FEATURE STORY
The Decade of
INFLUENCER MARKETING
IS NOT A TREND,
BY MALITHA FERNANDES
It’s Here to Stay!
It wasn’t too long ago that I would wake up in the morning and the first thing I would do was brush my teeth. Now, the first thing I do is check my phone, browse through my social media then brush my teeth before I carry on with my day. While there’s lots of speculation around social media being a boon or a curse, I believe social media has taken over our lives and has caused a drastic shift in our consumption. Although one might think they are just casually scrolling through social media, in reality they are unconsciously being targeted by one endorsement scheme or the other. And to add to it, what makes it incredibly hard to resist these endorsements is the fact that they look very appealing, almost as if they've been tailor-made to suit your lifestyle. When you come to think of it, endorsement isn’t all that new at all. From radio networks to satellite television, marketers have long found effective ways to communicate brand messages to consumers. Whether we see them on the billboards while we are driving down to work, or hear them while tuned in to our favourite pop music station, we are constantly surrounded by advertisements and brands that are trying to catch our attention. In recent times, however, we have seen marketers make a big shift from traditional media to digital platforms such as Instagram, Twitter and Youtube. Netflix has taken over television, Spotify has taken over the music and podcasting realm, while social media has become
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a very prominent part of our daily lives. Not only has social media exploded, but there has also been a huge shift in the way users view the purpose of social media platforms. Recent statistics show that the number of social media users in the UK is about 45million ( approximately 67% of the total population),. out of which 77% actively engage by posting, sharing, liking and commenting on posts. Just think about it, can you remember the last time you went a day without checking one of your social media accounts? Unless you've recently been on a social media detox, I'm willing to bet that the answer is a resounding 'no'. In recent years, the abundance of active users across various social media platforms has given rise to influencers - ‘regular people’ who have become online celebrities by creating content for social
