Short answer

When designing influencer marketing strategies, segment your approach by platform, clearly define your campaign objective (awareness vs. trial), and select influencers and content that align with these specific parameters.

Field: Innovation & Markets
Source: Journal of Marketing (2019)
Method: Mixed-methods: Empirical investigation using real customer response data supplemented with experimental data.
Evidence: Strong effect

The effectiveness of influencer marketing campaigns is highly dependent on the social media platform used, the advertiser's intent, and the specific characteristics of the influencer and their content. This innovation & markets research insight is drawn from a 2019 study published in Journal of Marketing. Using Mixed-methods: empirical investigation using real customer response data supplemented with experimental data., researchers explored how this design variable affects real-world outcomes. The key design takeaway: When designing influencer marketing strategies, segment your approach by platform, clearly define your campaign objective (awareness vs. trial), and select influencers and content that align with these specific parameters.

Study

Innovation & MarketsHigh ImpactStrong effect

Platform-Specific Strategies Amplify Influencer Marketing Engagement

Journal of Marketing · 2019

Key Findings

01High blogger expertise is more effective for awareness campaigns on blogs, but not on Facebook.
02Hedonic content is more effective for trial-increasing campaigns on Facebook.
03Campaign incentives increase engagement on blogs but decrease it on Facebook.

Application

Design takeaway

How to apply

Before launching an influencer campaign, map out your target audience's platform preferences, your primary campaign objective, and then select influencers whose expertise and content style resonate with both, ensuring the content is optimized for the chosen platform (e.g., visual for Instagram, discussion for blogs).

Project actions

01When planning a marketing campaign for a product, consider how different social media platforms might influence the effectiveness of influencer collaborations.
02Experiment with different types of content (e.g., informative vs. entertaining) and influencer profiles to see what resonates best with your target audience on specific platforms.

Method & Evidence

AimTo investigate the factors that drive online brand engagement in sponsored blogging campaigns across different social media platforms and advertising intents.

MethodMixed-methods: Empirical investigation using real customer response data supplemented with experimental data.

ProcedureThe study analyzed customer responses to sponsored blog posts, varying blogger characteristics, content, platform type (blogs vs. Facebook), and advertising intent (awareness vs. trial). An experiment was conducted to further validate these findings.

ContextOnline influencer marketing campaigns, specifically sponsored blogging.

Variables

IV["Platform type (blog vs. Facebook)","Blogger characteristics (expertise)","Blog post content (hedonic)","Campaign advertising intent (awareness vs. trial)","Campaign incentives"]

DV["Online engagement (posting comments, liking a brand)"]

CV["Specific brands and products used in campaigns","Demographics of the customer response data"]

Strengths & Limitations

Strengths

+Utilizes real-world customer response data for ecological validity.
+Complements empirical data with experimental validation for causal inference.

Limitations

The effectiveness of influencer marketing can also be influenced by factors not explicitly studied, such as the overall economic climate or competitor activities.

Reliability & validity

The study's use of both real-world data and experimental design enhances both its external validity (generalizability from real-world data) and internal validity (causal claims from the experiment).

Think critically

How might the evolving nature of social media algorithms and user behavior impact the long-term effectiveness of the strategies outlined in this study?

Design Principles

"Platform-specific influencer strategy optimization."

Understanding these platform-specific nuances allows businesses to tailor their influencer marketing strategies for maximum impact. This leads to more efficient allocation of marketing budgets and a stronger connection with target audiences, ultimately driving better brand engagement and achieving campaign objectives.

What This Means for Your Design

To make influencer marketing work, you need to think about which social media site you're using, what you want people to do (just know about the brand or buy something?), and who the influencer is.

How to use in your project

1.Reference this study when justifying the choice of marketing channels and influencer types for a design project, particularly if the project involves digital promotion or brand engagement.

Add to My Project

Quick Cite

Paragraph starter

Influencer marketing effectiveness is significantly modulated by platform choice and campaign objectives. Research indicates that factors like blogger expertise and content type yield different results on platforms such as blogs versus Facebook, and when the advertising intent is brand awareness versus driving product trial. Therefore, a nuanced, platform-specific strategy is essential for maximizing customer engagement.

Source

Journal of Marketing

Driving Brand Engagement Through Online Social Influencers: An Empirical Investigation of Sponsored Blogging Campaigns

journal · 2019

View source

Questions About This Research

What does the research say about platform-specific strategies amplify influencer marketing engagement?: When designing influencer marketing strategies, segment your approach by platform, clearly define your campaign objective (awareness vs. trial), and select influencers and content that align with these specific parameters. Evidence: Journal of Marketing (2019).
Why does "Platform-Specific Strategies Amplify Influencer Marketing Engagement" matter for design?: Understanding these platform-specific nuances allows businesses to tailor their influencer marketing strategies for maximum impact. This leads to more efficient allocation of marketing budgets and a stronger connection with target audiences, ultimately driving better brand engagement and achieving campaign objectives.
How can designers apply this research?: When designing influencer marketing strategies, segment your approach by platform, clearly define your campaign objective (awareness vs. trial), and select influencers and content that align with these specific parameters.
What were the main findings?: High blogger expertise is more effective for awareness campaigns on blogs, but not on Facebook.. Hedonic content is more effective for trial-increasing campaigns on Facebook.. Campaign incentives increase engagement on blogs but decrease it on Facebook.
What research method was used?: Mixed-methods: Empirical investigation using real customer response data supplemented with experimental data..
How strong is the evidence?: Evidence strength is rated Strong effect, based on a 2019 journal from Journal of Marketing.
What should I do differently in my next project?: Before launching an influencer campaign, map out your target audience's platform preferences, your primary campaign objective, and then select influencers whose expertise and content style resonate with both, ensuring the content is optimized for the chosen platform (e.g., visual for Instagram, discussion for blogs).
What are the limitations?: The study's findings may be specific to the platforms and campaign types investigated; generalizability to other social media or marketing channels may vary.