This post was originally published on AdWeek.
Virtually every other week, another “influencer marketing platform” hits the market. From managed campaigns, companies, marketplaces, analytics tools, influencer customer-relationship management and more, influencer marketing is growing exponentially.
There is a good reason to believe that influencer marketing is the fastest-growing marketing channel this year.
- 84% of marketers surveyed by eMarketer said they planned to launch an influencer campaign within 12 months.
- We’re only halfway through 2016 and we’ve already seen three acquisitions in the space.
- The Google trends graph for “influencer marketing” is a perfect hockey stick.
As the market booms, hordes of companies are trying to catch the wave. While competition benefits everyone in the long run, in the short run, it can cause severe issues. Some of the major problems marketers currently face are:
- Little transparency over influencer pricing and vendor commission fees.
- Lack of standardized metrics to track return on investment.
- Managed campaign companies running campaigns manually disguised as technology “platforms.”
- Large price markups from vendors.
- Too many options to choose from leading to analysis paralysis.
In the past month, I’ve taken dozens of calls with executives from brands, banks, and venture-capital firms. All of whom are trying to wrap their heads around the influencer marketing landscape. This post will help shed light on the influencer marketing landscape and upcoming developments.
