• by Oliver Yonchev , June 23, 2019

Global influencer spend will be between $5 to $10 billion by 2020, but trust is today’s most pervasive influencer marketing issue. Consumer trust in what influencers have to say sits at just 4% according to UM, and advertising has a trust level of 37%, behind banking, energy, and telecommunications, according to Edelman’s trust barometer.

In addition, the average human being has an attention span of eight seconds , according to one study — a sharp decrease from the average attention span of 12 seconds in 2000, when the mobile revolution began.

It’s more important than ever to be thoughtful and strategic when embarking upon influencer marketing.

Here are my four tips for cutting through the noise and developing influencer marketing opportunities that matter:

Partner with honest and authentic influencers. CEO influencers who truly resonate with consumers are transparent and authentic. A social poll conducted by our agency revealed that 64% of users online responded positively to Elon Musk as opposed to 7% to Mark Zuckerberg.

Work with social media influencers who actually like and buy your brand while consistently representing your brand values and identity. We live in the age of authentic communication, and brands that don’t deliver a genuine influencer experience risk facing a backlash.

Prioritize depth when developing social stories. Social stories with depth can be created by: tapping into cultural moments in areas such as sports, entertainment, and politics; harnessing consumer sentiments; creating content meant for social-first distribution, and truly examining and leveraging how people act, behave, and consume.

Look beyond vanity metrics. Bigger spend on influencers doesn’t necessarily equal bigger returns. Nano and microinfluencers can often drive more revenue for brands than influencers with followings of one million.

A recent ROI-focused microinfluencer program proved no correlation between audience size and ROI — but a correlation between high engagement and revenue generated.

When receiving an influencer partnership rate proposal, look at what you’re buying: an endorsement, the influencer’s word, her audience, and her creative content. When evaluating this price, determine her actual audience reach and true engagement rate, and review the industry market rates/ supply & demand, as well as the components of what you’re asking her to create.

Protect against influencer fraud. There are big questions being asked of the influencer industry, with “influencer fraud” a hot topic these days.

Sadly, everything in the social world can be faked, like follows, likes, comments, and shares. Which means it often is, and brands are being exploited. An overarching issue in marketing has been the use of bot farms by influencers, ultimately costing brands and marketers millions from their budgets. Following an audit of 10,000 influencers that brands and agencies frequently work with, the influencer fraud AI detection tool, Like-Wise, identified that 25% of influencers have paid for fake followers from illegal bot farms.

Capitalize on software solutions and tools to protect your brand from influencer manipulation while also setting up a solid talent vetting system.

Remember these four tips to win at influencer marketing.