Influencer Marketing


Benchmark Report
2 0 2 1
 Index

Survey Methodology 7

Influencer Marketing Expected to Grow to be Worth $13.8

Billion This Year 9

240 More Platforms and Influencer Marketing Focused Agencies

Created Last Year 11

Better Engagement Rates for Micro-Influencers Than for the

Superstars of Social Media 13

Most Influencers Selected on Instagram and YouTube are

Micro-Influencers. However, Larger Influencers Are Popular on
TikTok 15

Substantial Growth in Influencer Campaigns in Q4 2020 17

Sizeable Increase in Content in Recent Years 18

An Increasing Ma j ority Have a Standalone Budget for

Content Marketin g
19

The Vast Ma j ority of Respondents Believe Influencer Marketing to be

Effective 20

Three-Quarters of Our Respondents Intend to Dedicate a Budget

to Influencer Marketing in 2021 21

62% of Respondents Intend to Increase Their Influencer

Marketing Spend in 2020 22

11% of Respondents Intend to Spend at Least 40% of Their

Marketing Budget on Influencer Marketing 24

Although Most Brands Spend Less Than $50K on Influencer

Marketing, Nearly 9% Spend More than $500K 25

Firms Value Working With Influencers They Know 26

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About Half of the Firms Working With Influencers Operate
eCommerce Stores 27

The Most Common Type of Influencer Payment is Free Product

Samples 28

PayPal is the Most Popular Way to Pay influencers 29

Many Firms Use Influencers for Affiliate Campaigns 30

Most Recognize the High Quality of Customers from Influencer

Marketing Campaigns 31

2/3 Measure the ROI on Their Influencer Marketing 3 2

The Most Common Measure of Influencer Marketing Success is

Conversions / Sales 33

Most Consider Earned Media Value a Good Measure of ROI 34

83% of Firms Take Their Influencer Marketing Spending from Their

Marketing Budget 35

About 3/4 of Influencer Marketing Campaigns are Run

In-House 36

Most Popular Use of Influencer Platforms is for Influencer

Discovery and Communication 37

68% of Respondents Use Instagram for Influencer Marketing but

TikTok Rapidly Catching Up 39

Huge Growth of TikTok and Twitch Influencer Marketing in 2020 41

Tiktok and Twitch as a percentage of Overall Influencer

Campaigns 4 2

Awareness and Sales are the Main Objectives for Running an

Influencer Campaign 44

Influencer Fraud is Still of Concern to Respondents 45

2
Substantial Drop in Respondents Who Have Experienced
Influencer Fraud 46

Brands are Finding it Easier to Find Appropriate Influencers 47

Mixed Views on Whether Brand Safety is a Concern in

Influencer Campaigns 48
Majority Believe Influencer Marketing Can be Automated, Although
Significant Numbers Disagree 50
Audience Relationship Still Considered Most Valuable When
Partnering with Influencers, But Content Production is Rapidly
Catching Up 51
Two-Thirds of Respondents Prefer Their Influencer Marketing to be
Campaign-Based 52

Vast Majority Consider Influencer Marketing to be a Scalable Tactic

in their Marketing Ecosystem 53

Engagement or Clicks is Still the Most Important Criteria When

Evaluating Influencers 54

About Half of Brands Work with Fewer Than 10 Influencers 56

Monthly Campaigns Remain the Most Common 57

Finding Influencers Remains the Greatest Challenge for Those Who

Run Campaigns In-house 58

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We carried out our first influencer marketing survey in 2017, giving us an
excellent insight into the state of the industry. We have repeated this
exercise every year since, providing an annual insight into how marketing
agencies, PR agencies, and brands see the state of influencer marketing.

In our Influencer Marketing Benchmark Report 2021, we surveyed more

than 5000 marketing agencies, brands, and other relevant professionals to
determine their views and build insight into their thoughts on the industry.
Following on from that year of horror, 2020, we knew that the results this
year could be quite informative. Just a reminder that throughout 2020 we
continually updated and expanded our Covid-19 Marketing & Ad Spend
Impact Report. Surprisingly, however, most of the statistics are relatively
similar, with the only major change being a significant increase in the use
of TikTok for influencer marketing. There was a major slow down in
influencer marketing spend from March - July 2020 as the pandemic
unfolded, followed by a spike in influencer led campaigns from August
onwards, as reported by most of our agency and platform partners.

In addition to the results from our survey, we include some other relevant
statistics related to influencer marketing that have come about thanks to
recent research. Many of these come courtesy of our partner Upfluence,
who offer a smart influencer marketing platform with over 4 million
creator profiles.

One thing is very clear from these results. Despite all the uncertainties
caused by COVID in 2020, influencer marketing is still a highly popular and
effective form of marketing. Indeed, we can look at it as being part of the
mainstream marketing mix now. Although the media occasionally run
reports from naysayers criticizing the industry, those who actively
participate can clearly see influencer marketing's effectiveness. At least
now, more people understand what influencer marketing is all about.

4
Here are the main results from our Influencer Marketing 2021 Study.

Notable Highlights

Influencer Marketing Industry is set to grow to approximately $13.8

Billion in 2021

More than 240 new influencer marketing-focused agencies and

platforms established in 2019

The majority (59%) admit to having a standalone budget for content

marketing, and 75% of them now intend to dedicate a budget to

influencer marketing in 2021

90% of our survey respondents believe influencer marketing to be an

effective form of marketing

The majority of brands use the same influencers across different

campaigns

Brands still tend to give away free product samples (or give discounts

on more expensive products) rather than paying cash to their

influencers

67% of our respondents measure the ROI from their influencer

campaigns

The most common measure of influencer marketing success is

conversions/sales

83% of firms take their influencer marketing spending from their

marketing budget

67% of respondents use Instagram for influencer marketing, but there

has been a colossal increase in TikTok influencer marketing

5
Influencer fraud is still of concern to respondents, but less so than in
the past

Far fewer respondents have experienced influencer fraud than

previously

67% of respondents prefer their influencer marketing to be

campaign-based rather than always-on

Finding influencers remains the most significant challenge for those

who run campaigns in-house but is becoming less of a problem

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Survey Methodology
We surveyed just over 5000 people from a range of backgrounds. Although
we had to remove some responses due to a lack of clarity, the 2021 survey
is our largest yet, with a 25% increase in respondents compared to last
year's study.

36% of our respondents considered themselves brands (or brand

representatives). 32% work at marketing agencies (including those
specializing in influencer marketing), and 4% are PR agencies. The remaining
29% we merge as Other, representing a wide range of occupations and
sectors.

Despite the increase in survey respondents from last year, the ratio of B2B
and B2C businesses remained unchanged. 70% of those surveyed focus
on the B2C sector, with the remaining 30% running campaigns for firms in
the B2B area.

The most popular vertical represented was once again Fashion & Beauty
(25% of respondents), although we found changes after this. Health &
Fitness now comes second with 13%. In the year of COVID, it is perhaps no
surprise that our Travel & Lifestyle respondents fell to 10%, closely
followed by Gaming at 9%. Family, Parenting & Home (7%) and Sports
(6%) are the other sectors separately shown. The reduction in Sports (and
increase in Gaming) are also probably a result of COVID. The remaining
29%, grouped as Other, covers every other vertical imaginable. Due to our
survey sample size, the proportions of each industry vertical represented
here will likely be typical of influencer marketing users in general.

47% of our respondents came from the USA, 11% Europe, 13% Asia (APAC),
5% Africa, with 19% describing their location as Other.

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The bulk of our respondents came from relatively small organizations, with
45% representing companies with fewer than ten employees. 22% had
10-50 employees, 12% 50-100, 10% 100-1,000, and 12% coming from large
enterprises with more than 1,000 employees. Overall, however, there are
slightly more respondents from larger organizations than last year, which
might have had a small impact on the comparative results.

45%

22%

12%

10%

companies with fewer than ten employees

companies with 10-50 employees

companies with 50-100 employees

companies with 10-1000 employees

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Influencer Marketing Expected to Grow to be
Worth $13.8 Billion This Year

Estimated Influencer Marketing Growth (YOY)

$ 13.8B

$10B $ 9.7B
$8B
$ 6.5B
$6B
$ 4.6B
$4B
$ 3.0B
$2B $ 1.7B

$0
2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

Despite initial concerns that influencer marketing (indeed, all marketing)

might decrease due to COVID19, it has increased in reality. Sure some
industries, such as tourism and airlines, have had to retrench dramatically,
but many others have adjusted their models to survive in the COVID (and
post-COVID) world.

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People now spend considerably more time online than previously.
Businesses have had to upgrade their websites to cope with increased
demand. If you look back through past versions of this Benchmark Report,
you will have noticed that actual and estimated influencer marketing has
grown dramatically over the last few years. Coronavirus has accelerated
that growth in 2020, and this is estimated to continue in 2021.

From a mere $1.7 billion in 2016, influencer marketing is estimated to have

grown to have a market size of $9.7 billion in 2020. This is expected to jump
to $13.8 billion in 2021.

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240 More Platforms and Influencer Marketing

Focused Agencies Created Last Year

As influencer marketing has matured as an industry, it has attracted support

companies and apps to simplify the process for both brands and

influencers. Organic influencer marketing can be a slow and tedious

process, particularly when finding and wooing influencers to promote your

company's products or services.

+240 New platforms and influencer marketing focused

agencies in the last 12 months

Number of new platforms

1360
and agencies in the market

1120

+240 New platforms and

influencer marketing focused

agencies in the last 12 months

740

420

335

190

2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

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240 new influencer marketing-focused platforms and agencies entered the
market over the last 12 months. This is down on last year's 380, but that may
simply indicate the market becoming saturated, with influencer marketing
now commonplace. It is still one of the largest increases over the years and
takes the total influencer agencies and platforms to 1360.

Back in 2015, there were just 190 influencer platforms and agencies. This
grew to 335 in 2016, 420 in 2017, 740 in 2018, and 1120 in 2019 –nearly three
times the number that existed just two years previously.

12
Better Engagement Rates for Micro-Influencers

Than for the Superstars of Social Media

Recent Upfluence data shows better engagement rates for smaller

influencers than for larger ones. Upfluence uses slightly different definitions

for influencer types than what we usually do on the Influencer Marketing

Hub, so in the following data, consider the different kinds of influencer as

being:

Micro-influencer: less than 15,000 followers

Regular-influencer: between 15,000 and 50,000 followers

Rising-influencer: between 50,000 and 100,000 followers

Mid-influencer: between 100,000 and 500,000 followers

Macro-influencer: between 500,000 and 1,000,000 followers

Mega-influencer: more than 1,000,000 followers

The pattern is the same across Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok (and

probably most other social platforms too).

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 Average engagement rate of selected influencers 2020

Micro 3.86% 1.63% 17.96%

Overall < 15K

Benchmarks Regular 2.39% 0.51% 9.75%

15K-50K
Average
engagement rate Rising 1.87% 0.46% 8.37%
benchmarks across 50K-100K
six key channel sizes
on each of the major Mid 1.62% 0.43% 6.67%
socialmedia 100K-500K
platforms. Macro 1.36% 0.44% 6.20%
500K-1M

Mega 1.21% 0.37% 4.96%

1M+

*data is based on influencers

selected and added to influencer
lists by Upfluence software users

For example, micro-influencers on Instagram have an average engagement

rate of 3.86%, and that rate falls at every level of influencer, bottoming out at
1.21% for mega-influencers. Similarly, although all engagement rates are low
on YouTube, there is a noticeable difference between the 1.64% average
engagement of micro-influencers and the mega-influencers' 0.37% rate. It is
on TikTok that you notice the most significant difference, however.
Micro-influencers receive a whopping 17.96% engagement on TikTok,
compared to 4.96% for Mega-influencers.

TikTok engagement is far higher for influencers of any size compared to

their Instagram or YouTube counterparts.

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Most Influencers Selected on Instagram and

YouTube are Micro-Influencers. However, Larger

Influencers Are Popular on TikTok

Using the same definitions for influencer sizes used in the above statistic, we

see some variations in influencer selection across the social networks (as

shown by Upfluence customers).

Influencers selected by category 2020

Micro
57.8% 51.37% 10.81%

< 15K

Regular
23.57% 11.84% 17.47%

15K-50K

Rising
7.07% 6.67% 17.98%

50K-100K

Mid
8.62% 16.43% 32.55%

100K-500K

Macro
1.40% 4.98% 8.62%

500K-1M

Mega
1.55% 8.71% 12.57%

1M+

*data is based on influencers selected and added to

influencer lists by Upfluence software users

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On Instagram, there is a clear preference (57.78%) for micro-influencers,
followed by 23.57% for regular influencers. All other influencer types cater
for less than 10% of all influencers selected by Upfluence customers.
Macro-influencers make a tiny 1.40% (even smaller than the 1.55% who
prefer mega-influencers). The trend of having more mega-influencers than
macro-influencers occurs across all three social networks, probably
reflecting the fact that there are more mega-influencers because there is no
maximum number of followers to qualify for that category.

YouTube also shows how essential micro-influencers are to brands, with

51.37% of Upfluence's YouTube clients working with micro-influencers.
Surprisingly mid-influencers (16.43%) are the second most popular
influencer type on YouTube. Again, mega-influencers (4.98%) make the
smallest percentage.

TikTok follows a different pattern, however. Despite other statistics

indicating that engagement on TikTok is highest for micro-influencers,
Upfluence's clients have tended to go for larger influencers. Indeed, the
most popular type of TikTok influencer on Upfluence are mid-influencers
(32.55%), and micro-influencers make a mere 10.81%.

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 Substantial Growth in Influencer Campaigns in Q4
2020
Despite there being concern that COVID would cut back influencer
campaigns, Upfluence data suggest that this only happened short-term.
2018 had seen substantial growth from 590 campaigns in Q1 to 1652 in Q4.
This continued in 2019, reaching 2110 campaigns in Q4

3000
Number of campaigns

2000

1000

0
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4
2018 2018 2018 2018 2019 2019 2019 2019 2020 2020 2020 2020

Quarter

Sure, COVID and lockdowns had an initial effect during Q1 and 2 2020, with
1945 campaigns in Q1 2020 falling further to 1575 in Q2. Things changed
substantially in the second half of 2020, however. Influencer campaigns rose
dramatically to 2163 in Q3, with an even larger jump in Q4 to 2901.

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Sizeable Increase in Content in Recent Years

We asked our respondents whether they had increased content output

over the last two years. A massive 80% of them admitted to having upped
the amount of content they produced. While this is down on last year's 84%,
remember that these figures are cumulative. 75% of the respondents of the
2019 survey had also said they had increased content. The amount of
content produced now, compared to four years ago, is phenomenal. You
must be able to find virtually everything there is to know online by now
(including, unfortunately, "fake news" and conspiracy theories.)

Clearly, many firms now realize the insatiable demand for online content
and have increased their content marketing accordingly. Judging by the
recent uptake in influencer marketing over the last few years, much of this
increase in content must be created and delivered by influencers on behalf
of brands.

18
An Increasing Majority Have a Standalone Budget for
Content Marketing

The majority (59%) admit to having a standalone budget for content

marketing. This is up from the 55% figure in our 2020 survey.

Although these figures are over 50%, they are surprisingly low, considering
that most businesses claim to use content marketing. HubSpot reports that
70% of their respondents use content marketing.

Perhaps the discrepancy simply recognizes that some firms have a single
marketing budget, rather than separating it into different types of
marketing.

having a standalone
59% budget for content
marketing

HubSpot reports that

70% 70% of their respondents

use content marketing.

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The Vast Majority of Respondents Believe Influencer
Marketing to be Effective

90% positive sentiment

expressed about
influencer marketing

Unsurprisingly, considering the overall positive sentiment expressed about

influencer marketing, 90% of our survey respondents believe influencer
marketing to be an effective form of marketing.

This statistic has hovered around the same level in each of our surveys. It is
clear that most firms that try influencer marketing are happy with the results
and are willing to continue with the practice. You may read the odd horror
story in the media, but that is obviously the exception to the rule. Most
influencer marketing partnerships work and are a win-win situation for all
parties.

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Three-Quarters of Our Respondents Intend to
Dedicate a Budget to Influencer Marketing in 2021

3/4

We asked our respondents whether they had increased content output

over the last two years. A massive 80% of them admitted to having upped

the amount of content they produced. While this is down on last year's 84%,

remember that these figures are cumulative. 75% of the respondents of the

2019 survey had also said they had increased content.

Clearly, many firms now realize the insatiable demand for online content

and have increased their content marketing accordingly. Judging by the

recent uptake in influencer marketing over the last few years, much of this

increase in content must be created and delivered by influencers on behalf

of brands.

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62% of Respondents Intend to Increase Their
Influencer Marketing Spend in 2020

62%

20%

12%
7%

intend to increase their influencer marketing budget

expect to keep their budgets the same as in 2020

unsure about how their how their influencer marketing budgets

would change

intending to decrease their influencer marketing budgets

62% of those respondents who budget for influencer marketing intend to

increase their influencer marketing budget over the next 12 months. An
additional 20% indicate that they expect to keep their budgets the same as
in 2020. A further 12% stated that they were unsure about how their
influencer marketing budgets would change. This leaves a mere 7%
intending to decrease their influencer marketing budgets.

22
While these figures are similar to the 2020 results, there are slightly fewer
firms planning to increase their influencer marketing budgets. This is
balanced by an increase in those planning on keeping their budgets the
same. Although the number of firms planning to decrease influencer
marketing is up, this is predominantly balanced by a reduction in the Unsure
category. Once again, COVID is likely to play a role in these changes.

Overall, this is further proof that influencer marketing remains successful and
shows no sign of disappearing or being just a fad. After a few years of
robust growth in influencer marketing, you might have anticipated
marketing budgets to have shifted to "the next big thing." However, that
hasn't happened. Brands and marketers recognize the effectiveness of
influencer marketing and are not searching for something new.

23
11% of Respondents Intend to Spend at Least 40% of
Their Marketing Budget on Influencer Marketing

38% 22% 19% 11% 10%

intending to spend 10-20%

A mere 22% expect to spend less than 10%.

planning to allocate 20-30%

intending to spend more than 40%

intend to devote 30-40%

Influencer marketing is, of course, merely one part of the marketing mix.
Most businesses balance their marketing budget across a wide range of
media to reach the greatest possible relevant audience. However, the vast
majority of firms intend to include some influencer marketing in their mix.

11% of respondents are clear fans of influencer marketing, intending to

spend more than 40% of their marketing budget on influencer campaigns.
This is a noticeable increase on 2020's 9%.

10% of respondents intend to devote 30-40% of their marketing budget to

influencer marketing, with an additional 19% planning to allocate 20-30% of
their total marketing spending to influencer marketing.

The most common percentage of marketing devoted to influencer

marketing comes in the 10-20% range, with 38% of respondents intending to
spend in this range. A mere 22% expect to spend less than 10%.

24
Although Most Brands Spend Less Than $50K on
Influencer Marketing, Nearly 9% Spend More than
$500K

49% 23% 12%

spend less than spend between spend $50K

$10K $10K and $50K to $100K

8.6% 7.5%

more than spent $100K to

$500K $500K

Brands of all sizes engage in influencer marketing. Therefore, it should be no

surprise to see quite some variation on what firms spend on the activity.
49% of the brands surveyed said they spend less than $10K annually on
influencer marketing (notably higher than last year's 43%, perhaps a
symptom of COVID). 23% spend between $10K and $50K. A further 12%
spend $50K to $100K, 7.5% $100K to $500K, and 8.6% spend more than
$500K. This latter statistic is notably higher than last year's 5%.

Clearly, the amount that a firm spends depends on its total marketing
budget and the proportion it chooses to devote to influencer marketing.
Those brands that opt to work with mega-influencers and celebrities spend
more than brands that work alongside micro- or nano-influencers. COVID
has the effect of increasing the extremes – firms have either decreased their
influencer marketing noticeably or have put more emphasis on the practice
and spend more on it.

25
Firms Value Working With Influencers They Know

56% VS 44%

We asked our respondents whether they had worked with the same
influencers across different campaigns. The majority, 56% said they had,
versus 44% who claimed to use different influencers for their campaigns (or
perhaps had only had one campaign so far).

Clearly, brands prefer to build up relationships with existing influencers

rather than going through the full influencer selection process every time
they run a campaign. Of course, some firms will have a range of influencers
they call upon depending on the nature of a particular campaign,
depending on the products they are trying to promote, and the target
market.

26
About Half of the Firms Working With Influencers
Operate eCommerce Stores
Slightly more of our respondents operate eCommerce stores than those
who don't. 50.7% of the respondents run eCommerce stores versus 49.3%
not doing so. Allowing for a margin of error, this means that about half of
our respondents operate an eCommerce store.

This is surprisingly high. Remember that our survey respondents come from
various backgrounds – brands, marketing agencies, PR agencies, and
"Other." Clearly, eCommerce is increasing in popularity for all types of
businesses.

of the respondents run

50.7% eCommerce stores

27
The Most Common Type of Influencer Payment is
Free Product Samples

paid by giving product

samples

36%
gave monetary
payment

32.4% 10.5%
entered their influencers
in a giveaway

21%
gave them a discount
on their product

This statistic is probably the most surprising in this year's survey. 36% of
respondents paid their influencers by giving them product samples. Indeed
21% merely gave them a discount on their product or services (presumably
more expensive items). 10.5% entered their influencers in a giveaway. This
means that only 32.4% of firms gave monetary payment to influencers.

While this is surprising on the surface, it probably indicates how many firms
work with micro and nano-influencers. These relative newcomers are happy
to receive payment in kind rather than cash. Presumably, it is mainly large
firms with more sizable marketing budgets that pay influencers with
money.

28
PayPal is the Most Popular Way to Pay influencers
Isolating those respondents who pay money to influencers, we asked them
what their preferred payment method was. 42% chose PayPal, 31% a
third-party payment service (for example, TransferWise), and 27% pay by
wire transfer. In reality, this would very much depend on the location of the
influencers. If they are based in a different country to where you operate
from, PayPal or something like TransferWise is much easier than wire
transfer.

29
Many Firms Use Influencers for Affiliate Campaigns

Another slightly surprising statistic is just how many firms use influencers in

their affiliate campaigns. Indeed 59% of all respondents claimed to do so.

The advantages of using influencers for affiliate campaigns are obvious –

you have a vastly larger audience to promote the affiliate products you sell.

The most surprising aspect is just how many firms operate affiliate

campaigns. We have previously written on How to Use Influencers to Power

Up Your Affiliate Marketing.

59%

30
Most Recognize the High Qualit y of Customers from

Influencer Marketing Campaigns

Brands carry out influencer marketing for a range of purposes. Many

campaigns are designed to increase brand awareness rather than

encourage sales. Some customers are more lucrative for a business than

others – they buy high-margin products and add-ons. In some cases,

influencer marketing may bring new customers to the brand, but the

additional spending may be less than the cost of running the campaign.

Our survey respondents are generally optimistic about the value of

influencer marketing overall. Most agree that influencer marketing attracts

high-quality customers. 72% believe that the quality of customers from

influencer marketing campaigns is better than other marketing types. This is

an identical result to last year's survey.

72%

31
 2/3 Measure the ROI on Their Influencer Marketing

firms measure the ROI from

67%
their influencer campaigns

33%
of firms don't
measure their ROI

We found that 67% of our respondents measure the ROI from their
influencer campaigns. This is an improvement on last year's 65% result.

The 2020 results were something of an outlier result compared to previous

years, all of which ranged from 67-70%. It is somewhat surprising that 33% of
firms don't measure their ROI. You would think that every firm would want
to know how effective their marketing spending is. It would be interesting
to know if the bulk of the firms not measuring ROI are those who merely
give influencers a product discount rather than paying them directly.

32
 The Most Common Measure of Influencer Marketing
Success is Conversions / Sales

This statistic mirrors last year's survey, which was a significant change from

previous years. In 2019 and preceding years, influencer marketing

measurement's focus was relatively evenly balanced between differing

campaign goals, but Conversion/Sales was the least-supported reason. In

2020 and 2021, however, it has a clear, undisputed lead.

Influencer marketing is sufficiently widespread now that most businesses

understand that the best way to measure your influencer marketing ROI is

by using a metric that measures your campaigns' goals. Clearly, more

brands now focus on using their influencer marketing to generate tangible

results. 38.5% believe that you should gauge a campaign by the

conversions/sales that result.

The remaining respondents have differing goals for their campaign, with

32.5% most interested in engagement or clicks generated due to a

campaign (this topped earlier polls), and 29% interested in

views/reach/impression (up from 27% last year).

More brands now focus on using

their influencer marketing to
generate tangible results.

32.5% believe that you should gauge a

campaign by the conversions/sales

38.5%
that result.

29% most interested in engagement or

clicks generated due to a campaign

interested in views/reach/impression

33
Most Consider Earned Media Value a Good

Measure of ROI

favor the doesn’t favor

80% measure
20% the measure

Earned Media Value has become more recognized in recent years as a good

measure of influencer campaigns' ROI. We asked our respondents whether

they considered it a fair representation. This year 80% favor the measure, as

against 20% who don't. This is a 3% increase in favor of EMV compared to last

year's result.

Earned Media Value provides a proxy for the returns on the posts that an

influencer has historically given the firms they have worked with. It indicates

what an equivalent advertising campaign would cost for the same effect.

EMV calculates the worth you receive from content shared by an influencer.

The only negative of using this measure is that the calculation of EMV can be

complicated. As such, it can sometimes be difficult for marketers to explain

the concepts to their managers.

Another name used for earned media value when related to influencer

marketing is influencer media value, which we have written about in What

Exactly is an Influencer's Media Value.

Presumably, most of the 20% against using the statistic either don't

understand it or struggle to communicate its worth to their management

team.

34
83% of Firms Take Their Influencer Marketing

Spending from Their Marketing Budget

17.5%

82.5%

This is another statistic showing little change over the last few years. 82.5%

of the respondents in our survey take their influencer marketing spending

from their Marketing Department's budget. The remaining 17.5% take their

influencer marketing spending from their PR Department's funds.

Presumably, the firms in the minority group use influencer marketing

predominantly for awareness purposes rather than as a direct means to sell

their products or services.

35
About 3/4 of Influencer Marketing Campaigns are
Run In-House
There is little change in this statistic compared to last year. COVID clearly
hasn't made much impact here. 77% of our survey respondents claimed that
they ran their influencer campaigns in-house, with the remaining 23% opting
to use agencies or managed services for their influencer marketing.

In the past, firms found influencer marketing challenging because they

lacked the tools to facilitate the process – organic influencer marketing can
be very hit-and-miss, making it frustrating for brands trying to meet their
goals. However, many firms now use tools (whether in-house or from third
parties) to facilitate the process. For example, they use platforms like
Upfluence to discover suitable influencers.

Some brands prefer to use agencies when working with micro and
nano-influencers because the agencies are more experienced at working
with influencers at scale. Also, larger firms use agencies for all of their
marketing, including influencer marketing.

3/4
77% of our survey
respondents claimed that
they ran their influencer
campaigns in-house

36
Most Popular Use of Influencer Platforms is for
Influencer Discovery and Communication
The figures in this section show a percentage of those who answered that
they use a third-party platform, not the percentage of all survey
respondents as a whole.

Influencer platforms initially focused on offering tools to help with influencer

discovery. Therefore, it should be no surprise that that is still the most
popular use of influencer platforms - although this year's 57% is noticeably
down on last year's 64% claiming to use a platform for influencer discovery
and communications.

Platforms have added additional services

57%

34% 30%
27% 24%
16%

influencer discovery

campaign automation and reporting

fraud and fake follower analysis

influencer payments

conversion attribution

paid amplification

37
Other popular uses of the influencer platforms include campaign
automation and reporting (34%), fraud and fake follower analysis (30%),
influencer payments (27%), conversion attribution (24% - down noticeably
from last year's 33%), and paid amplification (16%). An additional 17% of
respondents use the platforms for some other type of service. This last
figure is somewhat higher than last year's 13%, suggesting that the platforms
are adding new services all the time.

38
68% of Respondents Use Instagram for Influencer
Marketing but TikTok Rapidly Catching Up
Instagram remains the network of choice for influencer marketing
campaigns. However, its dominance has fallen this year. 68% of our survey
respondents consider Instagram important for their influencer marketing
campaigns (down from last year's 80%).

The most significant change comes in second place, with 45% of

respondents now using TikTok for their influencer marketing campaigns.
Last year, TikTok didn't even warrant its own category and appeared as part
of Other.

respondents consider

68%
Instagram important for
their influencer marketing
campaign

45% respondents now using

TikTok for their influencer
marketing campaigns

39
 Influencer Campaign channel utilization

Instagram 68%

TikTok 45%

Facebook 43%

YouTube 36%

Linkedin 16%

Twitter 15%

The percentages using the other social channels have also changed slightly
compared to last year. 43% of the respondents tap into Facebook for their
campaigns (46% last year), 36% YouTube (same as last year), 15% Twitter
(22% last year), 16% LinkedIn - presumably those involved with B2B
companies (16% last year), 8% Twitch (not shown separately last year) and a
further 6% spread across the less popular or more specialist social
networks.

Apart from TikTok's new-found prominence, the most notable differences

are a decline in Twitter from 22% to 15%, an increase in LinkedIn from 12% to
16%, and a decrease in Other from 15% to 6%. Presumably, the fall in Other
reflects the removal of Twitch and TikTok from this category.

40
 Huge Growth of TikTok and Twitch Influencer
Marketing in 2020

Growth in number of Twitch and TikTok Influencers selected

Twitch Influencers TikTok Influencers

125000
106104
100000

75000

50000
36663
35528
25000
16394
15754
9990
0
2018 2019 2020

Upfluence has also seen an enormous rise in influencer marketing on TikTok

and Twitch in 2020. All the figures in this section relate to influencers on the
Upfluence platform. Both social networks saw some growth in influencer
usage in 2019, Twitch rising from 9,990 influencers to 15,754 and TikTok rising
from 16,394 to 35,528. However, 2020 with its lockdowns and other
COVID-related issues, has seen Twitch influencers more than double from
15,754 to 36,663, and TikTok trebling from 35,528 to 106,104.

eCommerce has exploded since the start of COVID-19. Mckinsey reported

that eCommerce saw ten years of growth in just 90 days. Brands are turning
to influencer marketing more than ever, especially for eCommerce.

41
Tiktok and Twitch as a percentage of Overall
Influencer Campaigns
% of instagram influencers % of youtube influencers
% of tiktok influencers % of twitch influencers

100%

75%

60%

25%

0%
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4
2019 2019 2019 2019 2020 2020 2020 2020

Quarter

Upfluence analyzed which social platforms brands are using for their
influencer campaigns. Instagram continues to be the most used platform for
influencer marketing, and has even seen a continuous increase over the last
two years. At the end of 2020 96% of campaigns included instagram
influencers.

42
This is followed by Youtube, which was used in 30% of campaigns in 2020.
We see that the use of Youtube has fluctuated over the years. It was
included in around 25% of campaigns in early 2019 but then dropped to
22% at the end of 2019, however this was followed by a sharp increase as of
Q2 2020, at the time of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tiktok, the most recent of platforms used for influencer marketing, has
started to see an increase in usage. While in 2019 Tiktok influencers were
only present in roughly 3.4% of campaigns, this doubled to 6.8% in 2020.
Even though Tiktok only represents a small percentage of campaigns, the
platform has proven to be an effective way of reaching younger audiences
and we expect these numbers to continue to increase.

Twitch continues to be a small part of the influencer marketing mix with

barely 2% of usage in influencer campaigns, yet this is a slight increase from
2019 when Twitch was used in 1.5% of campaigns. Like Tiktok, Twitch saw a
peak in Q2 of 2020 which correlates with the beginning of the COVID-19
pandemic.

43
Awareness and Sales are the Main Objectives for

Running an Influencer Campaign

33.5%
influencer campaign aims to

increase sales

32.8% place more emphasis on

awareness

engage in influencer marketing

33.6% to build up a library of

user-generated content

This year, increased sales have just become the main objective for running

an influencer campaign, but awareness is almost equal.

33.6% of our respondents claim their influencer campaign aims to increase

sales. 33.5% place more emphasis on awareness. Slightly less popular, at

32.8%, is the group of respondents who engage in influencer marketing to

build up a library of user-generated content. This percentage has risen quite

noticeably as an objective, from last year's 24%.

In reality, allowing for sampling error, all three objectives are relatively

equally popular.

44
Influencer Fraud is Still of Concern to Respondents
Every so often, mainstream media highlights influencer fraud. Luckily there
are many tools to help detect fraudsters, reducing the effects of influencer
fraud. Hopefully, it will soon merely be a chapter in the history of the
industry.

However, influencer fraud has not been wholly vanquished from brands
and marketers' minds yet. Possibly because of COVID concerns, there has
been less publicity about influencer fraud this year. However, the fall from
68% to 67% is minor, so many firms still have worries about the practice.

67%

45
Substantial Drop in Respondents Who Have
Experienced Influencer Fraud
While the number of firms worrying about fraud only fell by a small amount,
there was actually a significant drop in influencer fraud experienced over
the last year. A year ago, 68% of respondents claimed to have experienced
fraud. This year, only 38% claimed to have suffered.

of respondents claimed
38% to have experienced
fraud

This statistic is not really surprising. There has been much more publicity
regarding influencer fraud in recent years, and there are more robust fake
influencer tools now available. Maybe this is one reason for the increase in
the use of third-party influencer tools and platforms.

46
Brands are Finding it Easier to Find Appropriate
Influencers

56%
medium

22%
difficult
difficulty

22%
easy

We asked our respondents how they rated the difficulty of finding

appropriate influencers to work their industry. 22% stated that it was very
difficult (compared with 23% last year), and 56% suggested that they had
medium difficulty (62% last year). An increasing 22% of respondents found
finding appropriate influencers to be easy (14% last year).

The improvement in this statistic suggests that brands benefit from having
more platforms and other influencer discovery tools available than ever (as
well as influencer agencies for those wishing to outsource the entire
process). As we have seen above, many firms reuse influencers with whom
they have worked in the past. Many brands still struggle to find suitable
influencers, however, perhaps because they are unwilling to pay for the
relevant tools or platforms.

This statistic suggests that the influencer platforms still need to do a better
job at marketing their services. Many potential customers still require
assistance at discovering and then reaching out to potential influencers.

47
Mixed Views on Whether Brand Safety is a Concern
in Influencer Campaigns

43% believed brand safety could

occasionally be a concern
when running an influencer
marketing campaign
belief that brand safety is
24% always a concern

33% believe it is not really a

concern

Over the last couple of years, a headline-making issue has been influencers
acting in a way deemed inappropriate by the brands they represent. For
example, Logan Paul faced criticism over a tasteless video he shared, and
brands wondered whether they wanted to continue any connection with
him. YouTube has also had to do significant damage control over the types
of videos they allow and now have stricter rules for channels that target
children. TikTok has also suffered backlash worldwide over concerns with its
close ties with the Chinese government.

The key to a successful influencer marketing campaign is matching your

brand with influencers whose fans are similar to your preferred customers
and whose values match your own.

48
43% of our respondents believed brand safety could occasionally be a
concern when running an influencer marketing campaign. 33% (down from
last year's 34%) gave a more definitive belief that brand safety is always a
concern.

The remaining 24% (up considerably from last year's 16%) believe it is not
really a concern. Presumably, this last group has mastered the art of finding
appropriate influencers for their brands, and they have little concern about
a values mismatch.

49
Majority Believe Influencer Marketing Can be
Automated, Although Significant Numbers Disagree

56%
believe that automation

plays a vital role in

influencer marketing

44%
of respondents do

not think so

A contentious issue in influencer marketing is the amount of automation you

can successfully use. Some people believe you can automate virtually the

whole process from influencer selection through to influencer payment.

Others value the personal touch and think influencer marketing is a

hands-on process.

The majority of respondents (56%, up from 54%) believe that automation

plays a vital role in influencer marketing. Those who disagree with this

sentiment have a corresponding decrease in numbers, 44% now, compared

to 45% a year ago.

50
Audience Relationship Still Considered Most
Valuable When Partnering with Influencers, But
Content Production is Rapidly Catching Up

believed audience
45% relationship to be the
most valuable factor

34% user-generated content

as their primary objective

22% content distribution as a

primary focus

45% of the survey respondents believed audience relationship to be the

most valuable factor when considering collaborating with a particular
influencer. This is well down on last year's 53%. They see little value in
working with somebody who doesn't have a real influence on his/her
audience, or perhaps has an excellent relationship – but they are the wrong
audience for that brand.

The second most important factor is content production at 34% (noticeably

up from last year's 27%). This will be particularly so for the group who
considered user-generated content as their primary objective when running
an influencer campaign in our earlier question on influencer campaign
objectives.

The third popular reason favored by 22% of our respondents (up from 19%)
found for working with influencers is distribution. Although this seems lower
than the other options, it clearly connects with audience relationships –
influencers use their audience to distribute content relating to a brand.

51
 Two-Thirds of Respondents Prefer Their Influencer
Marketing to be Campaign-Based

influencer marketing

67%
relationships are
campaign-based

33% "always on"

We have already seen that brands prefer cultivating long-term relationships

with influencers. However, brands still think in terms of influencer marketing
campaigns. Once they complete one campaign, they plan, organize, and
schedule another one. Brands find that influencers they have worked for on
previous campaigns come across as more genuine. Despite this, 67% of
influencer marketing relationships are campaign-based, with only 33%
"always on."

This could represent more brands entering the industry, dipping their toes in
the water before making any long-term commitments to influencers.
Alternatively, they may run multiple campaigns, selecting a preferred
selection of influencers for each campaign, depending on the target
market. Time will tell whether the nature of brand-influencer relationships
changes in any significant way.

52
Vast Majority Consider Influencer Marketing to be a
Scalable Tactic in their Marketing Ecosystem

55%
believe that influencer marketing
is scalable tactic in their
marketing ecosystem
8% think that it is somewhat of a
scalable tactic

38% disagree with the sentiment

One of the most significant advantages of influencer marketing over social

activity using official company accounts is the ease with which you can
scale the activity. If you want to create a bigger campaign, all you need to
do is work with more influencers, particularly those with larger followings –
as long as they remain relevant to your niche.

While organic influencer marketing may be challenging to scale, because of

the time needed for influencer identification and wooing, there are now
nearly 1000 platforms and influencer-focused agencies that businesses can
use to help scale their efforts. Many of these operate globally and accept
clients from anywhere in the world.

55% of our respondents believe that influencer marketing is definitely a

scalable tactic in their marketing ecosystem, and a further 38% think that it is
somewhat of a scalable tactic. Only 8% disagree with the sentiment. The
vast majority recognize that influencer marketing is, to some extent, a
scalable tactic in their marketing ecosystem.

53
Engagement or Clicks is Still the Most Important
Criteria When Evaluating Influencers

39%

28%
24.5%

9%

engagement or clicks

fraud and fake follower analysis

influencer payments

conversion attribution

We have regularly seen that businesses have a variety of objectives when

they create influencer marketing campaigns. While the criteria by which our
survey respondents evaluate influencers do not precisely match their
differing goals, there is some clear correlation.

39% of our respondents rated engagement or clicks as their most important

criterion (down 2% compared to last year). The next two categories have
switched positions this year. 28% consider views/reach/impressions to be
the most important (25% last year). 24.5% have opted for content
type/category (26% last year). The remaining 9% of the respondents have
different ideas on this topic, opting for Other as the most important criterion
when evaluating influencers.

54
Although only 24.5% claim that content type/category is the most important

criterion, this percentage may be understated. Most brands start their

influencer search by narrowing down the possibilities to just influencers in a

particular niche – a beauty brand is unlikely to work with a home

improvement influencer, no matter how engaged he is with his followers.

Similarly, it would be unwise for an automotive dealer to opt for a famous

beauty influencer, even if she has millions of followers (unless they were

promoting a car targeting women).

55
About Half of Brands Work with Fewer Than 10
Influencers

52% 22% 13%

work with 0-10 work with 10-50 work with 50-100

influencers influencers influencers

8% 6%

work with 100-1,000 work with more than

influencers 1,000 influencers

We asked those of our respondents who engaged in influencer marketing

how many influencers they had worked with over the last year. 52% of them
stated that they had worked with 0-10 influencers. A further 22% had worked
with 10-50 influencers and 13% with 50-100 influencers.

Some brands, however, prefer influencer marketing on a large-scale, with

8% of those surveyed admitting to working with 100-1,000 influencers.
Incredibly, a further 6% had worked with more than 1,000 influencers. This is
double last year's percentage. These brands clearly see the value of
working with nano- or micro-influencers, using a large number of
influencers with small but dedicated audiences to spread the word.

56
 Monthly Campaigns Remain the Most Common

17%

23%

27%

34%

organize campaigns annually

run campaigns whenever they launch a new product.

run quarterly campaigns

run campaigns monthly

Although there is no set way to run an influencer campaign, monthly is still the
most common frequency for our respondents.

Last year saw a movement towards quarterly campaigns, but that trend has
reversed this year. Perhaps the uncertainties of COVID have led to firms
preferring short campaigns they can change quickly if necessary.

Of those who operate discrete influencer campaigns, 34% (up from 33%) prefer
to run them monthly. A further 27% (down from 30%) run quarterly campaigns,
and 17% (up from 15%) prefer to organize campaigns annually. These later
companies are probably brands that prefer the "always-on" approach to
influencer marketing. The remaining 23% (up from 20%) take a different
approach and only run campaigns whenever they launch a new product.

57
Finding Influencers Remains the Greatest Challenge
for Those Who Run Campaigns In-house
We asked those survey respondents who ran campaigns in-house what
they saw as the greatest challenges they faced. 34% found it most difficult
to find influencers to participate in their campaigns. This is down somewhat
from last year's 39%. This ties in with the similar concern they expressed to
the previous question about the difficulty in finding appropriate influencers.
Still, the reduction may indicate increased usage of platforms like Upfluence.

Other notable areas of concern included measuring ROI and campaign

results (23.5% - didn't appear last year), managing the contracts/deadlines of
the campaign (13% - well down on last year's 21%), processing payment to
influencers (10%), and bandwidth/time restraints (9.5% - down from 16%). A
further 9.5% of challenges can be grouped together as Other.

Challenges companies faced

34% 23.5% 13%

difficult to find measuring ROI managing the

influencers and campaign contracts/deadlines
results of the campaign

10% 9.5% 9.5%

processing payment bandwidth/time other

to influencers restraints

58
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