As many as 40% Polish Internet users take into account the opinion of Influencers, when choosing products and services. With respect to the influence on consumers, celebrities can only match influencers in one product category – luxury goods. Fashion and Beauty are product categories where the influence of Influencers is the greatest – 55% of indications. 63% of Polish Internet users claim that Influencers should tag the advertised products as advertisements. Such data can be found in the latest report of the Hash.Fm by Streetcom Agency, entitled: „The alchemy of trust, i.e. what kind of Influencer marketing sells”, which has just been published. 

Influencer marketing and the alchemy of trust

Due to its exceptional effectiveness, Influencer marketing has been gaining popularity for years. Today, no one wonders anymore if, but rather how to cooperate with influencers. Expenditures on IM are growing year on year and, according to forecasts from the Benchmark Influencer Marketing Hub report, they will increase by a further 19 % in 2022. The HASH.FM by Streetcom agency decided to find out what makes Influencer Marketing in Poland one of the most effective tools in the marketing mix. 

The role of influencers in the consumer decision-making process is significant 

As many as 40% Polish Internet users take into account the opinion of Influencers, when choosing products and services. Influencers are MORE IMPORTANT in the decision-making process than celebrities and friends. In terms of importance, higher than the opinions of Influencers are only the recommendations from family members and close friends: 

Which product categories can be influenced by influencers to the greatest extent? 

The main product categories where the influence of influencers on purchasing decisions is greatest are related to fashion (clothing, accessories and footwear), which received – close to 1/3 of indications, and beauty (cosmetics, perfumes) – close to 1/3 of indications. 

In turn, as many as 40% of Polish Internet users, during the pandemic, developed new habits by observing influencer content in the media. These most frequently concerned cooking (3/4 of indications) and sports training (more than 50% of indications). 

In which industries are Polish internet users most inspired by influencers’ activities? 

The industries in which Polish internet users are most inspired by the activities of influencers are travel, technology, sport and content related to the industry in which they work. 

To sum up, the industries where investment in Influencer Marketing can be most profitable are FMCG, fashion and technology. 

Celebrities only match influencers in one product category: LUXURY GOODS. When asked whose recommendations you take into account when buying selected products – for luxury goods: there were 22% of indications for Influencers and 20% for celebrities. 

A particular role within the influencer group is played by influencers who are perceived by consumers as specialists in a given field (e.g. dieticians, trainers, doctors, lawyers, engineers). 

The study – the alchemy of trust 

According to the survey ”The alchemy of trust, or what kind of Influencer Marketing sells” conducted by the Hash.FM by Streetcom Agency, the content from this type of influencer for consumers is more credible and influences their purchasing decisions more strongly. The greatest advantage of specialists over regular influencers can be seen in the following industries: supplements (18% vs. 36% of indications) and electronics (19% vs. 35%).   

The tagging of influencer posts as advertising is a practice that influences the perception of the entire Influencer Marketing industry as one that observes “fair play” rules. 

What determines the credibility of influencers?

63% of Polish internet users believe that they should tag promoted products as advertisements. For the remaining nearly 40%, this does not matter. At the same time, respondents who are asked what influences trust in a given influencer rarely mention the tagging of posts as an important factor (10% of indications). It can be concluded that the tagging of posts is part of the principles of fair sale at this stage and that this is what consumers expect declaratively, but in practice they do not attach as much importance to it yet. 

As it turns out, influencers are excellent at introducing new products, “sowing the seed”, which in the long term translates into sales. 

Why is Influencer Marketing the right tool for new product launches? 

As many as 62% of people start to take an interest in the product promoted by their favourite Influencer, 38% are interested in the profile of the promoted brand and 13% of the respondents buy the product immediately, according to the report “The Alchemy of Trust, or what kind of Influencer Marketing by the Hash.FM by Streetcom Agency”. For this reason, Influencer Marketing is an ideal tool for launching new products on the market because Influencers interacting with consumers at the beginning of their purchase path – increase their interest in the product and brand, which translates into sales over time. 

A consistent image of the influencer as to who they are, what they say and what they promote is essential for building trust in the influencer themselves, and therefore in the brand they promote. 

What influences consumer trust in an influencer? 

According to the survey “The Alchemy of Trust, or What Kind of Influencer Marketing” conducted by the Hash.FM by Streetcom Agency, the trust of consumers in an influencer is influenced almost equally by: the level of expertise in the content they publish (46% of indications), specialisation in the field they talk about (46%), long-term cooperation with brands (43%), being active in the topic they talk about (41%) and not promoting everything they get paid for (43%). It is advisable that marketers and Agencies choose Influencers for their projects based on this perspective.  

On the other hand, the following factors are of little importance in building trust, according to the respondents: locality (4%), tagging published content as advertising (10%), similarity to viewers (12%), popularity among friends (15%). 

On the other hand, the following factors are of little importance in building trust, according to the respondents: locality (4%), tagging published content as advertising (10%), similarity to viewers (12%), popularity among friends (15%). 

Study “The Alchemy of Trust, or What Type of Influencer Marketing Sells”

What determines the trust of clients in influencers? Who is the best choice for holding campaigns in the FMCG and e-commerce industries and who is the best for the luxury goods industry? What is the influence of influencers on the consumer decision-making processes? In what product categories is it most profitable to invest in influencer marketing? We ask ourselves all these questions every day, implementing influencer marketing campaigns. We wanted to know the answers more precisely and prepare even better actions for our clients. The Hash.Fm by Streetcom agency has been active in the development of the IM industry in Poland for years, and is an active member of the influencer marketing working group within the IAB. Recently, we have also participated in the work initiating the implementation of changes in the market in the area of marking cooperation on behalf of the IAB and the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, says Matylda Szymalska, CEO of the Streetcom agency. 

The survey entitled “The Alchemy of Trust, or what kind of Influencer marketing sells”, was carried out in April 2022 on a nationwide sample of more than 5000 Polish Internet users. 

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