Instagram first choice of TikTok influencers, report

According to a topup survey post the ban of Tik Tok in India, 55% of TikTok influencers said they will now be active on Instagram followed by 20% on Youtube. Roposo seems to be favourite amongst the upcoming apps and 18% influencers have created a profile there already followed by 5% on Sharechat and 1% on Chingari. 

Conducted in May-Jun 2020, the survey was a part of the Influencer Marketing Report 2020 released by Influencer.in. 810 content creators from across the country and across social media platforms were surveyed online. 

Speaking about the report, Arushi Gupta, Head - Influencer.in, said, “The continued rise of Instagram/FB is not surprising and it's great to see that content creators from TikTok are also moving to Instagram, in spite of many Indian alternatives in the scene. 40% of content creators also leverage YouTube and in our view that’s a channel that is likely to grow even further in 2020.” 

Millennials from Metros dominate the influencer space 

The report revealed that most influencers come from top metro cities. The largest percentage of influencers come from Delhi and Mumbai, with 24.9% and 21.2% respectively, while Bangalore and Kolkata contribute to 7.9% and 6.3% respectively. This points to a huge potential in these cities for brands who are looking to leverage influencer marketing in these areas. In terms of age, the report uncovered that most respondents fall in the 18-30 age bracket, with 50% of respondents being between 18-24 years old. 

Fashion, lifestyle and travel remain all time favourites

Commenting on the report, Vikas Chawla, Co Founder of Influencer.in and the digital agency, Social Beat, said, “Lifestyle and fashion continue to be the most powerful categories when it comes to influencer marketing. Beauty and travel follow a close second. Other popular categories include food, parenting and entertainment. The study reports that consumer goods brands leverage influencer marketing the most extensively, with the category contributing to a whopping 70% of all industry categories.” 

In terms of sectors, e-commerce dominates with 50%, followed by mobile apps with around 42% and retail at about 38%. Healthcare, edutech, BFSI and B2B companies follow closely as well. 

Influencer marketing during COVID-19 

According to Suneil Chawla, Co-founder, Influencer.in, "The COVID-19 pandemic has affected most forms of marketing and influencer marketing is no exception. However, the pandemic has reiterated the necessity for a brand to build trust among its audience and what better way to do that than with influencer marketing? Through the survey, we also wanted to uncover how brands have changed their approach to influencer marketing during the pandemic and what challenges influencers themselves are facing during this period." 

The report shows that certain categories of influencer marketing like Fitness, Cooking, Mental Health and Gaming have seen significant growth during the pandemic and ensuing lockdown. However, the lockdown has also caused a few challenges to influencers. The study reports that the number of collaborations have reduced in the last few months, especially for travel and fashion influencers. Payment delays also continue to be a pressing concern during this period. 

Influencing as a full time career option: 

When asked if they want to make a career out in influencer marketing, 68.8% of influencers surveyed responded with a big Yes! This shows that several young people are confident about their ability to reach out to people, connect with their target audience and make a difference in their lives. 

Speaking about this finding, Gupta, said, “Over the last 7-8 months we have seen tremendous traction, both from brands and influencers. We are starting to see a lot more professionalism from the influencers with many of them focusing on the quality of content & conversation being created. 2020 is going to be a game changer for influencer marketing in India."