INFLUENCERS!!! Watch out for Emerging Marketing Trends in 2021

A couple of years ago, influencing was taken and perceived to be something like a call of passion or a hobby, but today it has grown out to be a huge blown-out profession, with many people carving a niche for themselves and working really hard to be out there. Influencing isn’t easy, as that means conveying a particular message to a wider audience in a way that makes them understand it as well as feel connected to the conveyor…. it’s undoubtedly tough as easy as it might seem.

To remain ahead in the game with so much of steep competition, your digital marketing strategy has to remain way ahead of the curve; because who knows and understands the nuances of the game, better than you. Every step you take will have an immense impact on your career choices, the brands which reach out to you, etc. The immense potential and growth of the influencer marketing industry can be gauged by the fact that this industry is on track to become a $15Billion Industry by 2022, which shows the immense potential of growth of this industry.

So let’s take a look at some of the trends you need to watch out for in 2021:

1. Increasing awareness on Diversity and Inclusion- As influencers, you carry a big responsibility of spreading awareness amongst people at large, to create sensitivity and harmony amongst one another, because influencing isn’t limited to brands but also using the social media power you yield for yielding productive results. In 2021, there shall be a growing consciousness to promote social inclusivity, as it has been noticed up till 2020, that there was an obvious lack of representation and diversity of black influencers. Many brands were held accountable for unfair play and mere tokenism antics; hence the call for the need for inclusivity grew stronger. In 2021, your aim should be to usher in changes, by inculcating inclusion and diversity into all aspects of your business; this shall also help you in creating and boosting the positive image of your personal brand.

2. Value-driven content, rules the roost- People these days aren’t much interested in looking and going through curated content, because seemingly, it doesn’t come off as something real, therefore influencers are now working towards presenting selves as real and authentic at all times, even sharing their flaws…. This undoubtedly helps people in connecting better; these actions shall also help in promoting self-respect, body positivity amongst various other steps. Influencers have started a sneak peek into their lives, so as to create more value-based content, with the help of live sessions, live Facebook chats, streaming sessions, etc., the main aim is to promote the natural and authentic side of their life, more over brands too are taking cognizance of such steps and are reaching out to such influencers who are real, compassionate and authentic.

(P.C.- Sprout Social)

3. Use of branded AR effects- An idea for Facebook which got germinated from the times of Snapchat, has now been developed into a full-fledged platform. Approximately 1 billion people across the globe have used this platform to creatively make their own personalized AR effect filters, and these are massively trending nowadays. AR effects, per se are great marketing tools for brands to market themselves amongst customers, as well as generate excitement amongst them to further explore their products or services; many cosmetic companies are offering virtual make-up applications for the consumer to check whether the said product matches them or not, many clothing companies are offering virtual trials before the customers make a purchase…undoubtedly, it is the in-thing these days and you should hop on the wagon!!!

(P.C.- Pocket-lint)

4. Live Content… makes life livelier!!!- Humans are social animals, and there’s no denying that, COVID did mellow us down due to obvious reasons, but who says that life can’t be enjoyed to the hilt. People were isolated from each other and were craving each others’ company and it is because of this that the use of Instagram Live had zoomed past than ever expected. Instagram Live’s usage had increased by over 70% just in a single month of April, as per a report by Business Insider. With the pandemic easing out a bit, but with lockdown still being implemented across many nations and people being hesitant to move out freely, as earlier, virtual live interactions will continue to hold the ground, so needless to say, Instagram Live will continue to reign over.

(P.C.- Buffer)

5. Exploring the Explore Tab- Social media is addictive; you kind of have to agree with us there!!! That’s what social media platforms are aiming to do, to keep the visitors hooked and engaged, so to further go ahead with that, Instagram has come up with the explore tab, where they bring to the fore unknown yet some great interesting and creative content….lo and behold, the number of everyday users is nearly 200 million, and they use it to productively engage themselves, moreover this has gained prevalence especially during the time of the pandemic since people were holed up and were isolated.

    Instagram has developed features wherein people can explore content on IGTV as per their interests, be it cooking, traveling, adventure, etc. This is an opportunity for you as an influencer to tap into those followers, who have the same interests as shared by you but aren’t following you at the moment. This shall have immense competition in the coming days, so you can use relevant hashtags, use of call-to-action buttons, posting at the appropriate time to capture the maximum attention of the audience, and many other tricks to stay ahead in the race.

(P.C.- Digital Information World)

6. Shopping experience on Instagram- With the pandemic adding fuel to the fire, more and more people have turned towards shopping online; it’s easier, cheaper, and quicker. Be it buying home décor items or clothing or anything easily sellable, it’s all available online. A huge chunk of Instagram users, use the app to find items on the app itself, hence Instagram has made it easier for the users to stay on the site and shop from there itself. With the pandemic still lingering on, people will continue shopping online; rather there might be a considerable jump, too. A small bag icon demarcates a shoppable post from the normal posts, wherein the interested users can hover over the product to know further about it. Nowadays, Instagram has also introduced a selling wherein brands can sell their products…so if you have your own brand or are associated with one, then there’s no time to waste….jump into the waters and wade ahead.

(P.C.- The Drum)

Influencing means establishing your imprint in the minds of the followers, and with the ever-evolving market, your social media strategy has to be on-point. Instagram is one such place where you as influencers can continuously interact and engage with your followers, but with the continuously evolving nature and dynamics of the platform, you have to up your ante to create an innovative, attractive, and engagement strategy to progress ahead and rule the roost.