We were delighted to be invited to join Takumi’s 2019 Influencer Trends and Predictions Breakfast last week, to discuss our thoughts on how the industry is shaping up this year.

The roundtable included brands, PR agencies, media buyers, creatives and influencers themselves. 

Loads of take-outs and insights for us to put in place for our fabulous clients here at Kazoo.

So, what did we learn?

Shifting from who to how

The overarching prediction for 2019 is a shift from focusing on whothe influencers are to howthe campaign is run. 

When a multiple influencer campaign is being executed, it is essential that there is coherency between posts. 

With this in mind we should start to see better planned, strategic campaigns within the influencer industry, focusing on how a campaign is run rather than who is partaking.

But individual influencers are still important and must be scrutinised to ensure they are an authentic fit for the brand.

Co-creating content

Allowing influencers to create your content, and giving them creative freedom, is the tried and tested way to get the best from them. They know what works for their channels and how to get maximum engagement from their followers.

But it’s not always as easy as that. 

Open negotiation and conversation between brands, agencies and influencers is essential to find a middle ground for everyone, that meets a brand’s strategic brief and suits and influencers’ channels.

We must get co-creation right in 2019 so we don’t get left behind.

Standing out in a busy space

The question of how brands can stand out came up amongst the group. It can feel like everyone is doing the same thing with influencers, so how can we shift the dial and who’s responsibility is it?

The answer: everyone. We all must take responsibility for always asking questions and doing things better.

Using content created by influencers across all your channels is a good way to get value and a stand-out campaign. Think beyond just social channels, and see how you can work it in experiential, CRM and even advertising.

Tackling fraud

Fraud was a big issue in 2018, with third parties stepping in to take control and clamp down. 

It’s not a problem that has vanished but as an industry we are getting much smarter in the way we are assessing how influencers acquired their audience, and we are using data available to us to analyse their work. 

Moving into 2019 and transparency has become normalised. Influencers and brands have a better understanding, and the use of #ad is expected and commonplace. 

But the reality is the digital world of the internet comes with problems; fakery and bots are common place throughout. 

So don’t rely on someone else to tell you if an influencer has fake engagement and followers – take a good look yourself. Brands can take a few moments to look through influencers channels and will know instantly if comments seem fake and unreliable.

Focusing on the solutions

Whilst there is lots of negative activity in the influencer world, we shouldn’t get obsessed over the details. 

Instead look at solutions. 

Look at identifying partners effectively and setting KPIs against ROI and quality of campaign production. 

There’s much more positive to be had in 2019 than negative. It’s an exciting time to be working in the industry.