Celebrity endorsements had existed long before you or I ever existed – except if you were born in the 1760s.

Back then, the available form of celebrity advertising was royal endorsements, which were used by several businesses to show that the royal house certified it as trustworthy and its products as high-quality. 

The concept of celebrity advertising gradually widened to include product endorsements from houses of repute other than the royal palace, athletes, movie stars, musicians, etc.

Today, it is not uncommon for brands to use celebrities for marketing their products, attaching their names and personalities to their goods and services to draw customers and make sales. 

But at what cost to the business?

Year in, year out, companies spend billions on recruiting top celebrities to promote its product.

According to a recent stat from Mediakix, one of the leading influencer marketing agencies, top stars like Beyonce can make about $1 million on a sponsored media post. In contrast, stars like Selena Gomez and Kendall Jenner can expect to earn about half a million dollars and $300,000, respectively.

Notice that the “shinier” the star, the more the money.

With businesses spending so much for celebrities to endorse their products, one would think that these brands always get a high ROI(Return On Investment). 

Sadly that is not usually the case. 

Celebrity endorsement will drive massive brand awareness depending on the celebrity in question. 

But that is the only thing brands can be fully assured of. 

It does not guarantee a high rate of conversion or sales, which is usually the main objective of the endorsement, at least for most for-profit companies.

For this reason and more, which I will be telling you about later in this post, it is hardly any surprise that several businesses have turned to digital influencers or social media influencers, if you may, to endorse and promote their product. 

A marketing strategy that has proven time and again, to be less expensive for businesses yet effective in marketing goods to prospects.

With all that said, let us discuss why social media influencers drive brand sales more than celebrity endorsements and some interesting digital influencer marketing facts companies interested in employing influencer marketing will be interested in.

First, what is Influencer Marketing?

If you have ever bought an item because you saw your favorite star using it or shopped at a boutique because a fashion blogger you follow on Instagram recommended it, you, my friend, have been influenced – like the rest of us.

Simple defined, influencer marketing uses highly-loved and respected persons to promote a product or service. 

It is a marketing strategy employed by businesses, where famous individuals with a dedicated fan base and a level of social influence in their field endorse a company or its product by wearing it, posting about it, or taking pictures with it. You get the drift.

The way this marketing strategy works is that it combines social proof with word-of-mouth advertising, two essential components for every effective marketing strategy.

According to research, people are 90% more likely to trust the referrals of peers, acquaintances, and role models than a brand’s adverts.

Another reason the marketing strategy is effective is that it makes for easy targeting. 

Referral marketing allows brands, via the right influencer, to correctly place their goods/services in front of their market. 

No more wasting unnecessary time researching target market demographics or wondering whether the content your brand has created will attract prospects. 

Types of Influencer Marketing

Although a concept with several branches, influencer marketing can be divided into two major types – celebrity influencer marketing and social media influencer marketing (aka digital media influencer marketing).

1. Celebrity influencer marketing

As you can guess from the name, celebrity influencer marketing involves using the fame of stars; athletes, movie stars, musicians, etc., to sway the purchasing decision of the public and promote a product.

Celebrities can influence people to be well-liked, well-known, identifiable, appreciated, trendy, and stylish. 

By endorsing a brand or its product, they can use their fame to influence followers purchasing options. 

2. Social media influencer marketing

These influencers are persons who have built their online presence, established expertise and credibility in a niche, and have a large number of followers.

These individuals have cultivated their fan base by connecting with the audience via social media and consistently creating and posting relevant content in a particular field. 

Celebrity influencer marketing and social media influencer marketing are similar in that they both involve publicly admired figures endorsing or validating a brand and its goods. 

But they are also different in ways that affect their effectiveness in driving sales and attracting consumers to a brand.

Difference Between Celebrity Influencers and Social Media Influencers

1. How they gain followers

Generally speaking, celebrities gain and grow their fan base via traditional media; TV, radio, etc. 

People love them because of the movies they acted in, songs they sang, competitions won, etc., not necessarily because they relate to them or share a similar interest or hobby.

This is why it is possible for a 5-year-old and a 25-year-old to love Beyonce despite having nothing in common with themselves or the star other than love for her music.

Digital influencers, on the other hand, gain and grow their followers through digital posts. Over time, these individuals have shared reliable content on social media channels with their followers, generated results, and shared the process of attaining these results with followers. 

Their followers are typically people who share similar interests with them and gain extensively from their posts. 

Using the example I gave earlier, a 25-year-old or a 5-year-old (do not roll your eyes) will not be interested in following a fashion blogger except if they are both interested in fashion.  

Unlike celebrities, digital influencers grow their follower base by creating relevant content in a particular niche, being accessible to their audience, and being easy to communicate with. 

They constantly interact with their followers, answer their questions, allay their fears about a brand and give valid opinions on products – all within that niche.

2. Expertise 

Celebrities are not usually experts in a niche they are promoting. 

You might see Beyonce in a Pepsi advert or Justin Bieber endorsing Calvin Klein underwear, but this does not make Beyonce an expert in soft drinks or Justin a pro in underwear for men. 

However, this is not the case with social media influencers.

This is because social media influencers are typically professionals in their field, having generated visible results. 

In most scenarios, these influencers will not endorse a product they have not tried and can recommend to family and friends.

Hence, if you see a beauty Instagram influencer like Huda Kattan endorsing a brand’s cosmetic product other than her own, you can be sure she has tried it, found it authentic, and believes that her followers will love it.

3. Level of engagement

Engagement is another notable difference between celebrity influencers and social media influencers.

Most celebrity endorsements are one-way communication. 

Fans can see them promoting their products but cannot interact with them to get their opinions on the goods.

On the other hand, digital influencers endorse a product/service by engaging with their audience. They create contents that center around their experience with the product/service and answer whatever general questions their followers may have about the product.

4. Campaign content

As digital influencers are experts in their fields, they are usually not only the face of the campaign but are also involved in creating the message that drives the campaign.

These influencers are typically free to create campaign messages that will drive the promotion of the product/service in question as they have a relationship with the prospects and know what kind of post engages them the most. 

However, in the case of celebrity advertisements, the stars are only the face of the campaign, not the brains behind it. 

They simply come on set and take their place as written in the script, contributing their fame and social influence to the spread and overall effectiveness of the campaign.

5. Promotion reach

Depending on the star in question, celebrities tend to have a wider reach than social media influencers.

Because of this, celebrity endorsements, when compared with digital influencers’ advertising, mean more brand exposure.

But brand exposure does not always equal an increase in sales and conversion rate.

I mean, people can hear about your product today and forget it tomorrow.

Digital Influencers VS Celebrities: who drives sales better?

Over the years, celebrity endorsement has gradually lost its influencing power over public purchasing decisions. 

Recently, many have realized celebrity endorsement for what it truly is – a mere financial transaction between a brand and a star. 

As such, people view celebrity advertisements the same way they view brand commercials – skeptically.

In contrast, most people today turn to trusted digital influencers for purchase advice because they view these individuals as experts in their respective fields. 

This turn from celebrity endorsement to social media influencers for purchase advice makes absolute sense because while celebrities have mass appeal, they are not considered professionals in the niche they are promoting. 

They want to drive sales using their influence over fans despite knowing little about the product.

However, social media influencers, on the other hand, are usually skilled in the niche they are endorsing. So, followers turn to them for advice and listen closely to their opinions.

Although collaborating with digital influencers might not have the same widespread appeal as working with celebrities, they provide considerably more relevant and targeted audience exposure, ultimately much more valuable than broad reach.

According to research from MuseFind, an influencer marketing channel, 92% of people will trust a referral from an influencer they follow rather than a celebrity endorsement or traditional advertisement.

Here are four reasons digital influencer marketing drives sales more than Celebrity Endorsement.

Trust

Would you believe the word of Selena Gomez over that of Neil Patel when choosing the best SEO tools for your company? 

Or would you believe the words of Justin Bieber over that of Adam Gallagher when it comes to top fashion styles for men?

Most people want someone that can tell them the truth about a product before they purchase it, not someone who is looking to drive sales whether or not the product is all it claims to be.

As such, people are increasingly listening to the opinions of digital influencers more than celebrities, as these individuals have constantly proved themselves skilled and knowledgable in the niche in question. 

This is especially true for Gen Z’s and younger Millennials. They, according to research, trust the recommendations of their favorite social media influencers over that of celebrities when making purchase decisions.

It helps in zoning in on a target market

With digital influencers, there is no longer a question of who your target audience is or what advertising strategies they will be attracted to. 

Once you find the ideal influencer in the niche for your company, you will get access to information about their audience, including where they reside, their age group, and their gender.

You may also determine what your prospects are interested in by looking at an influencer’s feed and modifying your marketing ideas and methods accordingly.

Cost-effective

In 2012, Beyonce was paid $50 million for an endorsement deal with Pepsi.

Do you think this is much? 

What about David Beckham, that signed an endorsement deal with Adidas for $160 million in 2003, or Charlie Theron, who signed a $55 million contract with Dior? 

In years past, businesses have had to cough up millions of dollars to get stars to promote their product. 

However, in recent times, with the influx of social media, most companies have realized that celebrity endorsement is not the best use of their marketing budget, especially if they are looking to drive sales among gen z’s and young millennials.

These brands understand that with the help of digital influencers and a much lower cost, they can effectively place their goods in front of their market.

No issue with ads

With more people skipping interruptive social media ads even before they know what it is about, companies have needed to find creative ways of marketing their goods to their market.

Enter digital influencer marketing.

Rather than obvious ads, digital influencer marketing allows businesses to market their products/services in the form of digital content.

For instance, rather than simply advertising its SEO tools on Google or via pop-up ads, a company can decide to partner with Neil Patel in creating a post that endorses its tools as some of the best SEO tools for brands. 

By creating digital material that their market actively seeks, businesses can solve the problem of the tech-savvy populations bypassing their advertisements and craft something prospects find enjoyable, informative, and important.

Breeds creativity and authenticity

Social media influencer marketing allows businesses the freedom to be imaginative and think outside the box on ways they can achieve set marketing objectives.

Again, this benefits the business whose target audience is gen z’s and young millennials – a generation moved by authentic digital content.

As social media influencers understand the target market better than the brands, most businesses leave the creativity to the influencer, only giving them pointers on vital things they would like to include in the content. 

More on Social Media Influencers

With all that has been said about digital influencers, it is clear that these influencers play an essential role in marketing and business growth today. 

If you are interested in working with top digital influencers to boost your brand’s image and conversion rate, below are essential components or exciting facts of social media influencer marketing you will be interested in.

Best Platforms for Social Media Influencer Marketing

As you introduce digital influencers as a part of your marketing strategies, one thing to note is that a social media influencer’s reach, content type, audience demographics, etc., will differ according to their social media channels.

A business needs to know the benefits of the several platforms and the audience targeted by each site if it wants its digital influencer marketing activity to be successful.

According to 2022 stats, the 3 top social media influencer marketing sites are Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.

Here is a concise explanation of the type of influencers on each of these platforms 

Instagram Influencers

With about 1.3 billion users, Instagram is the powerhouse for influencer marketing.

An influencer on this platform is someone who has built credibility in a field or topic on Instagram and has a sizeable number of followers who trust their product reviews and referrals.

Depending on your company’s niche, the right Instagram influencer will be an ambassador for your brand on Instagram, sharing your product/service with their audience and answering any questions their followers might have regarding your product/service.

TikTok Influencers

A platform directed to the younger generation, TikTok has over 1 billion users and has become the second largest social media influencer marketing platform.

As a channel where creativity thrives, TikTok influencers are creative content creators that have risen to become the celebrities of the platform. They have a large fan base and can get content across to hundreds of thousands, if not millions, in a few minutes.

Other TikTok users log in or sign-up to watch these stars, and best of all, brands collaborate with these creators to make posts that promote their products/services.

Facebook influencers

As the biggest social media platform in the world, with about 2.89 billion users, Facebook’s extensive reach is one of the reasons the site is the third largest influencer marketing platform.

A Facebook influencer is one who constantly shares relevant and intriguing content that has the possibility of going viral with their audience. 

These contents could be in the form of articles, videos, jokes, pictures, etc. 

By sharing such relevant content, these individuals can nurture their fans’ trust and loyalty over time.

As a site that encourages users to like and share content, Facebook is great for brand visibility because by doing so, other users beyond the influencer’s audience demography will see the post.

Biggest Social Media Influencers

In the social media influencer marketing sphere, as in the celebrity world, some influencers are considered A-list influencers, that is, very popular influencers.

These individuals have built a solid online presence, demonstrated their expertise time and again in a niche, and gained millions of followers. 

With a single post, they can get a brand’s product/service in front of millions of followers in a few minutes. 

Hence, businesses are usually willing to pay them hundreds of thousands of dollars to get them to endorse their product. 

With that said, here is a list of digital influencers considered A-list due to their number of followers and pay-per-posts.

10 Famous Social Media Influencers (non-celebrity)

 Whindersson Nunes 

Brazilian comedian Whindersson Nunes began posting humor videos on YouTube in 2013. 

Three years later, his channel had the highest number of Brazilian subscribers. 

He presently has over 58.6 million Instagram followers, and his Channel on YouTube is also among the most well-liked ones on the platform.

From his YouTube posts alone, Whindersson is said to make about $15,000 – $50, 000 per post

Nurset Gokce

Nurset Gokce, aka Salt Bea, is one of the well-known food influencers with over 47 million Instagram followers.

The Turkish chef is well-known for his hand movements when sprinkling salt.

His yearly income is estimated to be about $20 million.

Huda Kattan

An Iraqi-born makeup artist and blogger, Huda Kattan is well-known and adored for her beauty. 

After graduating from college, she launched a beauty blog, which evolved into an Instagram page and makeup company, Hudda Beauty. 

Approximately 50.7 million Instagram users follow her at the moment.

According to stats, Kattan is the highest-paid beauty blogger on Instagram, earning a whopping $158, 515 per post.

Charli’ D’Amelio

Charli’ D’Amelio is one of the most famous TikTok creators and influencers, garnering over 142.5 million TikTok followers. 

She is a dancer, YouTuber, TV producer, and influencer.

Charli’ is estimated to earn over $100,000 per post.

James Charles

American YouTuber and cosmetic artist James Charles specialize in beauty. 

His Instagram page is filled with vibrantly colored cosmetics, and one of his talents is applying multiple shades of eye shadow to each eye. 

James Charles is most notable for his ability to project confidence without being too serious.

His following on Instagram is currently at 22.9 million, and he has over 36 million TikTok fans.

According to Net Worth Spot, James Charles is estimated to make at least $45 thousand per post 

Khaby Lame

Another famous TikTok influnecer, Khaby Lame has roughly 142.7 million TikTok followers.

Many have known and loved him for his short and funny videos that usually centered around reacting to popular “life-hack” posts. 

Khaby Lame is estimated to make about $20,000 per Instagram post and a whopping $ 5 million yearly from both Instagram and TikTok.

Lele Pons

The American-Venezuelan star would be a familiar face if you used Vine when it was still very active because Pons was one of the first “Viners” to surpass one billion loops on the platform.

After the site shut down, Lele Pons concentrated on producing hilarious YouTube videos. 

She currently has about 17. 8 million YouTube subscribers and 48.9million Instagram followers. 

She is a model, actress, singer, TV producer, dancer, and influencer estimated to make $144,000 – $180, 000 per post.

Dan Bilzerian

An entrepreneur and poker lover, Dan Bilzerian is Armenian-American well-known for his willingness to share his lavish yet thrilling adventures. 

He has gained notoriety as a worldwide playboy due to his opulent lifestyle, love for risks, and careless demeanor. 

Dan currently has 33.4 million Instagram followers.

According to Net Worth Spot, the playboy can make about $78.32 thousand per post. 

Sommer Ray 

Sommer Ray is an influencer in the fitness niche. She is also an entrepreneur, YouTuber, and model.

With over 26.4 million Instagram followers and 12.4 million TikTok followers, she has a net worth of $8 million, roughly earning $20,000 per sponsored post.

Chiara Ferragni

Italian blogger, entrepreneur, designer, and model Chiara Ferragni has worked with several high-end brands, including Dior, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, and Tommy Hilfiger. 

She has also worked with well-known companies like Guess, where she served as an ambassador and model.

With a followers count of 27.6 million on Instagram and 5.4 million on TikTok, Chiara is estimated to earn about $58,000 per post.

RELATED: What Are Micro-Influencers & Why Are They So Effective In Promoting Products

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