Thirteen Things I Learned Reading Fifty-One 2024 Influencer Marketing Trends Articles (So You Don’t Have To)

By: Ryan Davis (Co-Founder and COO of People First)

Feb 07, 2024

Special Edition! Special Edition!

Our Co-Founder Ryan Davis recently took to LinkedIn to share some insights for campaigns and advocacy groups on how to navigate the influencer space in 2024 we thought you might love. And, it even got a shoutout in Marketing Brew!

Over the past two months, every digital agency, social media SaaS product, and consultant has published an article on social media and influencer marketing trends to expect in 2024. Viewed in isolation, these articles may not seem very valuable. However, when considered collectively, they offer insights into the direction of influencer marketing in the new year and beyond, reflecting where many marketing leaders intend to steer the industry.

I've read and consolidated fifty-one articles on influencer marketing trends, identifying the thirteen themes that received the most mentions. You’re welcome.

Let's dive in:

The Consensus

Artificial Intelligence Meets Creator Marketing (26 Mentions)

AI dominated marketers' thinking this year, referenced in half of the articles I read. This ranged from using AI to discover the right creators and assist with content production, to sharing fully AI-generated content and collaborating with entirely artificial influencers.

Many of these developments are already underway to some extent, and the use of AI as a creative collaborator and discovery tool is both obvious and straightforward to implement. I’m skeptical that most users above a certain age will be interested in following and engaging with entirely artificial creators. Younger audiences, raised on immersive gaming and TikTok, might be more open-minded. It’ll be interesting to see how this all plays out in the next few years.

Creators With Small Followings > Larger Influencers (25 Mentions)

Creators with smaller followings, commonly referred to as "micro" and "nano" influencers, were almost as popular among marketers as AI. Marketers largely believe these creators offer higher engagement rates, better ROI, and are less frustrating to work with. I fully endorse this perspective, often writing about how microinfluencers provide numerous advantages over celebrities and larger creators, including easier negotiation of usage rights and repurposing as UGC (User-Generated Content) on a brand’s owned social channels. This theme will recur as we progress through the list.

Shift Toward Sustained Creator Partnerships vs. Isolated Projects (23 Mentions)

Working with groups of creators over months, rather than engaging in single, one-off projects, is gaining popularity among marketers. This approach has its advantages, as creators become more familiar and aligned with a brand's message over time, and it's simply easier for brands to evaluate a select few creators' profiles than to sift through hundreds.

However, there's a real tension with the growing preference for partnering with smaller creators. How often do a creator's 4,000 followers need to hear about your product or service? Does repeatedly working with the same creator provide enough variety to effectively optimize paid media efforts or repurpose content on your social channels? There are benefits to long-term collaborations with creator cohorts, especially in political or advocacy contexts. But, I advise marketers to also continuously seek out and engage with new creators, maintaining a balance between fostering ongoing relationships and exploring fresh collaborations. More, diverse content leads to better results.

Authentic Content Over Polished Creative (23 Mentions)

The preference for authentic content over highly polished creative may be a response to concerns about saturating our social feeds with subpar generative AI content and fake creators. Marketers recognize that content resonating with real users appears to originate from them, not from a fancy agency perched above Fifth Avenue. This insight is supported by studies from Meta and analysis of tens of thousands of content pieces we've produced internally.

I hope marketers grasp that they can view each piece of creator content as less precious, without obsessing over every letter, line break, or background noise. The beauty of creator content lies in its imperfections, in its resemblance to something crafted by a friend or family member rather than Madison Avenue. It's time to relax and let Creators Be Creators.

Second Tier Themes

TikTok Reigns Supreme In 2024 (14 Mentions)

It's no surprise that TikTok stands out as the only social channel prominently mentioned. The sexiest social network, it has overtaken Twitter as the driver for online discourse. Viral TikToks frequently become hits on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube Shorts, and even find their way into reports by legacy media. TikTok's use among older demographics will increase in 2024 as the app's adoption continues to expand.

Getting Niche (14 Mentions)

When marketers discussed "niche creators" this year, they weren't referring to the size of the creator's following but to the specificity with which creators engage the interests of their audience. For instance, a macro influencer like Andrew Huberman is considered niche within the health community, and someone sharing their cross-stitching projects with 1,200 followers occupies a niche within the cross-stitching community.

I wholeheartedly agree with this perspective and find that creators who specialize in particular areas are far more compelling collaborators for most campaigns than generalists. If a creator has cultivated an audience that shares an interest in the specific niche your product or organization targets, they are ideally positioned to produce content that resonates with that audience, regardless of their follower count.

The Growing Importance of UGC (14 Mentions)

In line with the focus on creators with smaller followings, authentic content, and niche specialization, marketers recognize the significance of User-Generated Content (UGC) for dissemination across their owned platforms and channels. They distinguish UGC from microinfluencers based on whether the creator posts content on their own accounts or not. An advantage of not requiring the creator to post is the reduced need for vetting and monitoring. However, allowing the creator to post offers benefits such as the ability to leverage Meta's Paid Partnership or TikTok's Spark ad features to amplify the content directly from the creator's profile, which is the most authentic method of scaling content to target audiences.

Regardless of whether the creator posts the content, I agree that this authentic, grassroots approach to content creation will outperform anything produced in a high-end studio.

Social Media Channels Continue To Decentralize: Market Cross-Channel (13 Mentions)

The decentralization of social media has captured marketers' attention this year. Simply being active on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok is no longer sufficient. Users are making deliberate choices about which networks they wish to follow and engage with. According to the latest Pew report, YouTube ranks as the most popular social networking site in the United States, followed by Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. This diversification underscores the importance of understanding the demographics of each channel to strategically partner with creators for content posting.

Live Shopping (11 Mentions)

Live Shopping, a significant trend in Asia for years, has faced challenges gaining traction in the United States. However, some marketers anticipate it will finally catch on this year, largely propelled by TikTok's popularity. Despite this optimism, I’m skeptical, as this type of overt sales content seems to contradict the authenticity trend favored by many marketers. Furthermore, apart from TikTok, other networks have scaled back some of their live shopping features, adding to the uncertainty of its success this year.

Runners-Up

Influencer and Affiliate Marketing Synergy (9 Mentions)

Affiliate marketing, with its clear synergies with influencer marketing, is gaining traction due to the increasing need to demonstrate ROI on influencer spends. I agree that we'll witness more influencers sharing discount codes and similar incentives to track conversions directly. This approach has also been dubbed a "performance-based deal," a term that sounds less cringe than "affiliate marketer."

Social Commerce is Set to Explode (9 Mentions)

Building on the momentum of affiliate and live shopping trends, the prospect of users purchasing directly from social posts featuring tagged items appears set to expand in the coming year. The “TikTok Shop” is the one to watch.

Diversity and Inclusion (9 Mentions)

Creator marketing, with the capacity to engage highly specific messengers to connect with target audiences, offers an ideal way to advance your brand or organization's diversity and inclusion goals. I hope that marketers follow People First's lead by also prioritizing equitable pay for all creators.

First-Party Data for Tailored Strategies (9 Mentions)

Marketers always want more data, and the use of first-party data to enhance understanding of a creator's audience and engagement is becoming increasingly desired by clients. As social networks themselves enhance the quality of their reporting and data, we have embraced advanced social listening software like Infegy to delve deeper into our creators' followings and engagement. Anticipate a surge in start-ups dedicated to offering more detailed reporting for creator activations.

That’s a Wrap

I hope this has saved you some time and provided a clear focus on the key trends that are capturing the attention of influencer marketers this year. If you want to check my work, all the links are available below. Keep your predictions coming!

Sources:

What the Polls Don’t Tell Us

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