2020 is just around the corner, and influencer marketing is more alive than ever: according to the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA), 65% of multinational brands will increase their spending on influencer marketing in the coming months.
In recent years, we have seen influencer marketing spread to new sectors, such as B2B marketing. To start the year off on the right foot, let's take a look at the trends that will shape the future of this sector in 2020.
Artificial intelligence. Machine learning and artificial intelligencewill help us identify the best influencers for our brand, choose the best topics, formats, and content, and optimize the performance of our campaigns. By bringing together different data sources and automating analysis, AI will enable us to maintain our ground in an increasingly competitive environment.
The democratization of influence. Theacquisition of B2B products is a team effort, involving multiple departments and individuals within the company. Each of them draws on different centers of influence to discover, consume, and interact with information. Therefore, the trend in influencer marketing for 2020 will be to leverage all possible points of contact and influence.
Influencers as media outlets. Influencersare teaming up to create their own media outlets and networks, which compete directly with traditional digital media. These new media outlets can take many different forms, from podcast networks to bloggers and YouTubers.
We are moving towards video and podcasting. According toHubspot, in 2019, 87% of marketers used video at some point in their marketing strategy, so influencers should pay attention to these new trends. And why not do the same with audio? Podcasting is taking off with great force in the Hispanic community, while it is already well established in the Anglo-Saxon world, so it is an opportunity to position yourself as an influencer.
Integration with other marketing technology solutions.Influencer marketing identification, engagement, and measurement technologywill be integrated with other solutions via the cloud. As B2B brands develop their campaigns and strategies, it will become increasingly necessary to integrate them to create a unified narrative across all brand channels.
The adoption of B2B consumption formats and strategies.B2B software usersexpect experiences similar to those ofconsumers, and these expectations extend to influencer marketing. For example, we are seeing video content on LinkedIn become increasingly popular, with content similar to what we might find on YouTube. According to Alessandro Bogliari inCEO World.
The development of the relationship between brands and influencers. Brandsare paying more attention to user and employee experiences, and this trend will extend to influencer marketing. Instead of treating influencers transactionally, brands will need to pay more attention to the goals, preferences, and skills of each particular influencer in order to develop collaborations that grow both parties. The result will be more authentic campaigns and better results for everyone.
