Influencer marketing trends can change in the blink of an eye, which is why it’s so important for brands to have a deep understanding of their goals and foster solid content creator relationships. As we learned in our digital event on creator partnerships, brands may have their KPIs, but influencers should be allotted the agency to create based on their own expertise and knowledge of their audiences. This comes through in all of the expert-predicted influencer marketing trends to watch, which we outline below.
Trend: GRWM (Get Ready With Me) Content
If the sheer number of experts that pointed to this trend is any indication, you can expect to see plenty of GRWM content on your feed(s) this year. “The Get Ready With Me (or, more commonly, #GRWM) trend is sweeping the internet and shows no sign of slowing down as it dominates fashion, beauty, and lifestyle influencer content across platforms,” says Jase Lucas, director of influencer relations at CLD PR. “Featuring a creator’s outfit, makeup, or routine as they prepare for an event, #GRWM content is useful for brands to showcase their products being used by a real person, leaving a stronger impression on the audience than an unboxing or static image. Started on YouTube and trending now on short-form video platforms like TikTok and Instagram Reels, #GRWM posts generally garner high levels of engagement for creators and conversion to new leads/sales for brands.”
Vanessa Chen
Lexi Pulling, founder of Pull PR, provides the perfect example of the power GRWM content holds. “Alix Earle recently amassed a massive TikTok and Instagram following through her GRWM content, with this form of content enabling her to create a close rapport with her viewers. Alix talks to her followers like she's speaking with her best friends while applying her makeup and picking out outfits for the day or night, providing not only a great way to engage with her audience in an relatable way but also creating opportunities for herself to organically integrate branded content. GRWM content is a win-win for brands, creators, and their audiences!”
Alix Earle
Trend: Commodifying creators
“I believe the top influencer trend for this year will be creators commodifying themselves and putting a larger emphasis on integrating products and brands into their content,” says Juliana Martins, founder and CEO of Eleven11 Media Relations. “The media landscape in regard to online articles, broadcast integrations, and print magazines is prioritizing e-commerce and product recommendations for their readers and viewers so I think for influencers to be parallel to what’s trending in the public relations world, they’ll lean into pushing e-commerce as well. There are more and more companies that are offering influencers kickbacks when they sell something such as Like to Know It, Amazon Store Front, and various affiliate programs, their goals will align with making sales as well.
She continues, “A broad example of this prediction would be the “Get Ready With Me” trend. This trend comes across authentic as it’s not simply an ad-like video telling people to purchase a product, but instead, the focus is on the storytelling, makeup/hair technique, and viewers subconsciously wanting to emulate the look the influencer is getting by the end of the video by purchasing the products used.”
Trend: Long-term relationships
“Fostering a long-term relationship between a brand and an influencer helps build trust and credibility, which helps to drive more targeted and engaged audiences to the brand,” says Ashley Rosenberger, founder of Rose PR. “Additionally, this type of relationship provides brands with the opportunity to learn more about their audience’s needs through qualitative audience insights from creators, and thus the chance to tailor their campaigns and products accordingly. As simple as this sounds, this helps improve overall brand awareness and engagement.”
Trend: Advocacy for the chronically ill
“A handful of years ago, we would scroll our Instagram feed and see hundreds of perfectly staged photos showcasing the ‘highlight reel’ of an influencer’s life. Thankfully, this era of perfectionism has shifted and made way for a new crop of influencers that not only showcase their highlights, but also showcase the highs and lows of living with disabilities, chronic health conditions and intense illness,” says Ali Moresco, founder of Moresco PR. “When I began sharing my own journey with autoimmune disease seven years ago, it was considered abnormal. In 2023, I am one of many.”
Ali Moresco
She continues, “While I’m not sure that we can call this a ‘trend,’ it’s certainly sweeping our newsfeeds in a positive way. Health influencers like Christina Costa, Gigi Robinson and Jenneh Rishe are encouraging others living with conditions to feel empowered in their health journeys, advocate to their doctors and use their voices to get involved with rallying around political legislation that advances research for their conditions. Health influencers are taking the industry of ‘influencing’ to new depths by not only sharing products they love- but rallying thousands of fellow patients to change laws, receive accurate diagnoses, form nonprofits and normalize tackling issue that arise after a diagnosis like unsolicited advice or how to handle unsupportive friends. While the trends around how we share this content may change, my hope is that the community building and advocacy around chronically ill influencers is here to stay.”
Trend: SMS and CreatorCart Tools
“To ensure success in influencer marketing, we are observing several effective strategies adopted by brands and clients,” says Ryan Mulcock, founder and CEO of OUTFIT. “One such practice is building SMS subscriber lists and utilizing CreatorCart tools to directly engage with audiences. In today's digital landscape, where the costs of influencers and overall marketing expenses are on the rise, brands and agencies are under pressure to demonstrate a strong return on investment (ROI) for their influencer marketing efforts. Moreover, with the limitations imposed on retargeting, tracking firm ROI figures has become more critical than ever before. Therefore, it is crucial for both brands and agencies representing them to focus on tracking ROI metrics.”
He adds, “CreatorCart has achieved remarkable success in boosting conversion rates for brands, resulting in increased sales and driving the growth of direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands. In addition, it has been instrumental in enhancing event RSVPs, gathering consumer feedback, and supporting various other applications for brands big and small.”
Trend: Creator connections
"My top influencer marketing trend is having influencers interact in campaigns,” says Dan Chizzoniti, VP of influencer marketing at Brilliant PR & Marketing. “Instead of each influencer creating individual content, they are creating content together or interacting in some way to create a more dynamic story arc.”
Neutrogena's Hydro House
Expect to see more creators connecting with their audiences, too. “The trend we are seeing the most is the incredible demand around fans connecting directly with their favorite creators,” says Ryan Berger, founder of Berger Shop and founding partner of Julius with HYPR.
Trend: De-influencing
“With the rise of ‘de-influencing,’ conversations and audiences holding talent accountable for the authenticity of their paid partnerships, we are noticing a shift in the social space from curiosity to demand for transparency,” says Sarah Hickam, a director at Shine Talent Group. “Audiences want to see talent in their everyday lives, the beautiful and the chaotic. They also want to see the backend of how brands work, we’re seeing CEOs with a TikTok presence thriving. In addition, creators are also looking for this same level of transparency from the social platforms they use – TikTok has established a 'for the creator' reputation that has served them well and set them apart from other platforms.”
Logan Hill
Trend: Mighty micro creators
“2023 is all about engaging with the micro creator!” says Ali Grant, founder of Be Social. “We are seeing more and more brands focused on spending dollars with micro creators because of the high quality content they produce and the loyal community they have built.”
Diana-May
