out to you most often (social comments, email, offline communications, other?) = My relationship with my audience is fairly open, I like to think of my audience as my extended family. We communicate mostly via social comments but more recently I’ve been
APPENDIX 1 – NATASHA’S INTERVIEW:
receiving more emails from those who wish to speak to me on a more personal level.
3. Do you plan your specific content strategy for a period (say for each quarter) that you 1. Do you consider yourself to be a social media influencer? What does that title mean to you? = Though I do now consider myself to be an online influencer, I never did set out to become one. This was something that happened organically with me. I joined Instagram and
implement when creating/producing content or do you plan as the opportunities arise? = No I do not plan specific content for a period. Currently I plan as things arise. I am not a full-time blogger. Blogging is something I do for fun and when time allows I share on my social media platforms.
like most people, I shared photos of my life on the platform. With time, those who followed me wanted more from me and I began receiving messages asking for more details on where my outfits came from, what products I was using in my hair and on my skin. With this I realized that those following me believed and trusted my opinion and with that I launched my blog, www.stylishlee.com. I’ve only been blogging for 2 years but I have established credibility among my audience and through that we have connected somewhat on a personal level which in turn has allowed me to have some level of command among them.
2. Explain in some detail the type of content that you produce? Your style? Niche? Your
consideration when developing and executing your content strategy? If yes, did you learn the principles and methods of implementation through your own research or did you take formal instruction through a course? = I am very familiar with content marketing and it is something I occasionally take into consideration and I learned the principles through my own research.
5. Describe the first experience you had working with/ developing content for a brand.
target audience? What drives your content production - audience feedback or projects
What was the learning curve like? Do you initiate contact with potential brands to work
you conceptualize to meet a certain branding/business goal? Any other defining
with them or do they usually engage you first?
characteristics? = My content is currently very style and beauty focused. But as my audience continues to
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4. Are you familiar with the principles of content marketing? Is that something you take into
= My first experience working with a brand was very exciting. Exciting because I never did set out to work with brands, so receiving an email from a company I knew fairly well was
grow, so has their needs. That said, my audience somewhat drives my content production.
amazing to say the least. But in the aftermath, I quickly learned that I was taken advantage of.
Initially all that was asked of me is to share my outfit, beauty and hair details. However, my
I was asked to do an awful lot of work and because of my excitement I said yes to everything
readers have been requesting more personal content from me so I intend to eventually diversify
without realizing the amount of time and energy I had to use to create all this content for said
the content on my blog.
brand. In return, all I received was one sentence saying, ‘thank you for all you have done 68
Natasha, we truly appreciate it and we wish you all the best.’ From that experience, I now don’t jump at any opportunity that comes my way.
IG) Why do you focus on this platform? = Though I do use Facebook, Twitter and Snapchat, Instagram is my primary platform to reach my audience. People are very visual and since Instagram is a photo sharing app,
Since I do not blog full time, I typically don’t initiate contact with potential brands and instead I’ll wait for brands to engage me first.
6. Do you have specific type of brands that you partner with? Are there other types of
Instagram provides as a great platform to share quick messages and photos to my audience which gives them better insight into my life, my blog and even the brands I work with.
10. A means of evaluating your level of success, do you set yourself prescribed KPIs or are
brands that you would want to work with or pitch to? How much do you consider your
those measurements determined by the brands that you work with? What analytics
audience when making the decision to work with a brand?
programs/software do you use to track how your content is performing? How do you
= Yes, I am very particular with the brands I partner with. Trust among my audience is very important to me and being credible is what allows me to have some form of influence
use analytics to improve or pivot future content? = Not quite. But I do measure engagement on my website by noting the number of
over my audience. So, I think of my audience when deciding to work with a brand. I receive
visitors who visit my social media platforms and my blog. If engagement is low I’ll modify
daily emails from brands hoping to work with me and I typically politely decline the majority
the things I share and the frequency at which I share to help increase visibility.
of them because they are not in line with my personal aesthetic. I know what works best for my content style and audience so if a brand has an idea that doesn’t work with my channel I’ll either attempt to pitch them a new idea or decline the offer entirely.
I use google analytics to track how my content is performing and I use it to determine which posts do better than others. With this information, I’m better able to know what content my audience prefers and I’ll focus more on creating more content along those
7. Do you work with both local and international brands?
lines.
= I work with both local and international brands 11. Apart from the branded content that you curate online, do you utilize added 8. Do you consciously target international brands/audiences? If not, why not? If yes, how does your strategy differ when targeting and reaching local versus international
opportunities to monetize this content? If so, like what? = I use affiliate links to monetize my influence across all platforms
audiences? = I actually don’t consciously target international brands or audiences but oddly enough
12. How do you view yourself and your work within the Jamaican creative ecosystem? Do
I have more followers outside of Jamaica than I do here at home. This is something that just
you think that there is a potential for growth and additional opportunities for yourself
happened organically with time.
and others in this space? What do you think would need to change in the marketing, media and creative industries in Jamaica for you and other influencers to reach the
9. What is the primary social media/content dissemination platform that you use to reach
next level of success?
your audience? Do you utilize other social mediums as part of your content strategy? (If 69
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= I do think there is a potential for growth but there is quite a bit of growing left to do. Though we now live in the era of digital space many companies here still have no clue what ‘a blogger’ or ‘influencer’ is and as a result they do not understand our value. More recently I have noticed a rise in brands wanting to use influencers to help promote
14. Acknowledging that being an influencer is now considered a global trend, what do you do to keep with emerging practices? = Perhaps if I take blogging as a career more seriously I will try to keep up with the trends but at the moment I don’t do much to keep up with any emerging practices.
their products and services but because they still don’t fully recognize the value of using an influencer they also don’t believe in compensation. I honestly can’t say how lucrative the blogger or influencer space is in Jamaica because from past experiences I’ve met
15. What advice would you have for others interested in venturing into this practice? = Just START because there is no such thing as the perfect moment.
companies here who won’t even offer to cover travel expenses for their influences. 16. Do you feel there is an opportunity for you to pursue blogging full time? I strongly believe that if a blogger becomes a part of the marketing plan for any
= In Jamaica, I somehow don’t think I could ever blog full time, but perhaps if I were
company, they should also fit into the company’s marketing budget. Unfortunately, in
to take it more seriously and treat it more like a job I could if I focused on working with
Jamaica there is an expectation that we should either work for an extremely low amount or
international companies.
for nothing at all. I find that the creative industry is exploited on a much larger scale than traditional industries. I suppose it’s due to its ambiguity but I also think it’s due to ignorance.
In truth, I don’t have the answer for what needs to be changed, because even after explaining my value to several different companies they still somehow don’t see that paying for my time, skill or work is an investment and not an expenditure.
13. In line with your current content strategy, is your ‘Jamaican-ness’ or the concept of ‘Brand Jamaica’ a part of your value proposition? If so, is that a value that you promote/sell when pitching to brands? = In all honesty I don’t pitch to brands, but whenever I am approached by a company I always make it known that I am Jamaican and if there is a way I can incorporate a slice of my ‘Jamaican-ness’ within my collaborations I always do.
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= With regards to the prior question, though my answer is not a clear “yes” as it depends on if the brand is looking for a specific market, I still do take advantage of traveling back and forth.
Promoting and sharing my country comes at no cost for me. I really like to lay down my
APPENDIX 2 – SHEA’S INTERVIEW:
culture firmly.
4. Explain in some detail the type of content that you produce? Your style? Niche? Your 1. Do you consider yourself to be a social media influencer? What does that title mean to you? = I do not consider myself as only an Influencer but more a Travel Enthusiast. I travel and
target audience? Any other defining characteristics? = I produce a few different types of contents. Informational based articles, sharing personal experiences, and of course the ‘influencing-type’ articles as well.
then share my experiences; whether it be personal or informational. My idea of travelling is to inspire, not just to influence. Though, influencing comes into play quite often.
2. As part of your persona/online brand, do you recognize yourself as a Jamaican national?
My target audience is primarily but not only geared towards Caribbean nationals.
B. What drives your content production - audience feedback or projects you
Is that a characteristic that you promote and incorporate in your content? Is your
conceptualize to meet a certain branding/business goal? Any other defining
‘Jamaican-ness’ a part of your value proposition? If so, is that a value that you promote/
characteristics?
sell when pitching to brands? = Yes, very much so. I am a Jamaican national, with Jamaican residence. I can only
= Audiences’ feedback. I listen to my audiences’ needs and try to yield to their request. You have to produce something your audience will be interested in.
‘inspire & influence’ from a Caribbean perspective so it is heavily incorporated in my written content.
C. What is your relationship with your audience? Where do you get the most feedback from them? How do they reach out to you most often (social comments,
Pitching to sponsors/companies/ brands and making mention that I’m Jamaican/ Caribbean is usually quite useful but it’s not something I generally do. Also, it usually depends on the market they are looking to have.
email, offline communications, other?) = My relationship with my audience is pretty casual. They are more like friends. They ask a travel-related question. I answer. They need help with planning a trip or ideas for a trip. I try to help.
3. (If yes) Do you travel back and forth to take advantage of the local side of having the best of both worlds? Is the added expense worth the benefit?
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On a usual basis, I am flooded with questions via social media, emails and the blog.
through the steps of finalizing the contract and the job that was expected during the time I was
Some questions require some thinking, while some others; I can just quickly respond from
going to be on the property. They reached out to me and I was paired with other influencers
the top of my head.
for the press trip.
5. Do you plan your specific content strategy that you implement when creating/producing
8.
content?
Do you have specific type of brands that you partner with? Are there other types of brands that you would want to work with or pitch to? How much do you consider your audience when making the decision to work with a brand?
= No not really. But usually, I never plan the specific topic I will write about a location for example, before I get there. I wait, explore the area, get inspired, then the article comes
= I do have specific types of brands that I work with. The brand has to be a perfect
alive.
fit for my audience and something I know they would be interested in. 99% of the time it’s about my audience. You want to make sure you’ll get the maximum engagement possible
Sometimes it’s good to have a topic in mind before you arrive to the location, so you
when considering partnering with a brand.
can get straight to it once you’re there. I’ve tried that before but it hasn’t worked in my favor. Everyone has a different strategy. This is just my own personal one.
There are always new brands showing up that I’d like to partner with. If I see an opportunity, I make sure to pitch. Though, just a few weeks ago I had a pretty huge brand
6. Are you familiar with the principles of content marketing? Is that something you take into
that reached out to me. I have been buying and using their travel-guide books for a few
consideration when developing and executing your content strategy? If yes, did you learn
years now. It will be interesting to see how we go forward to working together.
the principles and methods of implementation through your own research or did you take formal instruction through a course? = Yes, now is the time I’m pretty much familiar with the principles. When I first started out, it was not introduced to me. Over time, I have taken the necessary steps to learn, review and
9.
Do you work with any Jamaican brands? Is working with ‘local’ companies something that is important to you? = Yes, I love working with my home-based brands.
implement it within my strategies. 10. If yes, what are the major differences between working with Jamaican versus 7. Describe the first experience you had working with/ developing content for a brand.
international brands? What are the benefits? Constraints? Are there aspects of
What was the learning curve like? Do you initiate contact with potential brands to work
producing the content that are location specific (more accessible and efficient)? If so,
with them or do they usually engage you first?
how so?
= My first partnership was with a hotelier brand in the Caribbean. They were looking to promote a specific resort to a brand-new set of audiences. It was really interesting going
= There is a big difference. Usually there are way more options where the international brands are concerned. Most brands who works with influencers are located internationally and are sometimes only looking for influencers within certain locations, therefore excluding influencers like myself.
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Most of the travel-related brands I work with; I only gained the opportunity to work with them as I usually pass through the US to get my hands on their product.
13. Would there be differences in your content strategy if you were to relocate your business model to Jamaica? If so, like what? = Yes, there would be a difference. There would a difference in terms of the brands I
For example, I just finished a Latin American trip and currently visiting my mom in
work with.
the US (before heading north of the country for travels) and I was greeted with over 20 different travel-related packages from brands.
My subject writing would change, possible from blogging about international countries to more about Jamaica in depth and then branching off to the rest of the Caribbean
Without these stops, getting to work with some these brands would difficult due to the
islands.
accessibility. 14. As a means of evaluating your level of success, do you set yourself prescribed KPIs 11. What is the primary social media/content dissemination platform that you use to
or are those measurements determined by the brands that you work with? What
reach your audience? Do you utilize other social mediums as part of your content
analytics programs/software do you use to track how your content is performing?
strategy? (If IG) Why do you focus on this platform?
How do you use analytics to improve or pivot future content?
= My blog (www.theworldupcloser.com), Instagram (theworldupcloser), and Facebook (theworldupcloser).
= I use nothing too complicated. Google analytics works well. I can see what my audience is mostly interested in and where exactly is the audience coming from. In addition to my readership numbers which are quite important. This is what brands are
I use all these 3 as my main medium as the engagement, feedback and reach is pretty
really interested in.
great. I get to see the questions and interact with my audience as that is very important for me.
15. Apart from the branded content that you curate online, what other ways do you monetise this content?
12. Do you think if you were living in Jamaica full-time, you would still be involved in content creation?
= Sponsorship opportunities, Google AdSense and I often freelance for other brands when I travel.
= It’s difficult to be at home full-time when I am a travel blogger/writer. Though, if I was there all the time being a content writer would still be an option. Being a travel writer doesn’t necessarily mean that it has to be done international. So yes, I would still be involved, though locally.
16. As a country/people, this is not really a creative opportunity that Jamaicans have fully tapped into and capitalised, why do you think that is? = To be honest I am not really sure. I think sometimes we are afraid to stray from the norm to try something different and something that is not so mainstream. That’s my best guess.
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17.
What advice would you have for others interested in venturing into this practice? Especially persons in Jamaica? = I often get questions regarding this topic. My answer: It’s very possible to get into this sort of content creation. It doesn’t have to be internationally just yet. Start locally and you’ll see how much that can flourish.
APPENDIX 3 – MOUTHAMASSI INTERVIEW:
18. Anything else that you would like to add…. = If you want to read more about how I started and my adventures you can visit my
1. How do you define influencer marketing? What is the value in this practice?
blog: www.theworldupcloser
= Influencer marketing, in a nutshell, is the promotion of brands and services through
IG: @theworldupcloser
individuals who have amassed a loyal following through already existing and constant new
Facebook: theworldupcloser
flow of content. The real value of influencer marketing comes in the subtler approach. That is, when influencers seamlessly blend products into their content as well as, show their genuine
Or send me an email at yasheikapowell@gmail.com
support for the brand so as not to appear as a paid agent.
B. Do you use social media influencers to complement or subsidize traditional marketing efforts? = We have started our subsidiary, Mouthamassi, under the umbrella of Elevate Media Group. Elevate provides a variety of marketing services, from traditional and on the ground marketing to digital/online services. We have implemented Mouthamassi as our leg into influencer marketing, where we have created a database of local and regional influencers who do complement our traditional campaigns.
C. How do you determine when a business goal would better be met by using an influencer rather than traditional/online advertising? = This is usually accomplished on a “per brand” basis, which is really up to what the goal of the campaign is.
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D. As a marketer practising in Jamaica, do you find it challenging to justify the use of influencers to your peers or superior or to brands alike? = In Jamaica, the marketing kings are known to be generally from a previous way of thinking. Traditional marketing will therefore be at the forefront of their to-do list. They however, understand a certain need for online/social media efforts, but are somewhat
C. If your company has a diaspora/ international customer base/audience, do you use local influencers (with international audiences), international influencers, or both? = We pair local influencers with local audiences, for now. This only changes if the influencer has a substantial reach outside of their local one.
doubtful about the possible ROI of employing digital strategies. It is becoming a little more prevalent because of the reach of certain powerful influencers and larger brands
D. What do you use to determine the success of a partnership with an influencer?
who have teamed up to create well-structured, successful campaigns. So, yes it really is
Do the influencers share their social media analytics with you in a report? Are
a challenge to justify influencer usage, but we believe that this practice will soon become
there specific trackable calls to action (like click through links from a blog post) that
widespread, rather than questioned, when it comes to marketing in Jamaica.
influencers you work with must use to drive their audience to your owned online properties or drive sales?
E. How much effort and budget does your company put into your online presence
= Due to certain confidentiality statement, I’m not able to disclose this.
(website, social media, online advertising)? For instance, do you have a team that manages your social media or is this done by one individual as their primary job function or as one of the many functions of a marketing individual’s job? = Our company marketing is really a team effort and so social media and online
3. How do you view the current state of this practice within the Jamaican market? What are the perceived opportunities and threats? = Opportunities:
actions are championed by the entire team. So yes, it is one of the many functions of the
• A shift in diversifying marketing strategies.
marketing individuals’ jobs.
• More exciting growth in both agencies and brands • New revenue stream for all parties involved
2. How do you identify current and prospective influencers? Are there particular metrics or an algorithm that you use to characterize/label these personas? = We have a program that we use to identify our influencers.
B. Do you use any influencer platforms like famebit.com or klear.com to source
• Companies who undertake influencer strategies without understanding its intricacies. • Low barrier for entry.
B. Jamaica has a thriving event market that many brands take advantage of
influencers? Do you find the local pool of Jamaican talent sufficient for your marketing
through sponsorships and partnerships. Is it your experience that the use of brand
needs? If not, describe where you think the lack stems from.
ambassadors is more effective than or undercuts the use of online/social influencers?
= No we don’t use any influencer platforms like Famebit/Klear. 2) Yes, we think they’re sufficient. New ones pop up every day.
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Threats:
= Absolutely not, there’s room for everyone. Furthermore, there are many influencer promotion possibilities, while brand ambassador positions are quite limited and are
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offered to the elite few. Brand ambassadors are usually tied to that particular company once employed, and are held to certain obligations. Influencers however, are able to make content that goes beyond the restriction of a brand ambassador role.
4. Do you think that there is a potential for growth and additional opportunities for others in this space?
APPENDIX 4 – MATTIE JAMES’ KLEAR PROFILE:
= Well yes, that’s why we’ve made our way into this side of the industry first. Getting in while it is hot, so to speak. A breakdown of her Influencer statistics according to Klear.com (2017, August 23) is as 5. What brands do you think could benefit from this strategy?
follows:
= Consumer products and services; all brands really, if tailored properly.
6. What is the ultimate goal/objective of your business model? How do you plan to capitalise/expand on this growing trend? = Due to certain confidentiality statement, I’m not able to disclose this.
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There’s few rivalries more heated than the market-share war among smartphone brands.
Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei clocked US$60 billion in earnings last year,
APPENDIX 5 – HUAWEI CASE STUDY:
a third of which came from its medium and high-end smartphone range. The company holds around 11.4% of global market share.
With Apple’s sales plateauing and Huawei Taps Influencers and Content Marketing for its P9 Smartphone Launch Anna Hamill Source: Event Reports, Social Bakers, October 2016 - Downloaded from WARC
This article outlines how Huawei, a telecommunications challenger brand from China, took on rivals in Western Europe with a product launch tapping content marketing and influencers.
Huawei’s new P9 smartphone launch focused on content marketing and influencers, a point of difference in a category where new models often lead with a laundry-list of tech specifications. Branded content played across four key verticals: ‘passion’ content targeted creativity and influencer engagement; ‘hygiene’ content focused on the phone’s features; ‘expert’ content featured photographers and technology experts; and ‘hero’ content tied it all together.
The campaign had just under 40 million YouTube views, 20.5 million Facebook actions, and 8.5 million Instagram actions; Huawei’s Share of Voice in its five target markets was nearly 40%, its highest ever.
Samsung now facing a long road back following the Note7 crisis, Huawei is hustling outside of its Asian strongholds by targeting Western European countries including France, Italy, Spain, Germany and the UK.
Its P9 smartphone, launched in 2016, sought to steal a march on traditional smartphone launches by focusing on content marketing and influencers, a point of difference in a category where new launches often lead with a laundry-list of tech specifications.
Tanbir Rahman, Huawei’s Head of Digital for the Consumer Business Group, shared how the company sought to differentiate the product launch for its P9 smartphone.
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SETTING APART THE PRODUCT IN A CROWDED CATEGORY
Understanding the social motivations of its
FOUR TYPES OF CONTENT
The P9 model in particular focused on
target audience was critical, particularly in a
its high-grade duel camera, developed in
saturated category. As a challenger brand in
conjunction with camera brand Leica, as a
Western Europe, Huawei knew it would need
selling point.
to capture attention in a new way to attract buyers from other brands, namely Apple and Samsung.
A focus on the camera in the launch
Huawei adopted a content marketing
marketing strategy directly reflected the
strategy which put influencers at the centre:
motivations of the brand’s design- conscious
“they exist everywhere in social - so (it’s) only
target audience: “(millennials) want to curate
natural to leverage social pathways to their
features constantly, Huawei needed to think
and put out their social identities to the world,
fullest extent,” Rahman said.
outside the box.
so we know that the camera is really one of the
With every smartphone brand upgrading
most important things in our devices,” he said. “(The P9) competes directly with the Samsung X Series and most of the Apple
and technology influencers to influence the media narrative.
‘Hero’ content brought it all together under one central theme: “With the hero content, it’s all about inspiring people so that we can get
Huawei delivered branded content across
them to engage with the brand,” he said.
four key verticals: ‘passion’, ‘hygiene’, ‘expert’ “They’re creative souls, they’re ambitious,
and ‘hero’.
“We look to different types of digital content
iPhones. And it’s always been focused on
they’re very, very style and fashion conscious.
creating something that really fashion-focused
We know that they have very strong social-
or fashion-conscious people would be
media lifestyles, and that they want to express
with consumers’ creative passions via smart
the different points of the journey and are
interested in,” Rahman said.
themselves publicly with their online identities.
engagement of influencers. ‘Hygiene’ content
continually pushed through to reinforce all of
And they also look at success as their ability to
focused on the phone’s features. The ‘expert’
the capabilities and features,” Rahman said.
influence, and the extent of their experiences.”
content brought in high profile photographers
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that we need to put out throughout the entire ‘Passion’ content sought to align the product
consumer journey. They appear throughout
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might look like, and this all led to a countdown
Samsung.
page where they could get other snippets of information,” Rahman explained.
“The key thing for us, above all else, was the ‘Share of Voice’ in our smartphone
The hero content for the launch, to
THE IMPORTANCE OF THE TEASER
category, he said.
inspire new people to the brand, was a TV commercial that Huawei widely leveraged
“During the launch, we actually saw our
across social media in various forms. The
Share of Voice in those five key markets at just
commercial starred two of the brand’s celebrity
under 40%, which is the highest it has ever
ambassadors: Henry Cavill and Scarlett
been. And if you consider how market share
Johansson.
across Europe is actually very low compared to Apple and Samsung, we were stealing a lot
“Yes, it’s the TVC, but the fact that we were
away from them.”
able to leverage that across all social platforms, not just by the TVC itself but behind the scene videos, behind the scenes clips, by interviews with the celebrities actually saw tremendous impact,” Rahman said.
“This video, for example, on YouTube saw Rahman emphasized the importance of the
targeting heavily on Facebook.
teaser, a common marketing technique in the smartphone category that builds anticipation for a new product launch.
“We did a study on YouTube: we saw during the ten days from the run-up to the launch an average brand interest uplift of 60%.
Huawei pushed out a teaser on social to
Our target audience were really excited about
engage with potential shoppers where they
what was going on... the image went up along
were – online – as well as
with little teaser images of what the device
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an average of 30% rise in five key markets.”
While the launch content was a social media sensation - the content-led, campaign had just under 40 million YouTube views, 20.5 million Facebook actions, and 8.5 million Instagram actions - Huawei’s goal as a challenger brand in Western Europe was to take on its biggest competitors: Apple and 90
LEVERAGING INFLUENCER CHANNELS
Through social media, Huawei
than 6.5 million subscribers.
pushed out all of the different types of content – passion content, hygiene
THE RESULTS
Rahman is bullish about the future of Huawei in Western European markets, based on the success of the launch. Not
“We sent him a customised case with the phone inside,
only did the campaign bring in new interest from women – the
content, the hero content, and the
and this video was posted as the launch was actually
brand’s core demographic has traditionally been men – but sales
expert content.
occurring. We saw over 3.5 million views, over 80,000
of the P9 handsets exceeded expectations.
likes and about 7,000 comments - a perfect example of Influencers in the creative and
‘expert’ content,” Rahman revealed.
technology spheres were both targets, and collaborators.
four months (after launch),” he said. The company also leveraged the social media presences of photography influencers, such as David
“We work with influencers and
“For this particular device, we sold six million handsets within
“One of the biggest breakthroughs that we saw with this
Guttenfelder, a National Geographic photographer with
device was the carrier pick up - Euro carrier sales are the biggest
photographers - so we can tie them to
1 million Instagram subscribers, and fashion photographer
way of buying phones. In England, in the UK, we saw all five
their communities and start to generate
Mario Testino.
major carriers (pick up the P9 model) - now that doesn’t happen
interest in those people who are already interested in styling, fashion, and photography,” said Rahman.
to us, it’s the first time it happened. We’ve actually started to put “We wanted to use influencers like this to show off very
ourselves on a level playing field with Samsung and Apple.”
specific features - we were aiming at any form of videos About the authors
Huawei also sought to capitalize
produced at less than 15 seconds. This also set a
on the ‘unboxing’ trend, working with
template of direction for all the local markets around the
YouTube, UnboxTherapy, who reviews
world in different regions to then go about working local
new technology products and has more
influencers, talk to the local consumers.”
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Anna Hamill is Warc’s Asia Editor. Contact her at anna. hamill@warc.com.
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Personal Evaluation © Copyright WARC 2016
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93
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Harding, the founder of marketing outfit
have had to face to date - marked with many
Agency20seven once said in an interview,
frustrations, long stints in the library, inconsistent
“trying to market something to 2.8 million
spells of motivation and despair to just
people here [in Jamaica] is very different from
downright fatigue.
28 million or 208 million like in the US.” Harding’s words stuck with me as my interest in
But thankfully, my interest in my chosen
technology within the media space evolved into
subject area superseded any doubts and
my now chosen career path, influenced in part
waning of motivation, which is a key point that
by the unfortunate reality that most local brands
most lectures emphasise when leading us down
fail to capitalise on their ability to connect with
this path. As an avid social media user and
potential audiences or customers around the
content lover, I chose this topic as it allowed me
system drilled into my head from an early age, fostered by my parents and cemented by
world. This unsettling truth charged me with
to explore the constant evolution of this modern-
socialised expectations, these ideals have made and directed my subsequent ongoing journey
the motivation to explore this disconnect further
day communication and marketing strategy that
through learning this quintessential way of life. While my career path has evolved over the years
and in turn, understand the business strategies
has redefined consumer-to-business modes of
from a superstar to a lawyer to the even notable ‘uncertain’ phase, the need for further education
impacting the media in our contemporary
interaction by perpetuating the significance of
was one belief that has stood the test of time.
marketplace; and how these properties could
leveraging personal brands; thereby, enabling
be leveraged to connect brands to consumers
individuals to be considered ‘influential’ given
globally.
the organic sway they have over other users
Dear Self,
Growing up with a fervent belief in the power and importance of education was a value
I now realise that I unknowingly manoeuvred through those various stages and experiences in
and their subsequent purchasing decisions.
my life, some small, others monumental and even those that seemed insignificant at the time, but all bringing me to this point; preparing me to undergo my Master’s. And not just any Masters but
Poised with this mission in mind, I
a Master of Arts in Global Media Management at Birmingham City University in Birmingham,
enthusiastically underwent and completed the
England.
various courses associated with this program,
of time and resources investigating this
taking both challenges and successes in stride,
phenomenon, collecting an array of data and
pushing myself throughout by focusing on the
information about social media practices,
in media management, having been exposed to this discipline from both marketing and
ultimate end goal. But don’t get it twisted, this
usage, and influencers as well as the varying
production perspectives. As such, I was keen to strengthen this foundation through formal
process wasn’t all ‘rainbows and sunshine!’
principles in which this medium is utilized;
education in order to develop sustainable business models grounded in creativity, content and
As I must admit, the undertaking of executing
this proceeding research typically focused on
culture; as these aspects are fundamental to my approach to managing brands. As Zachary
an industry report has been one of the most
persons from developed countries, with little
daunting and demanding requisites that I
data from regions that are emerging such
Initially, I had entered this program with the intention to expand upon my previous experience
95
While the popular press has spent lots
96
as Jamaica, where there is fettered access to information. By
In line with the combined deliverables from the Managing
completing an in-depth analysis of this subject I believed that
Media Projects and Communication Strategy courses, I also
communicating the current
I would not only be contributing to a largely undocumented
got a first-hand account of the intricacies of developing,
state of this practice, while
area, marked with unrealised potential, as many countries in
managing and promoting user-generated content; sparking a
sharing the conceptual
the Caribbean market often still operate in and apply traditional
newfound appreciation for the works of social media influencers
implications it could have
media and marketing strategies; but it would also help propel
- especially given the strategic development, time and resource
for implementation in the
my future career initiatives, establishing myself as a recognised
management that goes into creating a single piece of content.
Jamaican market. Yes, a
scholar with relevant experience and knowledge in this growing field.
dissertation could possibly Additionally, from the implemented ethnographic
contribute more to the
methodology, I also recognised the importance of identifying,
development of influencer
building, and engaging with the right digital communities,
marketing in Jamaica,
my research to stand out, on the other hand, the limitation
instead of just aimlessly scrolling, liking and commenting on
especially considering the lack
of academic sources made this task a lot more challenging,
Instagram posts as I did in the past. This revised approach, in
of research and literature in
forcing me to dig deeper and employ more creative methods
turn, formed the basis of most of my empirical interaction and
this area, but based on my
of research. These conditions supported my employed reflection
engagement which allowed me to view this platform from a
near future goals of being a
and analysis of secondary sources combined with personal
more theoretical and differing perspective.
qualified media practitioner
Although the lack of Caribbean-based literature helped
accounts (primary), ultimately widening the scope of this research while strengthening the reality of the topic in question.
and professional, I believed While completing the steps of this report, I noted how easy
an industry report would serve
it was to get caught up with all the facts and findings from my
best in displaying my body of
research, given the extensive and advancing scope of this area;
work, validating my exit from
methodological tools, as from early on I discovered that
so to negate being swept away, I was forced to adhere to
the corporate world to return to
interviews would play a critical role in this data collection
and rely on the boundaries set by my predetermined research
school to pursue this program.
process. As such, I spent numerous hours analysing and
questions and objectives.
The limited access to data also shaped my selected
becoming integrated into the identified social subset by becoming familiarised and engaged with potential interviewees,
97
the most appropriate way of
Looking back, if there This too was the basis upon which I chose to undertake an
was one thing I could have
whom I believed would represent varying perspectives and
industry report versus a dissertation, as although I was initially
done differently, I would say
groups, while collectively offering a grounded and holistic take
hesitant and struggled with the reality of having to perform a
it would have been to pair
on the practice itself.
verbal presentation, as I unwaveringly continue to hate public
my time here with a media
speaking. Rationally, I felt that an industry report format was
internship or part-time job 98
so that I could maximize this
and the media we use to get our message
opportunity by putting my post-
across but to ensure that our message
grad teachings into practice
reaches the right people at the right time by
within a thriving market.
adding value to their lives in the way we
Moreover, I am appreciative
desire. My current mission is to influence the
of the connections I have
way people perceive, think about and use
established with my interview
products and services as we know it.
subjects and the learnings I garnered from studying them.
Nonetheless, after nearly a year of
Their insights coupled with my
studies, I am finally beginning to see the
research gives me confidence
light at the end of the tunnel, and now that
that I have gathered invaluable
I’ve made it to the other side, all I can say
assets for my short-term project
is that I am very proud of myself and my
development as well as a firm
achievements - despite the outcome, I know
foundation for me to achieve
that I dedicated myself to the process, did
my career aspirations.
the work and most importantly did my best, and in the end, that’s all you can really do
As I look forward to the future, I plan to use these cumulative learnings to encourage and facilitate collaboration between premier global brands and Brand Jamaica by highlighting and putting forth the engaging and influential aspects of our culture. As I believe it is not only necessary to understand what we are communicating, 99
- which makes me a ‘superstar’ in my own right.
Out of Many, Only a Few Social Media Influencers A Conceptual Framework for Jamaica
Ashleigh E. Gardner S16146273 Master of Arts Global Media Management September 2017