Romania’s influencer marketing industry is entering a saturation phase, with audiences increasingly unable to distinguish between organic and sponsored content, according to the “InfluenceMe 2025” report from Publicis Groupe-owned media agency Starcom Romania.
The study reveals that only 54% of consumers now recognize influencer campaigns as advertisements, down from 62% the previous year. Meanwhile, 41% view sponsored content as part of an influencer’s regular output. The findings suggest brands must shift from broad reach toward more relevant, long-term collaborations.
This transformation occurs against a backdrop of market saturation, with the percentage of Romanian adults following influencers plateauing at 81% in 2025, unchanged from 2024 figures after steady growth from 50% in 2018 to 77% in 2023.
“Campaigns and influencer content tend to fuse,” the report states. The report highlights that “the same core audiences of influencers are exposed to a constant influx of products and brands, making it more challenging for them to decide or to differentiate.”
Between 2022 and 2025, upper and mid-funnel indicators, including awareness, research, and consideration, have shown slight declines with minor fluctuations, while lower-funnel metrics, such as purchase intent, loyalty, brand love, and relevancy, have remained relatively constant.
This performance pattern suggests a strategic imperative for brands operating in Romania: “To distinguish in this context: shift from reach to relevance, integrate influencer content into long-term communication strategy, co-create versus sponsor,” the report recommends.
Marketing Funnel Performance and Success Drivers
The report’s analysis of marketing funnel stages highlights effectiveness drivers at each level.
For awareness, influencer celebrity status alone is no longer sufficient, with two campaigns from the top 10 awareness performers relying on both influencer celebrity and substantial media budgets. Campaigns achieving the highest awareness consistently delivered utility-focused content, including recipe ideas, product presentations, and brand activations. The top-performing campaign featured recipe ideas in the food retail sector, using a single specialist influencer.
Research stage success requires strategically highlighting product or service advantages, with the top performer being a banking campaign featuring multiple entrepreneurs delivering financial education content (52% effectiveness).
For consideration, campaigns most effectively drive results when they inspire consumers through content that integrates brands into influencer lifestyles, explains complicated concepts, and aligns with current trends. Banking sector campaigns featuring multiple entrepreneurs delivering inspirational messages led this category (42% effectiveness).
The emotional connection represented by brand love was primarily captured through aspirational positioning – such as press trips to exclusive destinations, lavish benefits, or partnerships with top designers and celebrities. Another effective driver was involving influencers with strong communities in co-creation. In terms of performance, home appliance brands using multiple influencers for product presentations achieved the highest effectiveness in this category (39%).
Campaign relevance is primarily determined by brand heritage, surprising humor, and educational content, with banking campaigns featuring multiple entrepreneurs delivering inspirational messages ranking highest in this category (36%).
For loyalty, consistency, long-term association, and recurrent trust-building emerge as key drivers, with home appliance brands using multiple influencers for product presentations leading (32% effectiveness).
Consumer Preferences and Future Directions
Consumer interests are shifting toward more complex and utility-focused content categories. The top five areas for influencer campaigns in 2025 are beauty (31%), personal/professional development (30%), festivals (29%), lifestyle/entertainment (29%), and technology (29%). However, when examining what consumers actually want from influencers, the priorities shift notably toward travel (40%), education (37%), fashion (36%), cooking (34%), and health services (32%).
Consumers look to influencer campaigns to help them develop and navigate more complicated areas such as travel, health, or technology, the report notes, signaling an opportunity for brands to address these emerging needs through more sophisticated content strategies.
The research suggests Romania’s influencer marketing sector is entering a critical new phase requiring strategic refinement rather than audience expansion. As Romanian consumers increasingly view influencer content and advertising as interchangeable, successful brands will be those creating distinctive, relevant content that stands out in the increasingly homogenized local environment.
The data points to a clear directive for marketers targeting Romanian audiences: in a market that has stopped growing in terms of reach, competitive advantage will come from deeper integration with influencer narratives, more authentic co-creation strategies, and content that delivers genuine utility rather than merely promotional messaging.
As the report concludes, overcoming “market saturation and creative stagnation” in Romania will require brands to develop more sophisticated approaches that acknowledge both the ceiling in local audience growth and the way Romanian consumers perceive and process influencer content.
The InfluenceMe 2025 study was conducted by media agency Starcom Romania using its online Ad Impact methodology. The research is based on a sample of 1,600 individuals, both female and male, aged 18 and over, who are internet users from urban areas, surveyed in August 2025.
Image credit: Starcom Romania Get the full study here
Dragomir is a Serbian freelance blog writer and translator. He is passionate about covering insightful stories and exploring topics such as influencer marketing, the creator economy, technology, business, and cyber fraud.
Romania’s influencer marketing industry is entering a saturation phase, with audiences increasingly unable to distinguish between organic and sponsored content, according to the “InfluenceMe 2025” report from Publicis Groupe-owned media agency Starcom Romania.
The study reveals that only 54% of consumers now recognize influencer campaigns as advertisements, down from 62% the previous year. Meanwhile, 41% view sponsored content as part of an influencer’s regular output. The findings suggest brands must shift from broad reach toward more relevant, long-term collaborations.
This transformation occurs against a backdrop of market saturation, with the percentage of Romanian adults following influencers plateauing at 81% in 2025, unchanged from 2024 figures after steady growth from 50% in 2018 to 77% in 2023.
“Campaigns and influencer content tend to fuse,” the report states. The report highlights that “the same core audiences of influencers are exposed to a constant influx of products and brands, making it more challenging for them to decide or to differentiate.”
Between 2022 and 2025, upper and mid-funnel indicators, including awareness, research, and consideration, have shown slight declines with minor fluctuations, while lower-funnel metrics, such as purchase intent, loyalty, brand love, and relevancy, have remained relatively constant.
This performance pattern suggests a strategic imperative for brands operating in Romania: “To distinguish in this context: shift from reach to relevance, integrate influencer content into long-term communication strategy, co-create versus sponsor,” the report recommends.
Marketing Funnel Performance and Success Drivers
The report’s analysis of marketing funnel stages highlights effectiveness drivers at each level.
For awareness, influencer celebrity status alone is no longer sufficient, with two campaigns from the top 10 awareness performers relying on both influencer celebrity and substantial media budgets. Campaigns achieving the highest awareness consistently delivered utility-focused content, including recipe ideas, product presentations, and brand activations. The top-performing campaign featured recipe ideas in the food retail sector, using a single specialist influencer.
Research stage success requires strategically highlighting product or service advantages, with the top performer being a banking campaign featuring multiple entrepreneurs delivering financial education content (52% effectiveness).
For consideration, campaigns most effectively drive results when they inspire consumers through content that integrates brands into influencer lifestyles, explains complicated concepts, and aligns with current trends. Banking sector campaigns featuring multiple entrepreneurs delivering inspirational messages led this category (42% effectiveness).
The emotional connection represented by brand love was primarily captured through aspirational positioning – such as press trips to exclusive destinations, lavish benefits, or partnerships with top designers and celebrities. Another effective driver was involving influencers with strong communities in co-creation. In terms of performance, home appliance brands using multiple influencers for product presentations achieved the highest effectiveness in this category (39%).
Campaign relevance is primarily determined by brand heritage, surprising humor, and educational content, with banking campaigns featuring multiple entrepreneurs delivering inspirational messages ranking highest in this category (36%).
For loyalty, consistency, long-term association, and recurrent trust-building emerge as key drivers, with home appliance brands using multiple influencers for product presentations leading (32% effectiveness).
Consumer Preferences and Future Directions
Consumer interests are shifting toward more complex and utility-focused content categories. The top five areas for influencer campaigns in 2025 are beauty (31%), personal/professional development (30%), festivals (29%), lifestyle/entertainment (29%), and technology (29%). However, when examining what consumers actually want from influencers, the priorities shift notably toward travel (40%), education (37%), fashion (36%), cooking (34%), and health services (32%).
Consumers look to influencer campaigns to help them develop and navigate more complicated areas such as travel, health, or technology, the report notes, signaling an opportunity for brands to address these emerging needs through more sophisticated content strategies.
The research suggests Romania’s influencer marketing sector is entering a critical new phase requiring strategic refinement rather than audience expansion. As Romanian consumers increasingly view influencer content and advertising as interchangeable, successful brands will be those creating distinctive, relevant content that stands out in the increasingly homogenized local environment.
The data points to a clear directive for marketers targeting Romanian audiences: in a market that has stopped growing in terms of reach, competitive advantage will come from deeper integration with influencer narratives, more authentic co-creation strategies, and content that delivers genuine utility rather than merely promotional messaging.
As the report concludes, overcoming “market saturation and creative stagnation” in Romania will require brands to develop more sophisticated approaches that acknowledge both the ceiling in local audience growth and the way Romanian consumers perceive and process influencer content.
The InfluenceMe 2025 study was conducted by media agency Starcom Romania using its online Ad Impact methodology. The research is based on a sample of 1,600 individuals, both female and male, aged 18 and over, who are internet users from urban areas, surveyed in August 2025.
Image credit: Starcom Romania
Get the full study here
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