Can influencers actually harm your brand?

Leveraging social media and influencers in digital campaigns is a strategy that has taken the marketing world by storm.

More than one in four marketers now collaborate with social media personalities to endorse products and connect with broader audiences, and data also reveals that 61% of consumers trust the product recommendations they get from influencers, explaining the rapid growth of this marketing trend. When it comes to promoting products, people listen to people, and this is why a potential customer is more likely to make a purchase when it’s recommended by someone they trust rather than when it's just presented to them through ads. 

The value of the global influencer marketing industry was at a whopping 21.1 billion US dollars last year, having more than tripled since 2019, and it’s showing no signs of slowing down. But as this marketing approach is still relatively new, there are a few considerations that brands should take into account before they decide to use an influencer for their marketing campaign.

So are influencers good or bad for your brand? Have a read through some of the pros and cons of how using influencers might affect your brand before launching this initiative for your next social media campaign.

What’s in this article:

• What is influencer marketing?
• What are the benefits of influencer marketing?
• What are the risks of using influencers?
• Examples of good and bad influencer marketing

What is influencer marketing?

Influencer marketing involves partnering with relevant social media influencers who in return promote the brand to their followers through curated social media posts and videos.

Influencer marketing can be carried out through paid partnerships or PR packages. Partnerships can be more expensive, as they involve direct payment. However, this method provides greater control over the messaging and content that the influencer will post. 

PR packages involve sending influencers free products or samples in the hope that they will share their experiences with their audience. This method is more cost-effective but does not come with any guarantees of coverage.

Influencers and brands can work together to get products or services in front of potential buyers in an authentic way, compared to advertising which often feels impersonal. Influencers have built strong relationships with their followers who trust their recommendations, making their endorsements feel more genuine and boosting the brand’s credibility. 

While many people think of celebrities and mega social media stars when talking about influencers, there are ways to tap into this growing trend without having to spend a fortune. Even small brands can collaborate with influencers by utilising the power of nano and micro influencers who have a smaller but highly engaged and loyal following. 

What are the benefits of influencer marketing?

Starting off with the positives, it is obvious that influencers are hugely valuable in the social media industry because of their large number of loyal followers. Those followers build up a community of people with similar interests and values, making it easy for a brand to reach a specific target audience they have in mind.

It all comes down to finding the right influencer who will then lead you to a large group of people who could all be your potential customers. For example, if your product appeals to sports enthusiasts you could have different fitness and health influencers as your ambassadors for the brand or campaign, who vouch for your product or service. Or if you’re operating in the fashion industry, try to find influencers who post content about their outfits and style finds. 

By collaborating with content creators whose followers align with your key audiences, you can ensure your marketing efforts are more targeted and effective. Their followers are already interested in similar products or topics, so they’re more likely to make a purchase.

Because influencer content is often more natural and relatable, using this marketing strategy can achieve higher engagement rates compared to traditional advertising. Their content resonates with their audience's lifestyles and they have the ability to weave product promotions seamlessly into their daily social media posts. Influencer content is also more engaging because followers can actively interact with influencers through comments, direct messages, polls, Q&A sessions and stories. 

You often don’t need to have a huge budget when you want to include influencers in your campaign – instead of celebrities, you can also opt for micro or nano influencers who are in some cases believed to be even more effective, especially when it comes to creating engagement. They have a smaller but still decent following - 1,000 to 10,000 followers for nano and 10,000 to 100,000 followers for micro influencers. Their following is made up of people who are genuinely invested and engage actively with their posts. They also have more credibility because they have a closer bond with their fan base.

You can also save some time by working with influencers, as they create most of the content themselves. Although the aims of the campaign, values of the company and general nature of the posts should be agreed upon, it’s good to give the influencers some freedom because they can come up with fantastic and creative ideas, or even create trends that have the potential to viral. If you’re using a selection of different influencers, you will be collating a wide variety of content that you maybe wouldn’t have come up with yourself.

What are the risks of using influencers?

Although using influencers may have many positive effects, there are a few risks that you may come across and that you should keep an eye on if you’re planning to include influencers in your next social media campaign. 

As stated before, choosing the right influencer to represent your brand is crucial if you want the partnership to be successful. If they don’t have much knowledge about your company’s line of business or products, then your brand’s reputation can be severely damaged and negative backlash can be difficult to recover from.  

Another risk is inconsistent messaging. If an influencer fails to deliver your brand’s message accurately throughout the marketing campaign, it can create confusion among consumers. 

It’s important for brands to give a thorough brief to the people they’re partnering with and carry out a lot of research to find influencers who genuinely resonate with the brand and its values, otherwise the endorsements can come across as insincere. 

Watch out for overexposure - it is in fact possible to have too much of a good thing, so when followers see the same endorsements too frequently, they may become desensitised or annoyed. Make sure that the product promotion posts are spaced out and consider partnering with a mix of influencers to avoid relying on one single content creator.

Always remember - if you partner up with an influencer, this person can always be associated with your brand, even after you stop working with them. So if influencers get involved in any kind of public scandal (which in today’s ‘cancel culture’ can happen quite often), then this can also have a direct impact on the sales and reputation of your brand and put you into a crisis situation.

While influencer scandals can be difficult to prevent entirely, there are ways brands can mitigate risks. It’s important to carry out thorough research before partnering with an influencer - check their previous content for potentially controversial content, look if there’s any negative press about them and make sure to monitor their online activity to detect potential issues early. 

Examples of good and bad influencer marketing

Influencer scandals

Marnie Simpson and Skinny Caffe
Geordie Shore star Marnie Simpson partnered up with the Skinny Caffe brand to promote weight loss capsules. Her sponsored post got a lot of backlash because it was posted just hours before news broke that she was pregnant. Although this information was not disclosed to the brand, this scandal damaged both Simpson and the brand. 

Molly-Mae Hague and PrettyLittleThing
Famous influencer and Love Island star Molly-Mae Hague faced backlash for comments she made in an interview about poverty and hard work, which were perceived as tone-deaf. This led to negative publicity and criticism for PrettyLittleThing, the brand she worked closely with. This came after it was revealed that the brand was paying factory workers below minimum wage.

Naomi Campbell and Adidas
Adidas partnered up with world-famous supermodel Naomi Campbell to promote a pair of Adidas shoes on her Instagram account. When Campbell published the post of herself with the shoes, she copy-pasted the instructions for the post, captioning it with “Could you put something like: Thanks to my friend @gary.aspden and all at adidas – loving these adidas 350 SPZL from adidas Spezial range.” The copy-pasted caption came across as an insincere attempt to advertise. 

Good examples of influencer and brand collaborations

Zoella and Superdrug
Health and beauty retailer Superdrug collaborated with Youtuber and influencer Zoella (Zoë Sugg) on a new product range and it turned out to be a hugely successful campaign, leading to increased sales and significant media coverage. Zoella's influence helped drive traffic and boost brand visibility for Superdrug’s products.

Gymshark and fitness influencers
Gymshark is a brand that has nailed its influencer marketing strategy. Gymshark partners with fitness enthusiasts, athletes and micro-influencers who have a real passion for fitness and the brand. The influencers they choose genuinely use their workout clothes and equipment, and by featuring influencers with varying backgrounds and fitness journeys, the brand appeals to a wider demographic. 

Waitrose and Madeleine Shaw
Madeleine Shaw, a health and wellness influencer, collaborated with Waitrose to promote healthy recipes using Waitrose products. This partnership effectively highlighted Waitrose’s range of healthy products, enhancing brand association with wellness and increasing consumer engagement.

MuscleFood and Levi Roots
We helped our client MuscleFood create buzz around their collaboration with Dragon's Den contestant Levi Roots. MuscleFood and Levi partnered up to create a range of healthy Caribbean ready meals. The bold-flavoured meals were a massive hit among customers and are still a core part of MuscleFood’s offering. 

Key takeaways

• Influencer marketing has grown rapidly, with 25% of marketers using influencer partnerships to boost reach and brand awareness. 
• People listen to people - 61% of consumers trust the product recommendations they get from influencers.
• Influencer marketing offers a host of benefits such as enhanced brand visibility, targeted audience reach, and authentic engagement - but it’s not without its risks. 
• If you partner up with an influencer then this person can always be associated with your brand, even after you stop working with them. If influencers get involved in any public scandals, then this can also have a direct impact on the sales and reputation of your brand.
• The success of influencer collaborations depends on selecting the right partners, ensuring consistent and accurate messaging, and maintaining a balance in promotional content. Brands must carry out thorough research and provide clear guidelines to influencers to mitigate potential pitfalls.

If you wish to learn more about collaborating with influencers to boost your brand awareness, get in touch with us for a no-obligation chat. 

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