With the rise of the influencer, many marketers have eagerly begun to work with those that have credibility on social media and high follower counts. They promote products by creating suitable content around them on their own platforms in exchange for some sort of compensation.
The reason it has gained demand lately is the realization that even if it is hard to build interpersonal relationships in the real world, the one place where we can find common ground with people is social media. What adds more benefit to influencer-generated content is the fact that endorsing a familiar face with popular products creates a sense of ease for the brand as well.
There are lots of reasons why brands love influencer-generated content, but there are also reasons why it could potentially fail.
Why Is Influencer-Generated Content Valued So Much?
With paid advertisements and flooded content that lack accountability, it becomes a task to establish your brand in front of a large audience. Influencers are a great help in creating authentic content. Due to their in-depth understanding of the target audience, they are able to reach out to them with much greater efficiency. Integrating influencer content with products not only improves brand credibility but also helps in driving more traffic to the website. Without the help of influencers, brand content has the possibility of getting lost in the crowd of “social noise.”
Where Does The Problem Lie?
With all the enticing conversations surrounding the topic, there is still a scope that it can backfire on the brand if not done rightly. Influencer-generated content is unique, original, unpredictable and has a lot of benefits. However, it only takes a second for a benefit to turn into a drawback. Here is how this can happen-
The Trouble With Influencer-Generated Content
1. The Scope Of Mismatch
Any communication strategy will only be beneficial if it manages to convey the value of the brand. In order to do that, it is important to find an influencer who matches the brand’s persona or conveys it the right way. Oftentimes, many businesses collaborate with influencers on the basis of their follower counts, not considering other aspects. Imagine a vegan make-up company collaborating with a non-vegetarian food vlogger! Of course, it will backfire.
2. Brand Identity Crisis
Did you know as close to 93% of brands use Influencer Marketing as a part of their overall marketing strategy? Sometimes such a heavy dependency on
influencer-generated content can land brands in a crisis situation. This is because people slowly start to associate influencers with the brands they collaborate with. If an influencer comes under a controversial situation, a brand might face its consequences too. Disney is a classic example of this.
3. Influencer Management Issue
Influencer Management is a whole different task. With influencers being in high demand, managing an entire set of content with them can become a little problematic. Many brands face an issue of binding them in a contract till a content brief is given, strategy is created, and outcomes are measured. Then there’s also the task of their schedules. No influencer is loyal to one brand, and to have them onboard for yours and deliver your content on time also often becomes a hassle.
4. Unclear ROI
A report by Woomio expresses that many brands struggle with estimating the overall value of influencer-generated content. Since influencer marketing is a completely new practice, applying traditional ROI measurement techniques may not be able to give a clear picture. This leads to an unclear understanding of whether influencer marketing is working for a brand or not and which influencer has garnered the results.
5. Fraud And Expenses
Influencer marketing is not as easy as it seems. There’s more to it than finding an influencer and creating a reliable communication strategy. Often it also includes identifying a fraud influencer from a real one. Yes, influencer fraud is a thing, and 63% of brands and marketers have faced this. Among the fraud that can be committed are purchasing followers, paying to promote their products, and falsifying engagement on their content. Not just this, but influencer-generated content can often cost a brand a lot. The expenses can sometimes go to lakhs!
Conclusion
Influencer-generated content serves as a great source of promotion to build trust and loyalty among people. All a brand needs to do is understand its Influencer Marketing Strategy properly and align it with its brand value!