Representation and authenticity the key to successful influencer marketing
As influencer marketing continues to grow in Australia, brands need to understand the importance of representation, said Inca’s APAC VP of client strategy and growth, Arthur Altounian.
Following the launch of GroupM’s influencer marketing platform Inca, Mumbrella spoke with Altounian about the key issues Australian brands wishing to invest in influencer marketing need to consider.
Arthur Altounian | APAC vice president, client strategy & growth for Inca
Speaking on the importance of diversity in influencer marketing, Altounian said at its most simple, brands need to ensure that they are representing the people that they are trying to promote their product to: “We want to make sure that this product and the message resonates with everyone in Australia, all niche and all segments of audiences in Australia.”
Good representation also enables creators to bring their own diverse experiences and perspectives to a brand or product, creating resonance and engagement with different audience segments.
Altounian noted while brands may argue that they know their specific audience segment, marketers should not assume that their audience is not diverse. He added this in an issue that Inca will challenge clients on, advocating for a more inclusive approach.
“It’s very, very important topic for GroupM, but also for Inca in that every single media plan that we do offer, we will as much as possible include a diverse range of talent for better representation,” Altounian added.
Altounian also reinforced the significance of authenticity, stating that many consumers, particularly those in the younger generation, expect more from brands and won’t engaged with content that they deem as ‘too polished’ or ‘too fake’.
The issue of authenticity also lends itself to the amount of creative freedom that brands give the influencers they choose to work with.
“They have built over time, their audiences on the platforms, they are knowledgeable about their niche, the things that they’re talking about. And of course, they’ve built this relationship with their audiences, so they know what will work type of concept will generate engagement. So sometimes, a conversation that we have with clients is to give a bit of freedom to the influencers to come up with something. Give them a brief, but let that creativity spark,” said Altounian.
Brands should also ensure that they are not publishing generic content across all social channels, but remain mindful of how audiences engage with content on each platform.
“The people that are on those platforms, the way they engage with the content on those platforms is very different. You know, the way you engage on YouTube is very different than the way you engage with Tik Tok and so on,” said Altounian.
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