The metric every brand and influencer now cares about

New Delhi: Influencers now drive 36% of all user interactions on social media globally, according to The Social Influencers Report, India Edition 2025 by Comscore.

The report, based on April 2025 data, covers content creators across Facebook, Instagram, X, TikTok, and YouTube. It defines influencers as professional accounts that regularly drive likes, comments, shares, reposts, and views.

As social media becomes more fragmented across celebrities, politicians, and virtual influencers, everyone is trying new engagement techniques to stay relevant.

This, in turn, is fuelling online engagement across entertainment, politics, and shopping. 

In the political spectrum, Prime Minister Narendra Modi topped engagement with 5.4 million actions on Facebook and Instagram, and 10.8 million on X, according to the report.

Akhilesh Yadav, Rahul Gandhi, and Asaduddin Owaisi also ranked high. Among sportspersons, cricketers Hardik Pandya (42.5 million) and KL Rahul (25.2 million) led on Instagram.

Actor Siddharth Nigam drew 3.3 million actions on Facebook, while Rashmika Mandanna, who has over 46 million followers on Instagram, logged 21.3 million.

YouTube, along with its Shorts, saw high traction for beauty creator Parul Garg.

Top news personalities like Shiv Aroor and Rahul Shivshankar also recorded strong numbers.

The volume of video views remains a key measure of influencer performance. Tahir Jasus led with 444.1 million views on YouTube, followed by Parul Garg with 247 million, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi recorded 144.4 million.

The report shows that emotional messaging and strong visuals play a big role in boosting engagement, especially on Facebook.

This also holds true since political leaders often use themes like patriotism, urgency, or sentimentality in their posts. These elements help their content get more reactions and shares.

Platform-specific engagement patterns remain key to content performance. 

On Facebook, late morning and late afternoon posts (especially Monday through Wednesday) generate the highest interactions.

Instagram follows a similar pattern, with strong engagement from 10–11 a.m. and again between 4–7 p.m. across most weekdays.

X sees steady activity between 8–9 a.m. through the week and late-night surges on Mondays and Tuesdays. However, Fridays and Saturdays record the lowest levels of activity across all platforms.

Engagement over follower count

The report challenges the assumption that follower count is a reliable proxy for influence. 

Many influencers with large audiences experience declining or inconsistent interaction. 

Instead, actual engagement, measured by likes, shares, comments, and views, remains the most telling indicator of influence.

The sentiment of user reactions also plays a role. Whether audiences respond positively, negatively or neutrally provides context on how content resonates and whether it strengthens or weakens an influencer’s brand.

AI influencers

A notable development in the influencer space is the emergence of AI-driven personalities. Virtual influencers like Lil Miquela, Aitana López, and Lu do Magalu are building followings through carefully curated personas. 

These digital characters interact with audiences, collaborate with brands, and produce content across global markets, without the limitations of geography or human behaviour.

AI influencers offer greater control over narrative, consistency in branding, and freedom to experiment with storytelling formats that would be impractical for traditional creators. 

They have already been integrated into campaigns for fashion, e-commerce, and fitness, among others.

Brand partnerships

The report also examines how brands build effective partnerships with influencers.

Marketers now look for audience interests to find suitable creators whose followers are more likely to engage with the specific product.

For instance, Kendall Jenner’s 88x higher-than-average affinity with Calvin Klein audiences led to over 2.3 million actions on a single sponsored post. 

In contrast, a more unexpected campaign, Michael Cera’s humorous tie-in with skincare brand CeraVe, garnered over 9.6 million video views by leveraging surprise and creativity.

One of the major takeaways from this report is that single-platform strategies are outdated.

The most effective campaigns now span multiple touchpoints, from TikTok and Instagram to YouTube and X, where users often interact with content within the same hour.

What works best in influencer marketing

The report says follower counts don’t always show true influence. Many creators with large followings don’t get much engagement. What really matters is how often people like, comment, share, or view their content.

Influencer marketing is also no longer a separate add-on. It’s becoming part of a brand’s full media plan, across social media, digital ads, and streaming platforms. Influencers are now seen as media players who can shape what people talk about online.

Being active on just one platform isn’t enough. The report highlights that users often switch between Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube in the same hour. So, creators who post across multiple platforms reach more people. Marketers who only focus on one platform may miss key voices and trends.