Instagram’s not-so-new influencer marketplace can’t beat the human expertise of agencies

Media outlets recently got over-excited about an Instagram Live video between Mark Zuckerberg and his Instagram chief, Adam Mosseri. 

The duo announced an Instagram marketplace for advertisers to hook up with influencers and promote stuff. This new marketplace ain’t so new. Instagram has been testing a concept to help match brands with creators since at least December 2019. It’s called their Brand Collabs Manager. The test marketplace empowers creators to source new deals, manage partnerships, and share campaign data. Brands benefit from transparency of creator data. 

Have Mosseri and Zuck just signed the death warrant of all influencer marketing agencies? No. Not by a long chalk. The thing is, successful influencer marketing demands more than a data-only matchmaking process between brand and influencer.

Increasingly, influencer marketing is governed by long-term relationships which resonate through creativity and storytelling. The selection workflow will continue to start with data, but it can’t end there. It must also take note of an influencer’s values, creative tone-of-voice, world view, any past misdeeds, whether they Photoshop their images, and whether they actually like your brand or have mentioned it disparagingly in the past. And as importantly as anything, whether they’re actually nice to work with - or at least professional.

Influencer marketers know how to write creative briefs. They know how to write and negotiate contracts. They understand that whilst Instagram is currently the powerhouse platform, the best influencer marketing programmes are integrated across multiple platforms and other creative channels.

The human element is fundamental to the sustained success of the influencer marketing industry. Of course, we must be powered by data. But we must also be guided by insights, intellect, and human instincts. Influencer generated content wins out when it tells a story in an unforced, authentic way. The danger of the data-only view is that it could create efficient but ineffective content. Boring content is bad for the brand, because consumers won't buy. It’s bad for the influencer, because fans will unfollow. And, it’s bad for the platform, because users will get fed up with bland content and find a different place to spend their time.

A version of this column first appeared in the fourth edition of Fourth Floor’s influencer marketing newsletter.

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