What the Taylor Swift ticketing backlash teaches us about influencer gifting
Gifting event tickets to influencers can be an effective way to generate hype for a brand - if done correctly. Tim Rasbash, founder of influencer gifting specialists Ernie, explores how recent controversy over Taylor Swift’s UK Eras Tour tickets reveals a crucial misstep that many brands make.
Brands have been inviting influencers to events to extend their reach and build credibility for as long as influencers have existed, however, a recent controversy involving Taylor Swift’s UK leg of the Eras Tour shines a glaring spotlight on the critical importance of influencer relevancy in these campaigns.
Last week a handful of influencers, many of whom admitted they weren’t fans of Swift, were still gifted highly coveted tickets to her tour – a tour that saw massive demand from the public, many of whom were die-hard Swifties unable to secure a seat.
When these influencers, such as Made in Chelsea star Louise Thompson, who has two million followers on Instagram, and Tallulah-Mai Metcalfe, who has more than five million followers on TikTok, took to social media to document their glamorous (and free) nights out, fans were quick to hit back, questioning why individuals who weren’t passionate about the music were there in the first place. The incident sparked outrage and highlighted a significant flaw in the influencer selection process: Irrelevancy.
Credit: louise.thompson + Instagram
This backlash serves as a reminder that influencer marketing isn’t just about reach; it’s about resonance. Choosing influencers solely based on their follower count or their presence on a database can lead to serious misalignment between the brand and its audience, causing frustration and backlash. Worse still, it can undermine the credibility and authenticity that brands work so hard to build.
The influencer selection lazy trap
Sourcing relevancy takes time. However, many brands and agencies still fall into the trap of lazy influencer selection, relying on well-worn black books of creators or expansive influencer databases. While these resources can be helpful starting points, they’re often blunt instruments when it comes to crafting a hyper-relevant campaign. Failing to dig deeper into whether an influencer’s values, passions, and audience truly align with the brand can not only inhibit results but can also backfire spectacularly, as we saw with the gifted Eras Tour tickets.
Influencers are trusted voices for their audiences, and when they promote something they’re not genuinely connected to, audiences can smell the inauthenticity from a mile away. Even worse, in cases like the Eras Tour, they can feel slighted and lash out publicly. It’s an industry lesson: Relevancy isn’t a ‘nice to have’ – it’s an absolute must.
Credit: tallulahmetcalfe_ + Instagram
Take, for example, a recent campaign we executed for H&M. We were tasked with gifting tickets to a highly anticipated concert by British musician Fred Again. Instead of simply selecting influencers with broad reach, using social listening we carefully curated a list of creators who were not only hyper-relevant to H&M’s brand but were also passionate fans of Fred Again. The result? 55 posts shared by the 10 influencer guests each of which gushed with love for H&M and fandom for Fred Again.
The key takeaway for brands: Relevancy as a strategic imperative
For brands, the lesson from both this Taylor Swift ticketing backlash and successful campaigns like our Fred Again activation is clear: influencer relevancy is not optional. It’s critical to ensuring that your message lands with the right audience in a way that feels authentic and credible.
The response to this Taylor Swift ticket gifting is a stark reminder that when influencer marketing misses the mark on relevancy, the fallout can be swift and unforgiving. To avoid their own ‘Errors Tour’ with influencers, brands must shift their focus from surface-level metrics like follower count to deeper insights around an influencer’s true connection with your brand, the product, and the cultural moments you’re trying to tap into.
Tim Rasbash
Tim Rasbash is the founder of influencer gifting specialists, Ernie. He can be reached at tim@helloernie.com.au.
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I can’t be the only one wondering if 55 social posts across 10 ‘influencers’ that mention an artists and then a clothing brand would move the needle at all? By the time you add up everyone’s time, is this even worthwhile?
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