The Future of Influencer Marketing: Finding Your Purpose
Influencer marketing has becoming a booming industry seemingly overnight. Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, experts estimated that the value of influencer marketing could reach $15 billion by 2022. If you are an influencer right now, however, you are probably wondering about the future of the industry and your ability to generate revenue through your social media feeds in the wake of the global pandemic. To understand the answer to this problem, we must first understand the purpose of influencer marketing versus the purpose of being an influencer.
Influencer marketing has one goal: to drive sales and make money. It is a revenue-generating model for both brands and influencers alike. While there is nothing wrong with making money, you must understand that influencer marketing is inherently short sighted. It is not concerned with the longevity of your career at all. That is not a criticism; it is just a fact, and one that you as an influencer must be aware of when entering this uncertain market.
At its core, your social media is a distribution platform owned and controlled entirely by you. It is an opportunity to grow and engage with your audience based on what you share—i.e., your message.
Being an influencer, on the other hand, can serve a much different purpose. At its core, your social media is a distribution platform owned and controlled entirely by you. It is an opportunity to grow and engage with your audience based on what you share—i.e., your message. Ask anyone, and they will tell you that the key to being a successful influencer is “authenticity.” That is, what you share must be true to who you. In terms of influencer marketing, this means that your messaging must align with the brand you are promoting or creating and your endorsement of what is being sold must be believable. Like animals who can smell fear, your audience will know when you are not being genuine and, instead, are just trying to sell them something in order to make money. While the old days of “selling out” have certainly changed—audiences increasingly understand that creatives must make a living—doing anything solely for the money is still widely shunned and rejected by fans. According to a recent study, however, nearly 70 percent of influencers admitted that their primary reason for becoming an influencer was to make money. This is the root of the problem.
Like most things in life, if your pursuit of being an influencer is based in a “get rich quick” scheme, you will ultimately fail. Sure, many may have succeeded in the influencer goldrush of recent years, but a market correction is looming, and those influencers offering little to no true value will soon become a thing of the past. Again, your social media is a distribution platform. To succeed, you must distribute an “authentic message.” Your focus, therefore, must not be on the money, but on your message. What is it you have to say and offer to your audience?
Your greatest gift to the world, your greatest value, is intrinsically tied to your true individual self.
At Spotlight, we believe that there is no greater authentic message than the story of who you are. Your greatest gift to the world, your greatest value, is intrinsically tied to your true individual self. What is it that makes you unique? Uncovering this takes incredible honesty and self-reflection, but is absolutely critical. This takes not only understanding your passions, talents, skills, etc., but identifying and listening to your inner voice.
Being a creative is not something you choose to be, but is who you are. You are compelled to create. Within you is a force driving you to create. We call that driving creative force your “muse,” because it is the spirit or source of your inspiration. Your truth, your authentic message, begins with your muse. From there, you can establish truths and themes authentic to you and your life experience. These truths or themes then become the foundation of your narrative, your story.
Develop your authentic message first, then hand that over to an agent or other representative to find revenue opportunities that align with your truth, not the other way around.
If you are purely in it for the money, you are doomed to fail. Being an influencer and focused on the payday is like starting a company focused on your exit strategy. There is no sustainability because there is no foundational value or truth. Rather than going to a digital agent looking for them to package you in a way that fits into some brand partnership or endorsement, you need to work on who and why you are. Develop your authentic message first, then hand that over to an agent or other representative to find revenue opportunities that align with your truth, not the other way around. This is the future of influencer marketing.
