As people become more wary of traditional advertising, brands and agencies increasingly turn to influencer marketing programs to connect with their target audiences in authentic and meaningful ways.
As a result, 75 percent of marketers today use influencer marketing in some capacity, with nearly 60 percent planning on increasing their influencer marketing budgets in the next 12 months.
This surge in popularity has spawned hundreds of technology-backed influencer marketing platforms and providers that are touting their abilities to help brands navigate this nascent sector of the industry.
But not everyone is welcoming them with open arms. According to The Wall Street Journal, there is concern that these emerging companies focus too heavily on platform automation and not heavily enough on what makes influencer marketing successful in the first place–authentic relationships between real people. Marketers that are dubious of these newcomers worry that over-automation will result in awkward brand mentions or poor audience targeting. However, automation isn?t all bad. Working with the right mix of platforms and providers can actually make influencer marketing programs more efficient, automating the most time-consuming aspects of influencer marketing so that marketers can dedicate their time to developing program strategy and messaging.
But with all of the influencer marketing providers on the market, how can you determine which one is best for your brand?s specific goals&...