1. Influencer Marketing and Video Content

If you weren’t aware of TikTok’s massive rise in popularity or Instagram’s quest to copy that success through Reels, well you might have been living on a remote island for the past two years. We’re not jealous, we swear.

But with platforms fully embracing vertical video to communicate, educate, and provide value – incorporating this trend into your influencer strategy is now a must.

Below you will find a few tried and true ways you can utilize video content in your influencer marketing strategy. 

Influencer Marketing on Reels

One way to capitalize on this influencer marketing trend is to focus on your niche and create related video content on Instagram Reels. 

It’s a great way to engage with your audience and give  them quick and easy snackable content. See our blog How to Make Instagram Reels That Stand Out for more Reels tips and tricks. 

Brands can also use the platform’s ‘Collabs’ feature to partner with influencers on a Reel. This allows content to reach both the influencer’s and brand’s audiences through one post in a more engaging format.

The first example below highlights the shoe brand Allbirds collabing with influencer James Ro who is the founder of the Atlanta Run Club. In the second example, STN Digital worked with influencer and animator Lawrence Becker to collab and cross promote the joint work we did for Hulu’s movie, The Princess. 

By utilizing the Collab feature on Instagram, they are both able to touch each others audience and gain even more exposure. 

Instagram announced that all video clips uploaded on the platform will now become Reels. The platform will continue to focus on the short video format with additional creative features. They’ll continue to juice the algorithm to give Reels a higher engagement rate.

Looking to get started with influencer marketing? Check out our services HERE.

Influencer Marketing on TikTok

TikTok is expected to be the fastest-growing social media channel among marketers in 2022, with its usage set to increase by 40% according to Shopify. With more than 50,000 influencers on the app, brands are turning to TikTok for their influencer marketing campaigns.

If you still think TikTok is just for Gen Z dance challenges, think again. The wide range of influencers on the platform gives brands a great opportunity to reach new users and convert them into customers.

TikTok’s search capabilities help influencers and brands become more easily discoverable by niche audiences.

Our Senior Influencer Marketing Manager Dylan Siegel says “It’s becoming more and more important on platforms like TikTok to include captions and content about the product/service you’re promoting that directly answers the question that someone might be typing into their search bar. For example, if someone searches for ‘best sunblock’, your content has a better chance of showing up higher in the results if you directly mention (in caption or hashtags) that you think it’s the best, as opposed to only saying, “I love this sunblock.”

Below is an example of TikTok influencer mooncakemakeup promoting a product that makes hair have more volume. She mentions that it’s the ‘best big volume hair product’ with text in the video, in her audio, and in the caption of the video.

Try this on your next post!

Influencer Marketing on YouTube

Even YouTube is hopping on the short-form video trend. YouTube is now offering short-form vertical video content to stay up to speed with other platforms. 

YouTube Shorts are less than 15 seconds and are great for giving an entertaining snapshot of an influencer’s larger content. They help influencers create more professional and interactive videos on a much smaller scale. 

Influencers are taking advantage of these short, easy to consume videos so they can reach a wider audience. Shorts allow brands to reach new demographics through short form videos that might not be as active on platforms like Instagram and TikTok.

So, if you’re looking to reach a certain audience or promote a product, video is an influencer marketing trend you’ll want to master. 

2. Nano and Micro Influencers

Follower counts are no longer the most important metric for assessing an influencer partnerships. More important is how relatable, authentic, and engaging an influencer’s content is.

That’s why it makes sense that nano and micro influencers are among the top performing influencer marketing trends this year.

They may have a small follower count, but these influencers have a highly engaged audiences that trust them. 

READ: Why Brands Need to Be Working with Micro Influencers

Nano influencers have between 1,000 and 10,000 followers and micro influencers have 50,000 followers or less.

They have dedicated niche audiences and their product recommendations seem like they come from a friend. These influencers seem more relatable and trustworthy compared to influencers with celebrity status or even celebrities themselves.

Check out micro influencer and athlete Diana Drew who worked with us to promote our client and the official account of the Los Angeles Organizing Committee for the 2028 Olympic & Paralympic Games, @la28games. She has a following of 10k and a niche community that engages with and trusts her content. 

If you’re looking to take advantage of the top influencer marketing trends – make sure you’re focusing on nano and micro influencers.

Their engagement rates are much higher than influencers with larger followings.

Higher engagement rates mean a better ROI per dollar spent. See the influencer engagement stats below: 

3. Influencer Collaborations and Partnerships

This influencer marketing trend has proven it’s here to stay! More and more brands are maintaining long-term relationships and partnerships with influencers.

Brands invest a lot of time and money in finding the right influencers to represent them. It’s in their best interest to maintain collaborations and partnerships when they find influencers who meet their criteria. 

When a brand has a committed influencer who promotes their product or service multiple times, it shows that the influencer genuinely likes the product. If an influencer promotes a product once and stops mentioning a brand, it comes off as insincere. 

Our Senior Influencer Marketing Manager Brandon Goodreau says “it’s better to regularly represent a brand and form a real relationship between the brand and influencer rather than a one-off post.” 

Take a look at Jorge Guitierrez, a beauty guru and his love for the skincare brand, Youth To The People is apparent throughout his Instagram feed.

When an influencer and brand have a committed partnership, both parties can benefit. Plus, audiences will be able to recognize the authenticity.

To capitalize on this influencer marketing trend, it’s a good idea to create packages and guidelines for your influencers. These should identify how many posts you want, content expectations, and over what period of time the posts will occur.

P.S. – working with a marketing agency can make this process much easier and more seamless!

Do you like these influencer marketing trends and want to get started? Our experts can help. Click here to get started. 

4. Influencer Marketing Authenticity

We’ve all heard the term ‘authenticity’ in the marketing world, but what does that mean for influencer marketing? 

Influencer marketing is trending away from the perfectly curated feed aesthetic. As discussed in the section above, smaller, more authentic influencers are getting more engagement.

At its core, authenticity is being truthful and transparent with audiences. It’s about building true relationships and connections with those you partner with and those who consume your content. In fact, 30% of millennials have unfollowed a brand on social media because their content was inauthentic.

Our influencer marketing expert, Dylan, says “I always like to remind clients that influencer marketing is “trust” marketing. You can drive past a billboard a million times but it just takes one firsthand review of a product in your feed from a person you follow to get you to take action.”

Read our blog The Age Of Authenticity to learn how to engrave authenticity into your strategy beyond influencer marketing trends. 

Where is influencer marketing authenticity trending?

We are seeing the most engaging and successful videos are usually ones that incorporate the creators’ personality and interests rather than something that feels salesy. This type of content is also more likely to be repurposed and re-shared by other users. 

Authenticity is especially showing up through the rise of live video. Our influencer marketing expert Brandon says, “platforms like TikTok and Amazon have increased the functionality of their live videos, and in turn they are becoming more popular with influencers.”

See how TikToker Glitter Envy promotes her custom tumbler business by hopping on TikTok live as she makes her product. It allows customers to see her whole creation process, connect with her in real time, and share her content with others.

How can you take advantage of this influencer marketing trend?

If your brand is looking for more authentic influencers to partner with – find influencers who don’t have the “perfect” aesthetic. Instead, foster a real connection with their community while also providing value to their audience.

5. Influencers Turned Affiliate Marketers

Influencer marketing and affiliate marketing have been seen as two entirely different entities. However, our experts are seeing a large trend of brands bringing affiliate and influencer marketing closer together. 

“With social media platforms developing built in sales tools for brands, leveraging influencers as an arm of the online sales team is easier than ever – and with commissions, can be very lucrative for influencers,” says Brandon. 

More and more platforms are integrating with e-commerce. So, brands are recognizing that influencers have the potential to own the majority of the customer experience. Which can truly drive sales for their products.

Affiliate marketing also incentivizes influencers to promote products for brands by giving them a cut whenever a purchase is made from their code or link.

For example, writer and influencer Elizabeth Holmes promotes the swimsuit brand @summersalt by posting both edited and unedited photos of her in the suits. She includes a discount code for her follower base to use toward their purchase. 

There have been many influencer marketing trends that have gained popularity this year and it’s clear which ones are working. It’s time to take advantage of these trends and see how you can implement them into your strategy. 

If you are looking to level up your influencer marketing, our team of experts can help! Fill out the form below to get in touch.