According to EY Future Consumer Index, many brands are now ditching celebrities for influencers. Celebrities used to work for many brands because of their mass reach and fan following but now influencers are also coming in the same wavelength as many celebrities. Influencers are making consumers shape their opinions and purchase different products. Influencers are also even more present on social media feeds than most celebrities are.
66% of millennials and Gen-Z said that they follow an influencer on their social media as compared to 27% of Gen-X and Baby Boomers. Only 25% of consumers say that they follow someone just because they are famous. This difference shows that many younger consumers are more inclined to buy a product after seeing an influencer advertising it than a celebrity.
It is also harder for brands to build consumers’ trust because of so much fraud and fakeness going around on social media. Consumers are extremely selective about who they trust, with majority trusting influencers more. 49% of consumers say that they find an influencer’s content more useful while 42% find it relatable. This makes 74% consumers trusting of influencers’ recommendations of a product. 61% of them said that they have made a purchase after an influencer recommended a product. The same consumers cannot trust a celebrity like this because they live different and lavish lives than most of the consumers. And most of them also recommend costly and expensive products which are not affordable by a common man in this economy.
All of this change in consumer marketing is making brands change their marketing tactics. Many brands are now mostly partnering up with influencers on different social media platforms. eMarketer predicts that influencer marketing will grow 14% by the end of 2025. This is just beginning because many brands are increasing their budgets for influencer marketing.
Read next: Digital Marketers Under Pressure: 57% Feel Urgency to Learn AI Skills as Adoption Surges to 74%
66% of millennials and Gen-Z said that they follow an influencer on their social media as compared to 27% of Gen-X and Baby Boomers. Only 25% of consumers say that they follow someone just because they are famous. This difference shows that many younger consumers are more inclined to buy a product after seeing an influencer advertising it than a celebrity.
It is also harder for brands to build consumers’ trust because of so much fraud and fakeness going around on social media. Consumers are extremely selective about who they trust, with majority trusting influencers more. 49% of consumers say that they find an influencer’s content more useful while 42% find it relatable. This makes 74% consumers trusting of influencers’ recommendations of a product. 61% of them said that they have made a purchase after an influencer recommended a product. The same consumers cannot trust a celebrity like this because they live different and lavish lives than most of the consumers. And most of them also recommend costly and expensive products which are not affordable by a common man in this economy.
All of this change in consumer marketing is making brands change their marketing tactics. Many brands are now mostly partnering up with influencers on different social media platforms. eMarketer predicts that influencer marketing will grow 14% by the end of 2025. This is just beginning because many brands are increasing their budgets for influencer marketing.
Read next: Digital Marketers Under Pressure: 57% Feel Urgency to Learn AI Skills as Adoption Surges to 74%
