“If you can fake authenticity…you’ve got it made!” (Old…cynical…marketing adage)
As always, an insightful and amusing cartoon from the great Tom Fishburne. Well worth reading the whole thing at “influencer marketing and authenticity”.
Tom reports…
“I recently heard a marketing executive say at a conference that “to establish trust you have to appear authentic.” I found this turn of phrase interesting, and telling; she didn’t say “be” authentic — she said “appear” authentic.
Influencer marketing is a large and growing part of this widespread pursuit by brands to appear more authentic. This makes the fakery that is endemic to so much of influencer marketing even more striking.
A study by HypeAuditor found that 55% of Instagram influencers were involved in some sort of social media fraud and fakery in 2020 and that 45% of Instagram accounts are not even real people. Yet they predict the Instagram influencer market will grow by 15% this year.”
This current vogue for influencer marketing is an attempt by brands to appear more authentic in an era where big business lacks trust from many consumers.
It strikes me that this is an attempt to replicate traditional word-of-mouth and personal referral marketing.
However…there is perhaps a better way…what I call “Reputation Marketing”. For small and local businesses in particular, it makes no sense to follow the big brands into the murky swamp of influencer marketing. Instead, why not enlist your own genuine influencers…existing customers?
If you have positive reviews on sites such as Google My Business, these can easily be used to create the same impact as traditional word of mouth referrals. Plus…used properly…they can be a great form of brand building content.
So…consider how you can actively market your own good reputation. If you’re looking for ideas how best to do that…including how to get many more conversions from your marketing with a simple 10 minute strategy…get in touch with me through the Contact Page.