What You Need To Know About IZEA’s 2023 Trust In Influencer Marketing Report
Influencer marketing is bigger than ever, but is it just as effective, or are more conscientious consumers becoming wary of sponsored content? Influencer marketing technology provider IZEA put these questions to the test in their new 2023 Trust in Influencer Marketing Report to determine consumers’ feelings on the subject. Here is our in-depth breakdown and the key takeaways from IZEA’s report.
Do consumers still trust influencer marketing campaigns? Is it worth spending your company’s hard-earned money on influencer marketing, or are consumers too wary of ads nowadays?
The IZEA 2023 Trust in Influencer Marketing Report studied the answers to questions like these so that all parties could better understand how to interact with consumers through influencer marketing.
Keep reading for the latest insights into influencer marketing trends and how different consumer demographics respond to influencer marketing.
Who Created the 2023 Trust in Influencer Marketing Report?
Influencer marketing technology provider Izea is behind the 2023 Trust in Influencer Marketing Report. This is IZEA’s second consecutive year surveying consumers about trust in influencer marketing specifically.
The Goal of the 2023 Trust in Influencer Marketing Report
This study surveyed over 1,200 U.S.-based consumers to understand their feelings about influencer marketing and how these sentiments differed across varying demographics.
Influencer Posts are the Best Way to Get Consumers to Try New Products
IZEA’s 2023 Trust in Influencer Marketing Report found that influencer posts are the number one way to influence people to try new products for respondents under 60, making this a critical way to connect with consumers 18 to 59.
35% of all IZEA respondents say that influencer posts are the number one way to get them to try new products. Broken down by gender, this was 42.7% of female respondents and 26.5% of male respondents.
The next biggest categories for ways to get consumers to try new products were television ads, followed by paid social ads.
However, influencer marketing still prevailed significantly over TV ads. Adults aged 18 to 29 were almost four times as likely to say that influencer posts are better than TV ads when inspiring them to try new products or services.
The social media platform also significantly impacted the effectiveness of influencing based on different age demographics.
31% of respondents aged 18 to 29 said TikTok is their preferred platform, up from 19% in IZEA’s previous 2022 report.
42% of respondents ages 18 to 29 also said they research products and services on TikTok before making larger purchases.
The report concluded that influencer marketing is a powerful tool for introducing consumers of all ages to new products, especially Gen Z. For Gen Z, influencers are a hugely important, if not the most important, source of information and recommendations when it comes to their purchase decisions.
Marketing to Men vs. Women
90% of all survey participants ages 18 to 29 are reached by social media influencers. Across the board, YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram are the top picks for social media users.
However, women were more likely to say that Facebook and Instagram are the top ways to promote products to them. In contrast, men claimed that YouTube was their number one platform for being influenced to buy products.
Female respondents also had a bigger preference for TikTok as the best platform to promote a product through an influencer, with 21.8% saying TikTok was the best in their opinion. Only 11.8% of men said that TikTok was the best platform.
Men heavily preferred YouTube, with 33.6% saying it was the best platform for promoting a product through an influencer. Only 18% of women felt the same way.
Overall, if you have a male-dominated audience, you’ll want to heavily consider YouTube, followed by Facebook and Instagram, for most of your marketing efforts. Companies with female-dominated audiences should lean into Facebook and Instagram, followed closely by TikTok.
Influencer Marketing Findings by Age
We all know that engagement is king on social media. So, how can you improve engagement on sponsored posts?
One way is speaking to your audience through their preferred type of sponsored content.
For starters, 62% of all respondents in IZEA’s 2023 Trust in Influencer Marketing Report shared that they are more likely to trust sponsored content from an influencer over an A-List celebrity. IZEA found this statistic true across all age groups, with only the 45 to 60 group dipping below 60% in their response.
Encouragingly, this survey also found that 63% of respondents have engaged with a sponsored influencer post.
71.4% of respondents ages 18 to 29 have liked or commented on a sponsored influencer post. Participants aged 30 to 44 and 45 to 60 were also active, with sponsored posts at 60.1% and 65.4%, respectively.
If your audience is 60 and older, about 56.2% of these respondents have interacted with sponsored content through likes or comments.
Who is Most Likely to Follow Influencers?
IZEA’s report also found that only 10% of respondents ages 18 to 29 claimed to follow no influencers, demonstrating the massive audience available to be reached via social media.
Participants ages 30 to 44 and 45 to 60 also follow influencers widely, with only 24% and 23% claiming they follow no influencers, respectively.
Respondents over 60 were the least likely to follow influencers, with 49% sharing they followed none. However, 42% of participants over 60 followed anywhere between 1 and 20 influencers.
The 45 to 60 age range saw the most significant increase from 2021 to 2022 in respondents saying they had purchased a product after seeing an influencer using it. This increase was a massive 38.5%.
The 18 to 29 age group also experienced slight growth in this area, while other age groups stayed about the same in their response from 2021 to 2022.
The Biggest Takeaways for Marketers & Influencers
So, what can we learn from IZEA’s 2023 Trust in Influencer Marketing Report?
In short, influencer marketing is still a critical way to market to all demographics. TikTok is continuing to grow as a favorite, especially among female audiences. However, YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook are still the top platforms for reaching many demographics.
Consumers continue to strongly trust social media influencers over A-list celebrities, and influencer posts were found to be the best way to get consumers to try new products. All of this bodes well for influencers and marketers using influencer marketing as part of their strategy.
Check out IZEA’s full 2023 Trust in Influencer Marketing Report here.
Amy DeYoung is a freelance blog post writer covering influencer marketing and business topics. As the daughter of two business owners, she's been fascinated by all things business from a young age, which led her to graduate from college with a bachelor's degree in business. When she's not typing away, she spends her time reading nonfiction books and mystery novels, baking scrumptious desserts, and playing with her dog.
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Do consumers still trust influencer marketing campaigns? Is it worth spending your company’s hard-earned money on influencer marketing, or are consumers too wary of ads nowadays?
The IZEA 2023 Trust in Influencer Marketing Report studied the answers to questions like these so that all parties could better understand how to interact with consumers through influencer marketing.
Keep reading for the latest insights into influencer marketing trends and how different consumer demographics respond to influencer marketing.
Who Created the 2023 Trust in Influencer Marketing Report?
Influencer marketing technology provider Izea is behind the 2023 Trust in Influencer Marketing Report. This is IZEA’s second consecutive year surveying consumers about trust in influencer marketing specifically.
The Goal of the 2023 Trust in Influencer Marketing Report
This study surveyed over 1,200 U.S.-based consumers to understand their feelings about influencer marketing and how these sentiments differed across varying demographics.
IZEA’s 2023 Trust in Influencer Marketing Report found that influencer posts are the number one way to influence people to try new products for respondents under 60, making this a critical way to connect with consumers 18 to 59.
35% of all IZEA respondents say that influencer posts are the number one way to get them to try new products. Broken down by gender, this was 42.7% of female respondents and 26.5% of male respondents.
The next biggest categories for ways to get consumers to try new products were television ads, followed by paid social ads.
However, influencer marketing still prevailed significantly over TV ads. Adults aged 18 to 29 were almost four times as likely to say that influencer posts are better than TV ads when inspiring them to try new products or services.
The social media platform also significantly impacted the effectiveness of influencing based on different age demographics.
31% of respondents aged 18 to 29 said TikTok is their preferred platform, up from 19% in IZEA’s previous 2022 report.
42% of respondents ages 18 to 29 also said they research products and services on TikTok before making larger purchases.
The report concluded that influencer marketing is a powerful tool for introducing consumers of all ages to new products, especially Gen Z. For Gen Z, influencers are a hugely important, if not the most important, source of information and recommendations when it comes to their purchase decisions.
90% of all survey participants ages 18 to 29 are reached by social media influencers. Across the board, YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram are the top picks for social media users.
However, women were more likely to say that Facebook and Instagram are the top ways to promote products to them. In contrast, men claimed that YouTube was their number one platform for being influenced to buy products.
Female respondents also had a bigger preference for TikTok as the best platform to promote a product through an influencer, with 21.8% saying TikTok was the best in their opinion. Only 11.8% of men said that TikTok was the best platform.
Men heavily preferred YouTube, with 33.6% saying it was the best platform for promoting a product through an influencer. Only 18% of women felt the same way.
Overall, if you have a male-dominated audience, you’ll want to heavily consider YouTube, followed by Facebook and Instagram, for most of your marketing efforts. Companies with female-dominated audiences should lean into Facebook and Instagram, followed closely by TikTok.
We all know that engagement is king on social media. So, how can you improve engagement on sponsored posts?
One way is speaking to your audience through their preferred type of sponsored content.
For starters, 62% of all respondents in IZEA’s 2023 Trust in Influencer Marketing Report shared that they are more likely to trust sponsored content from an influencer over an A-List celebrity. IZEA found this statistic true across all age groups, with only the 45 to 60 group dipping below 60% in their response.
Encouragingly, this survey also found that 63% of respondents have engaged with a sponsored influencer post.
71.4% of respondents ages 18 to 29 have liked or commented on a sponsored influencer post. Participants aged 30 to 44 and 45 to 60 were also active, with sponsored posts at 60.1% and 65.4%, respectively.
If your audience is 60 and older, about 56.2% of these respondents have interacted with sponsored content through likes or comments.
Who is Most Likely to Follow Influencers?
IZEA’s report also found that only 10% of respondents ages 18 to 29 claimed to follow no influencers, demonstrating the massive audience available to be reached via social media.
Participants ages 30 to 44 and 45 to 60 also follow influencers widely, with only 24% and 23% claiming they follow no influencers, respectively.
Respondents over 60 were the least likely to follow influencers, with 49% sharing they followed none. However, 42% of participants over 60 followed anywhere between 1 and 20 influencers.
The 45 to 60 age range saw the most significant increase from 2021 to 2022 in respondents saying they had purchased a product after seeing an influencer using it. This increase was a massive 38.5%.
The 18 to 29 age group also experienced slight growth in this area, while other age groups stayed about the same in their response from 2021 to 2022.
The Biggest Takeaways for Marketers & Influencers
So, what can we learn from IZEA’s 2023 Trust in Influencer Marketing Report?
In short, influencer marketing is still a critical way to market to all demographics. TikTok is continuing to grow as a favorite, especially among female audiences. However, YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook are still the top platforms for reaching many demographics.
Consumers continue to strongly trust social media influencers over A-list celebrities, and influencer posts were found to be the best way to get consumers to try new products. All of this bodes well for influencers and marketers using influencer marketing as part of their strategy.
Check out IZEA’s full 2023 Trust in Influencer Marketing Report here.