What I found…
As previously stated, my goal for this research and project was to obtain a better understanding of how influencer marketing worked and what the genuine opinion and attitude toward influencer was marketing. After sifting through all the responses I received, I have concluded that influencer marketing is a love it or hate it type of advertising. The people who enjoy interacting and purchasing from these influencers are probably not going to be swayed by the negative opinions of those who do not enjoy it, and vice versa. The ones who were against this form of marketing had very strong opinions and reasons to back their distaste. When this type of marketing came about there was, a frenzy of excitement and everyone jumped on the bandwagon so quickly. I remember following all of these strangers and trusting their opinions on random products I never heard of before. In the beginning, it was such a new and refreshing way to shop; I had to put less thought into because someone else did all the thinking for me. However, as time progressed and more and more influencers were joining in the promotions, I grew tired of it. My feeds were full of strangers; I was no longer seeing posts of my friends and families and what they were doing with their lives. I was all of sudden knee-deep invested in strangers lives, and that made me uncomfortable. Most people’s concerns with influencer marketing are that :
1. It presents a false reality of what the influencer day to day life is
2. It is hard to gauge if the influencer is genuine in the products they promote, meaning believing if they use a product or are just promoting a product to get paid is difficult to discern
3. There are too many influencers out there promoting brands, and they are over posting and filling up peoples feeds.
Even people who love influencer marketing stressed those three points to be a concern for them, as well as the ones who are anti-influencer. The problem I see now after conducting this research is how can we find a suitable way to sift through all of the noise of influencer marketing and make it a reputable form of advertising for brands that is enjoyable for most if not all audiences.
The tools I have used thus far for my research are Instagram Polls and Survey Monkey which I have posted on my Facebook page and sent to individuals. I believe that by researching social media outlets is the best way to get the results I need, while also grasping a better understanding of how my audience interacts online. Since my problem is based around social media interaction, I feel the best way to find the ultimate solution is to use the same medium the influencers/bloggers use to promote their brand and platforms. I think the best way to engage my audience and get a feel on the public opinion on influencer/ blogger marketing on social media is to engage them in the way influencers/ bloggers do. This process reminds me of the quote by Quinn Loftis “If you can’t beat them, join them.” I’m not trying to say I'm trying to beat out the influencers of this world, but I feel like the best way to understand their form of marketing and business is to immerse myself in their ways.