INDUSTRY INTERSHIP PROJECT

On
‘<INFLUNCER MARKETING IS ROADMAP TO DIGITAL
FAME >’
Submitted to
Institute Code: (729)
Institute Name: (LJ INSITITUDE OF MANAGEMNET STUDY)
Under the Guidance of
(Prof. Hardik Solanki)

In partial fulfilment of the requirement of the award of the degree of

Master of Business Administration (MBA)
offered by
Gujarat Technological University
Ahmedabad
Prepared by:
<Kavya Thakkar >
<177290571557>
MBA (Semester – 10)
Month & year:
(April,2022)
 INSTITUTE CERTIFICATE

“This is to Certify that this COMPREHENSIVE Project Report Titled

“Impact of social media in food industry” is the bonafide work of, who has
carried out his / her project under my supervision. I also certify further that, to
the best of my knowledge, the work reported herein does not form part of any
other project report or dissertation on the basis of which a degree or award was
conferred on an earlier occasion on this or any other candidate. I have also
checked the plagiarism extent of this report which is ……… % and it is below
the prescribed limit of 30%. The separate plagiarism report in the form of
html /pdf file is enclosed with this.

Rating of Project Report [A/B/C/D/E]: ______ (A=Excellent; B=Good;

C=Average; D=Poor; E=Worst)
(By Faculty Guide)

Signature of the Faculty Guide/s (Name and Designation of Guide/s)

Signature of Principal/Director with Stamp of Institute (Name of

Principal / Director)
 Student’s Declaration

We hereby declare that the Comprehensive Project Report titled “impact of influencer
marketing on the society” is a result of our own work and our indebtedness to other work
publications, references, if any, have been duly acknowledged. If we are found guilty of
copying from any other report or published information and showing as our original work,
or extending plagiarism limit, we understand that we shall be liable and punishable by the
university, which may include Failing us in examination or any other punishment that
university may deem fit.

Enrolment no. Name signature

177290571557 Kavya Thakkar

Place: Ahmedabad Date:

April,2022
 PREFACE

This Project Report has been prepared in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the
Subject: Comprehensive Project of the Integrated MBA Program (Sem.9) in the
academic year 2021-2022. For preparing the Project Report, we have interviewed
company personal as and when required and also circulated the questionnaire.
The blend of learning and knowledge acquired by researching through data
collection as well as interviewing the concerned personnel is presented in the report.
The information presented in this report is obtained from various different sources
such as interviewing, questionnaire, Company Personnel. Company websites, other
related websites, Company past data and other literature.
 Acknowledgement

The success and final outcome of this project required a lot of guidance and assistance from many
people and we are extremely privileged to have got this all along the completion of my project. All
that we were able to do is only due to such supervision and assistance we would not forget to thank
them.
I respect and thank Gujarat Technological University (GTU), for providing an opportunity to do the
project work at LJIMBA and giving all support and guidance which made us complete the project
duly. I am extremely thankful for providing such a nice support and guidance.
I owe deep gratitude to our Director Dr. Viral shah sir and all the faculties who took keen interest on
our project work and guided us all along, till the completion of our project work by providing all the
necessary information for developing a good system.
I heartily thank my internal project guide, Prof. Hardik Solanki, mentor, of LJIMBA for his guidance
and suggestions during this project work.
I am thankful to and fortunate enough to get constant encouragement, support and guidance from all
Teaching staffs of LJIMBA Semester 9 who helped us in successfully completing our project work. I
am also thankful to my friends and family who helped me in doing the research.
Thank you, Kavya Thakkar .
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Sr. No. Particulars Page No.

1 Industrial Overview
1.1 Growth and Evolution of Industry
1.2 Product Profile
1.3 Players in the Industry
1.4 Future outlook
2 Company/Organization Overview
3 Introduction of problem/topic
4 Objectives and Rationale of the study
5 Literature Review
6 Hypothesis, Methods/Methodology adopted for the study
7 Data Analysis
8 Findings
9 Recommendations & Suggestions
10 Conclusion
References
Annexure
 PART -1

Industrial Overview
 1.1 Growth and Evolution of Industry
Influencer marketing uses top content creators, specialized in their respective niches, to help
you improve brand awareness, increase traffic, and drive your brand message to your target
auidence. These content creators already market to your ideal audience across different
channels which you can take advantage of for your influencer strategy.
2021, the year of impactful social media influencer marketing, comes to an end. It was
observed by about 89% marketing experts that the ‘dawning digital’ blog can be
recognized as a space for virtual updates. Trends in influencer marketing continue to
change over the years. A decade ago, there were a countable number of bloggers, each
holding their own unique spot in the influencer kingdom. These famous personalities
included the distinguished Asian face- Bryanboy, the American Style Icon and
socialite - Olivia Palermo, the Italian Revolutionary- Chiara Ferragni and the Original
French Actress/Designer and Influencer Jeanne Damas
Today, developing influencer marketing strategies is a lot more than style quotes. It is
justified to have these tailored brand propositions as we witness cut-throat competition
in this segment. With influencer rising for different categories, we can observe a mix
of micro influencers covering all small businesses and new talents, bloggers with blue
ticks holding massive following and digital influencers created by major fashion
giants.
On 20th December 2021, Forbes Communication council offered their best predictions
stating that the smaller business industries will be leveraging micro-influencers and
their highly engaging audience. This action has resulted into high percentage of
engagements and also a good amount of liquidated funds. In case of big blogger there
have been less amount of returns even after distributing the same funds amongst
multiple micro influencers. It seems they are more conscious about paid
collaborations, earning organic followers and increasing their visibility in the smallest
pockets of the virtual world. With the progressive demand for micro-influencers and
their partnership, it’s evident that this transformation will affect and reduce the cost of
advertising per action. Gradually we might see them appearing in larger campaigns for
their quality work and organic engagement.
Trends may come and go, but impactful conversations always create a spot in our
daily life. Many brands are foreseen to invest in a number of tools to find the suitable
topics for micro-influencers, which could help them focus on generating a buzz or
conversation. With key topics enlisted this helps them promote the brand and boost
revenue simultaneously. Predicted graphs are assuring a massive
impact on brand story telling with their unique profiles holding traditional digital
outputs.

Verifying people and brand accounts on social media platforms with blue tick defined
their authenticity on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat and LinkedIn. Since
then, it became an actual thing holding mysterious power over those in its thrall. Like
one of those horror movies from 80s, the blue tick has taken a significant position
which is disproportionate to its actual merit. This has been turning bold social media
account holders into needy, insecure, individuals, uncertain of their work. While this
official badge gifted many bloggers a recognition and platform of being Gods of
Instagram idols and Twitter tycoons, Mark Zuckerberg’s augmented reality took the
panel of being self-employed judges of every influencer’s relevance.
This changed the scenario for blue tick bloggers who quoted higher charges for
collaborations and promotions. There was a mid-millennial era of rulers, who were
chosen for the blue badge on high ranking for influencer marketing . They were
allocated special fees and funds. They were perceived to have more organic following
which was an assurance of more revenue through promotion of products and their core
values. Bloggers celebrated the moment like a life event on being a part of the blue
tick bandwagon. Marketing with them was like weaving a success story through the
means of their immediate worshiping community of followers. Their exclusive virtual
identities ensured maximum visibility. They demand much more money than the usual
influencers on social media, and it seems only legit in the world of a certain metaverse
dominating that power of influence.
 1.2 Product Profile

Influencer marketing is a strategy that identifies people who have a strong influence on a
brand’s industry or target audience. In an influencer marketing strategy, a brand forms a
partnership with the influencer wherein the influencer agrees to expose their audience to
the brand’s messaging or content.

Influencers usually have a large and engaged audience, so brands benefit when an
influencer shares or mentions their content or messaging. The exposure allows the brand
to get in front of their target audience in a positive, natural, and meaningful way.One
influencer marketing example is Pantene’s partnership with actress Jada Pinkett Smith.
Jada shared their message with her audience, giving the brand the attention of her 1.23
million Twitter followers.

While a celebrity is used in this influencer marketing strategy definition, influencer

campaigns don’t always have to rely on celebrities. In a recent post, we shared influencer
marketing examples   that don’t need celebrities. The examples in this post use niche
market influencers, industry experts, and noncompeting brand influencers to promote
successful campaigns.

Influencer marketing is about gaining exposure, but it isn’t always about working with
people who have the largest audience . It’s about working with people who have the right
audience so you can make connections with the people most likely to further connect
with your brand.

Once you know your goals, it’s time to start thinking about the type of influencer
marketing campaign that will help you accomplish your mission.

Influencer marketing campaigns usually involve three types of relationship triggers:

inspire, hire, or a mix of both.

You can inspire an influencer to share your content or messaging on their own. You can
pay them to promote your brand. Or you can create a situation that uses a little bit of
both.

 Gifting: Giving free products and services to an influencer in exchange for a

review or mention.
 Guest Posting: Creating and contributing content for an influencer’s blog.
 Sponsored Content: Paying for your brand to be featured on an influencer’s blog
or social channel. You may or may not create the content for the post.
 Co-Creating Content: Partnering with an influencer to create content that is
featured on your website, their website, or a third-party website.
 Social Media Mentions: Getting a social media marketing strategies going with a
personality or brand to mention your brand, share your content, or post about you.
 Contests and Giveaways: Running a contest and asking an influencer to share
your giveaway event with their followers or readers.
  Influencer Takeover: Allowing an influencer to take control of your social
media accounts for a set amount of time.
 Affiliates: Providing a unique code that gives influencers a percentage of each
sale they drive.
 Discount Codes: Giving an influencer a unique discount code for your product or
service that they can promote and offer to their audience.
 Brand Ambassadors: Forming relationships with loyal brand fans wherein they
mention or promote your brand, products, and services in exchange for exclusive
offers, free products, or being featured by your brand

Identify and Define Your Audience

Once you have an idea about your goals and the type of influencer marketing strategy
you want to implement, you still aren’t ready to start looking for influencers.  Before you
can identify who will help you connect with your target audience, you need to know who
your target audience is .

Before you start looking for influencers, spend time outlining specific details about who
you want to connect with through your campaign. Create a buyer persona  that includes
both demographic and psychographic segmentation . Once you know your audience, it
will be easier to identify the top people they follow and websites they use.

If you need help with defining your audience, download our free  buyer persona
template  to help you through the process.

Find the Right Influencers

With your audience clearly defined, you can finally start seeking out the influencers who
will help you reach your goals and connect with your target market .

As you consider your options, explore the following types of influencers:

 Bloggers
 Social Media Stars
 Celebrities
 Industry Experts
 Thought Leaders
 Customers
 Noncompeting Brands

Once you determine the type of influencer you want to use, start researching individuals
or brands in that space.

Find Influencers that Share Your Audience

To find influencers that can reach your audience, use Alexa’s Audience Overlap Tool .
Enter your website or the URLs of websites you know have the audience you want to
reach. The tool will report back with dozens of other websites that share a similar
audience. This report presents dozens of guest blogging opportunities , as you know these
sites have the audience you want to reach and would, therefore, be great places to share
or seed your content.
For example, if you are selling a course on leadership, your ideal audience may regularly
read michaelhyatt.com. Enter the URL to find other sites that audience also visits. Use
this list of sites as a guide for finding other influencers who might be valuable for your
campaign.

Find Influencers using Backlinks

Another way to find potential influencers is by using Alexa’s Competitor Backlink
Checker . Enter up to 10 sites that reach your ideal audience. (Use the Audience Overlap
Tool to find similar sites  if you don’t already know them.) Then, run the backlink
checker.

The report will show all of the links pointing to your list of sites. You can use this list to
find sites that will be likely to work with, mention you, or link back to your site because
they have already done this for your competitors.

For example, when researching backlinks to michaelhyatt.com and its competitors, you
can see that personalsuccesstoday.com has linked to five of the similar sites. This
information shows that the site is probably worth exploring for your influencer
marketing strategy, as it has already built connections with other brands like you.
Clicking through the backlinks  will give you an idea of what types of content they
publish, including guest posts and mentions, so you can form a plan for outreach.

Qualify Your Influencers

It’s easy to get excited when you start finding influencers. But before you reach out to
them, you need to make sure they really are a great fit for your brand and goals.  

Qualify the audience. It’s better to work with an influencer who has a smaller audience
that closely matches your ideal market than to work with an influencer who has a very
large audience that doesn’t include your ideal customers. So don’t qualify influencers
based solely on the size of their audience. Pay closer attention to if they have the right
audience you want to reach.

Track Your Outreach

When you start influencer or guest blogging outreach , it’s essential that you keep your
correspondence organized. You don’t want to lose opportunities to work with influencers
because your process was annoying or unprofessional.

For example, you don’t want multiple people on your team reaching out to the same
influencer, and you don’t want to send the same email over and over.

Develop a system for following up and following through. Create a document that tracks:

 Who on your team reached out

 When they reached out
 Who they contacted
 Notes about the communication
 Plans for follow-up communication
 Status of the outreach
Track and Analyze Your Results
When you complete an influencer marketing strategy campaign, it can feel like a victory
just to see the brand mentioned or shouted out on social media. But just getting an
influencer to promote your content or messaging isn’t a sign of success.

The real success is determined by if you’ve reached your influencer marketing goals .

To find out if you’ve reached your goals, track and measure your results. Use metrics to
measure your success depending on the initial marketing objectives  you set for the
campaign.
 1.3 Players in the Industry

First of all, you should keep in mind that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to influencer
marketing. If you have decided to pull your team’s effort into this strategy, you need to
perform in-depth research to define where your target audience is the most active.

The choice of a social media platform depends on a specific niche, customer needs, and
content consumption habits. All this has to be properly researched. So, I would recommend
running a content persona and influencer persona research to get a comprehensive
understanding of which social media platform corresponds to your business goals.

Content persona research is very similar to a traditional customer persona analysis. The
main difference is that this investigation is focused on which types and formats of content
your customers consume, on what platforms they are, and at what time of the day.

When performing this kind of analysis, pay attention to whom your customers are already
following on social media. This approach will help you 1) understand what kind of content
resonates with your audience and 2) find the right influncers and opinion leaders faster.

Influencer persona research refers to the creation of an ideal influencer you would like to
collaborate with. Not to sound too rudimentary, but you need to define a niche in which your
thought leader is.

Think of what an average follower base he or she should have. Discover what tone, mood,
and format of content you need. Consider that the influencer’s values must align with your
brand’s mission. Research demographics, interests, and professions of their audiences.

When customer persona and influencer persona researches are done, you can clearly see what
social media platform will perform best in terms of influencer marketing for your brand.

#YouTube

The second biggest search engine after Google. Yes, it’s about YouTube, a video-sharing
platform with1.86 billion active monthly users. It is an incredible marketplace for influencers
and brands from various industries.

YouTube has been often named the best place for influencer marketing and it's for a good
reason. Its long-video format enables an in-depth presentation of the brand or product. It
allows delivering more information and engagement than any other type of social media post.

Also, unlike TikTokers, YouTubers leave promotional videos on their channels, so your
brand can still receive engagement even over time.

#Twitter
The next giant with 187 million active daily monetizable users is Twitter. If your audience is
in the United States, Europe, or Southeast Asia, this social network is a good option to
consider for your influencer marketing campaign. On the contrary, CIS countries aren’t very
active on Twitter.

Saying it subjectively and based purely on my practice, Twitter is a great place to market
technology companies, food chains/brands, airlines, and financial organizations.

This platform performs excellent for B2B companies seeking collaboration with tech
influencers. B2B influencers are usually recognized industry experts or the owners of their
own companies. They regularly share opinions on the subject matter on social media, and
Twitter is the first place where they do it.

#Instagram

Virtually everyone is on Instagram today. By saying this, I mean not only casual users but
also businesses. There are no industry-dependant or territorial limitations. From crypto and
auto to food, fashion, and travel lovers all over the world, there is a place for everyone on
Instagram. From an influencer marketing perspective, it’s particularly effective for small
businesses since they can turn to micro-influencers with local communities of followers.

B2C brands can benefit most from it. According to BigCommerce, 69% of marketers plan to
spend the most money on Instagram for influencer marketing this year. That's over six times
more than YouTube (11%), the second most-selected channel for top spend.

#LinkedIn

If you are looking for B2B partnerships and B2B customers, you have surely market your
brand on LinkedIn. Influencer marketing will help you implement it there. LinkedIn
influencers are industry-specific experts known for their unparalleled professional experience
in business circles. This social network counts 645 user registers located worldwide.

LinkedIn users build connections with each other based on business interests. Thus, the
collaboration with an opinion leader may drive you direct leads and future partnerships at a
different scale. LinkedIn influencer marketing is especially efficient for technology, product
design, and financial industries, as well as non-profits.
 1.4 Future outlook

Influencer marketing has garnered a lot of interest over the last few years. In fact, in the
last three years, the number of Google searches for “influencer marketing” has increased
by 1500%. This shows that the future of influencer marketing is ripe with
opportunities.As more brands become aware of the benefits of influencer marketing, they
are willing to invest more money into it. Especially on social media.

A survey by Influencer Marketing Hub revealed that 63% of marketers intend to increase
their influencer marketing budget this year. So, it makes sense that influencer, and more
generally, digital marketing is here to stay. But what does the future hold for influencer
marketing? Just like all other marketing strategies, it’s bound to change with new
technologies and trends.

Let’s take a look at a few changes in the industry that we can anticipate in the future .

1. Emergence of Influencer Networks

The future of influencer marketing is all about the collective. Instead of individuals,
marketers may begin to group influencers based on whom they are associated with.After
all, it is about associating with the right people. This is typically done on social media.

When you partner with a social media influencer, your brand reputation grows based on
how much authority they have. Likewise, an influencer’s reputation depends on which
brands they endorse. It’s like creating power centers of influence for each niche.Each of
the influence centers is linked to each other because many niches overlap. Take for
example a brand that sells sunscreen lotion.

For such a brand, the obvious choice would be to reach out to influencers in the fashion,
beauty, and lifestyle niches. However, they could also reach out to influencers in the
travel and sports industry. The future of influencer marketing places an emphasis on the
interconnectedness of different niches, mostly on social media.The influencers who
possess the power to transfer ideas between different groups will be the most influential
ones.

To evaluate influencer networks, brands may have to invest more time in influencer
evaluation. Platforms like Fourstarzz Media  will also make it easier for marketers and
brands to find information about influencers.On the platform, you can find social media
profiles for each influencer. It also includes a list of the most notable followers for each
influencer.

2. Emphasis on Micro-Influencers

Brands have begun to realize that sometimes less is more. The success of any influencer
marketing campaign doesn’t solely ride on the number of social media followers.

Many influencers buy fake followers, so their engagement rate is low. On the
contrary, micro-influencers  have fewer social media followers but they work to maintain
personal bonds with their target audience. Therefore, their social media posts get higher
engagement.

Unlike popular influencers who have a huge following on social media platforms, micro-
influencers are more reasonably priced. Micro-influencers will rule influencer marketing
in the future.

Coca-Cola is one of the many brands to have used this marketing strategy to promote
their brand. They partnered with micro-influencer, Yannick Merck, to showcase a cold
Coke or their merchandise on his worldly travels.As a Coke ambassador and content
creator, he often shares photos on social media of himself holding a Coke can or wearing
a Coke sweater.

3. Increase of In-House Influencer Programs

As more brands and marketing agencies realize the importance of collaborating with
influencers, they are seeking new ways to work with them. At the same time, they realize
that building long-term associations with influencers is essential for better marketing.

That’s why influencer marketing lies in in-house influencer programs for the future.
Instead of content distribution, in-house influencer marketing focuses on building
relationships with people. This arrangement also allows brands to work more closely
with influencers.

Currently, Macy’s has one of the biggest in-house influencer programs for their
employees. As a part of their program, Macy’s Style Crew, they have turned 300
employees into their brand ambassadors.

We see this as developing a relationship with our employees. This gives them an
incentive to be proud of Macy’s, to make some money, and to come to work more
energized each day,” a Macy’s executive told Digiday.

As a part of the program, Macy’s employees receive a commission for each sale made.
When employees are accepted into the program, they get access to most of the store’s
products for free.

Because the program has been a huge success, Macy’s is looking to make it bigger this
year.In-house influencers bring loyalty and a sense of relatability that other influencers
can’t match. Therefore, their endorsements seem more authentic and genuine.

These are the qualities that will shape the future of influencer marketing.

4. Stricter Guidelines For Advertising

In the past, influencer marketing got a bad reputation for being unethical and immoral.
Taking note of the unfair practices in the industry, the Federal Trade Commission sent
out official warning letters.

The FTC also issued guidelines to protect the best interests of consumers. These
guidelines make it mandatory for influencers to disclose their relationships with brands.
When an influencer receives a product for free or they are writing a paid review, they
need to disclose it. Because of this, it’s common to see influencers using #paid and
#sponsored on their posts.

The process of making policies to make influencer marketing more transparent has
already begun. In the future, influencer marketing will focus more on keeping the trust of
consumers high.

So, we can expect stricter guidelines for influencer marketing.

5. The Rise of CGI Influencers

The entry of CGI influencers  into the influencer marketing industry has changed the way
brands view collaborations. For the uninitiated, CGI influencers are social media
influencers who are created with the help of artificial intelligence and computer-
generated imagery.

Manufactured in the virtual world, programmers and designers work for hours to create
each scene from a CGI influencer’s life. On their social media channels, CGI influencers
can be seen posing at exotic locations. Riding in on the curiosity that CGI influencers
evoke, many luxury brands have started collaborating with these social media
influencers.

Lil Miquela, one of the most popular CGI influencers on social media, has already
partnered with Calvin Klein, Diesel, and Prada.

Similarly, Shudu, another CGI influencer, has modeled for Fenty Beauty, Balmain, and
had also been featured in Cosmopolitan magazine and Vogue Australia.

CGI influencers are becoming increasingly popular for brands because they allow brands
to completely control how their products are advertised.

The unpredictability that comes with real-life social media influencers can be avoided.

So, where is the future going with CGI influencers? Adam Rivetz, the co-founder of the
influencer marketing company #paid, has an interesting take on the future of influencer
marketing.

He believes that social media influencers will use CGI technology to create their digital
avatars.

“They could make a duplicate version where it’s like, ‘This is my real-life feed where I
post certain things, but then here’s my avatar of myself where maybe I work with
different brands or do more risqué things,’” Rivetz said in an interview.

He added that we might get to see games, apps, and even social media sites involving
CGI influencers.

Emily Groom, accredited with the creation of CGI influencer, Lil Wavi, is also
optimistic about the future of influencer marketing.
 PART 2

Company/Organization Overview
A social media influencer is the mainstream, influential person in social media networks, who
promote products and services of a brand. You can also define social media influencer as a
person who works in a certain industry and collaborate with followers in it. It is also an
individual who is able to impact the individual’s purchases because of his authority or
relationship with target customers. He can have his own blog with a reliable audience or a
social media account, providing specific content interesting for his subscribers.

The goal of each business is to attract experts to the promotion of their products.
Studies show that you can gain $6.5 for each dollar invested in marketing activities online.
Instagram remains the most effective platform for reaching influencers – 87.1% of
them named it the main platform for their posts.

Social media influencer definition goes beyond the number of followers he can attract to your
social media network or website. Really crucial for your brand is his ability to build
engagement across with your core audience and strengthen it day-by-day.

Type 1. Sponsored partnership

Make a partnership with experts who will produce content in social media networks on your
behalf. In this case, social media influencers have to develop specific content concerning
your brand and place it on their social media account or blog. You have to make certain
recommendations concerning the type of content you require. Prepare a sort of technical task
for the blogger to understand the goals you aim to reach with this particular post.

Type 2. Guest blogging

In this strategy, you have to determine a set of creators who own blogs or websites with an
audience that belong to your niche. Ask them if they accept guest blogs on their websites.
When you reach a certain agreement, prepare an interesting article for them. It has to bring
valuable information to your customers and should not be promotional.

Type 3. Brand ambassador program

You can bring collaboration with influencers to the next level by asking them to become your
brand ambassadors. It means they will promote your product or service on a regular basis and
will become your brand representative. Experts can describe their regular application of the
brand’s service in their blogs and represent the brand at specific industry events.
Type 4. Takeover

You can allow the influencer to write from your account on the behalf of your brand. If he is
an expert in your niche, these posts might receive higher engagement than any others in your
social network. You can collaborate on a long term basis and provide the expert with full
access to your account or ask him to participate in a takeover during a particular marketing
campaign.

Social media influencers are a major force in digital marketing. They have risen in
prominence over the past decade, so this trend seems to have staying power. But why
should you include these people in your marketing strategy? Here are just a few reasons to
incorporate social media influencers into your marketing campaigns.

Influencers humanize your brand. As we touched on above, social media influencers are
relatable. An influencer’s success (and often livelihood) depends on connecting with his or
her audience. They want to be embraced by their viewers and/or followers, so most of them
need to prove that they are just like their viewers and/or followers. True, there are social
media influencers who seem more perfect than others, but even these models will put a face
to your brand. Whether an influencer is relatable or aspirational, your brand will be
humanized by the connection with a real person.

People trust peers more than companies. Who is more trustworthy: your neighbor or an
ad? Your boss or a commercial? A friendly acquaintance or an anonymous stranger? Time
and time again, studies have shown that people put more stock in the recommendations of
their peers than in a corporate advertisement. Experience is the best teacher, so why
wouldn’t you rely on an experienced source who you already trust? Even though followers
might not have ever had any personal interactions (i.e., meeting the influencer in person or
having an actual conversation with that person directly), they still see an influencer as their
peer.

Influencers are better able to reach an audience. Influencers already have a following of

their own. Likewise, they are already sharing content that relates to your brand or to your
brand’s industry. In short, their audiences are already interested in content just like yours!
Social media influencers will therefore be better equipped to reach your target audience
than traditional advertisements. Additionally, their audiences seek out the influencers
content. These followers are actively trying to engage and consume content that will help
further your branding and your marketing goals!

Influencers and marketers have long-term relationships. Social media influencers

should be part of your longterm strategy, not just one campaign. Influencers will likely
stick to the same or similar content and audiences over the course of several years: your
brand will be able to grow with them. You can actually build a relationship with an
influencer, using that influencer as a resource repeatedly.
 CHAPTER 3
Introduction of
problem/topic
Social media websites such as Youtube, Instagram, Twitter gave opportunities to common
people to earn fame and thereby resulted in the rise of social media influencers.Social media
influencers have a great impact on many people and especially youngsters. Even film
celebrities are collaborating with influencers to promote their films.

People trust social media influencers more than traditional celebrities because they are more
relatable having the image of a girl/boy next door. Followers and especially youngsters feel
closer to the influencers they follow because influencers interact with them frequently. And
hence many youngsters follow social media influencers religiously and are influenced by
what they say and promote.

As youngsters are spending more time on social media than people of other age groups, social
media influencers have more impact on youngsters than others.Brands are also preferring to
collaborate with social media influencers over traditional celebrities due to the influence they
have on youngsters, and also because the sponsored content is easily blended into the normal
content of influencers. Influencer marketing is on the rise and is affecting the purchasing
behaviour of youngsters. Moreover, youngsters are more likely to research the product before
buying. And they will check the reviews by the influencers they follow.

Some influencers do not mention whether the content they created is sponsored or not.
They promote products for money and mislead the youngsters. A few influencers are also
creating paid content in favour of political parties. As followers do not know that it is paid
content, they are likely to believe it and may get influenced. The food habits of the
youngsters are also shaping up by the influencers they follow.As influencers are creating
attention-grabbing content, several youngsters are wasting their precious time by watching
the content.

Some influencers fake perfect bodies and perfect lives. So, some youngsters are comparing
them with those influencers and are feeling insecure. This is resulting in low self-esteem,
mental health issues, cosmetic surgeries and materialism. This influences identity formation
too. Youngsters are listening to different world views and perspectives from social media
influencers. Some social media influencers genuinely review the products they used. By
watching their reviews, people are saving money and are avoiding bad purchases.

There are so many influencers on social media that promote positive things such as body
positivity, financial awareness, ethical values etc.
 CHAPTER 4
Objectives and Rationale of
the study
Influencer marketing is the idea of partnering with social media content creators, those with
key audiences on platforms like blogs, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube, Instagram,
and Vine, to help satisfy the consumer’s insatiable appetite for stories and opinions about
products they buy. The exploding industry is attracting millions of dollars from brands looking
for solutions that support them in scaling the creation and distribution of trusted consumer
content. Web-savvy consumers now require greater engagement and information before
making a purchase. Consumers want meaningful content and relevant information to help
them make purchase decisions and they want opinions from people they trust.
1: Most used social media platforms

2: Most followed category of social media influencers.

3: How often events are organized for advertisements or endorsements by social media influencers

4: Percentage of respondents who actually check out the product/service promoted by the social
media influencer
5: Consideration of a brand which is promoted by a social media influencer but is relatively new or
smaller.

6: Trust over reviews which are not sponsored.

 CHAPTER 5

Literature Review
Social media has disrupted
the entire world by
liberalizing the way people
exchange
information. Social media
enabled people to share
moments, thoughts, exchange
of
services and perform
transactions. Kaplan and
Haenlein (2010, p.61)
defined social
media as ‘a group of
internet-based applications
that build on the ideological
and
technological foundations of
web 2.0, and that allow the
creation and exchange of
user
generated content’. However
with the development and
evolvement of social media
this
definition being challenged by
scholars in their recent studies.
Mobile is the new way or
revolution spreading the
wings of social media and
‘Mobile 2.0’ is the new
buzzword,
which turns all application
of social media from
desktop PC to a mobile
handset.
(Lamberton & Stephen , 2016)
Social media has disrupted
the entire world by
liberalizing the way people
exchange
information. Social media
enabled people to share
moments, thoughts, exchange
of
services and perform
transactions. Kaplan and
Haenlein (2010, p.61)
defined social
media as ‘a group of
internet-based applications
that build on the ideological
and
technological foundations of
web 2.0, and that allow the
creation and exchange of
user
generated content’. However
with the development and
evolvement of social media
this
definition being challenged by
scholars in their recent studies.
Mobile is the new way or
revolution spreading the
wings of social media and
‘Mobile 2.0’ is the new
buzzword,
which turns all application
of social media from
desktop PC to a mobile
handset.
(Lamberton & Stephen , 2016)
Social media has disrupted
the entire world by
liberalizing the way people
exchange
information. Social media
enabled people to share
moments, thoughts, exchange
of
services and perform
transactions. Kaplan and
Haenlein (2010, p.61)
defined social
media as ‘a group of
internet-based applications
that build on the ideological
and
technological foundations of
web 2.0, and that allow the
creation and exchange of
user
generated content’. However
with the development and
evolvement of social media
this
definition being challenged by
scholars in their recent studies.
Mobile is the new way or
revolution spreading the
wings of social media and
‘Mobile 2.0’ is the new
buzzword,
which turns all application
of social media from
desktop PC to a mobile
handset.
(Lamberton & Stephen , 2016)
Social media has disrupted
the entire world by
liberalizing the way people
exchange
information. Social media
enabled people to share
moments, thoughts, exchange
of
services and perform
transactions. Kaplan and
Haenlein (2010, p.61)
defined social
media as ‘a group of
internet-based applications
that build on the ideological
and
technological foundations of
web 2.0, and that allow the
creation and exchange of
user
generated content’. However
with the development and
evolvement of social media
this
definition being challenged by
scholars in their recent studies.
Mobile is the new way or
revolution spreading the
wings of social media and
‘Mobile 2.0’ is the new
buzzword,
which turns all application
of social media from
desktop PC to a mobile
handset.
(Lamberton & Stephen , 2016)
Social media has disrupted
the entire world by
liberalizing the way people
exchange
information. Social media
enabled people to share
moments, thoughts, exchange
of
services and perform
transactions. Kaplan and
Haenlein (2010, p.61)
defined social
media as ‘a group of
internet-based applications
that build on the ideological
and
technological foundations of
web 2.0, and that allow the
creation and exchange of
user
generated content’. However
with the development and
evolvement of social media
this
definition being challenged by
scholars in their recent studies.
Mobile is the new way or
revolution spreading the
wings of social media and
‘Mobile 2.0’ is the new
buzzword,
which turns all application
of social media from
desktop PC to a mobile
handset.
(Lamberton & Stephen , 2016)
Social media has disrupted
the entire world by
liberalizing the way people
exchange
information. Social media
enabled people to share
moments, thoughts, exchange
of
services and perform
transactions. Kaplan and
Haenlein (2010, p.61)
defined social
media as ‘a group of
internet-based applications
that build on the ideological
and
technological foundations of
web 2.0, and that allow the
creation and exchange of
user
generated content’. However
with the development and
evolvement of social media
this
definition being challenged by
scholars in their recent studies.
Mobile is the new way or
revolution spreading the
wings of social media and
‘Mobile 2.0’ is the new
buzzword,
which turns all application
of social media from
desktop PC to a mobile
handset.
(Lamberton & Stephen , 2016)
The Internet is a driver for e-commerce in the world nowadays. Surely, one of the most major
changes in this decade is the revolution in communication technology and its effect on the
way users now relate with companies. There are several advantages to using social media as a
marketing tool for entrepreneurs, suggest that Facebook and Twitter grow to be fully
assimilated into our life, becoming an indispensable part of our lifestyles and a norm of
activities to do.  postulate that the pace and ease at which information now spreads and goes
viral has resulted in better consumer empowerment.

According to the, internet users continue to rise to 28.7 million users. Overall, users spent 6.6
hours online in a day. Visiting social networking platforms such as WhatsApp and Facebook
are the most popular activities among Internet users. The main explanation with regards to
these changes in users’ behaviour is the volume of content shared among online consumers.
Despite the importance of social media and the promising capability of social media as a
marketing tool, scant research has been conducted on this topic. Existing social media
research for a business purpose has primarily been conducted at the big firm rather than
focusing on the adoption of social media for entrepreneurs especially in small and medium
enterprises (SMEs). The current level, patterns, and factors influencing the adoption of social
media as a marketing tool are still unknown, especially from Malaysia’s perspective.

The concept of influencer marketing has emerged. Influencer marketing is the process in
which brands identify and approach influencers and encourage them to endorse a brand or
specific products through their social media activities. Influencers are regular social media
users who have developed a wide audience by displaying a digital image of themselves to a
mass audience on a social media platform. Brands are realizing the immense potential of this
‘new form’ of celebrity endorsement. Since influencer marketing is at a nascent stage, there
has been very limited academic focus and almost no systematic literature review has been
conducted on this topic. Hence our study sets out to systematically review peer- reviewed
articles from 2012 onwards. In particular, we focus on the impact of some key aspects of
influencer marketing, namely, effect of influencers, product-related content and sponsorship
disclosure on purchase intention. We found that, while influencers and sponsorship disclosure
has been found to positively impact purchase intention, the exact impact of product-related
content remains ambiguous. From these findings, we derive a comprehensive list of
recommendations for future research. We contribute to research at the crossroads of studies
on social media and marketing communications by proposing a research agenda and
addressing methodological approaches that can provide a good reference point for further
research. Practically, this study offers insights for marketers and businesses interested in
adopting influencer marketing, and people who want to become influencers. Influencer
marketing has emerged as one of the fastest-growing social marketing practices as brand
marketers look to connect with consumers and customers in meaningful and authentic ways
often through the collective voice of active bloggers that are passionate and vocal about the
brands they love. It represents a form of Word of Mouth marketing, which we define as an
unpaid form of promotion – oral or written- in which satisfied consumers tell other people how
much they like a product, service, business or event.  
 CHAPTER 6
Hypothesis,
Methods/Methodology
adopted for the study
Hypothesis
Current research shows that an effective social media campaign will promote the business
and its brand along with its products and services while encouraging the audience and target
market to engage with the business and its brand through comments, images, videos and a
range of other multimedia. Effective posts, especially on Twitter, “are make-or-break text in
terms of portraying a message from a firm [business/brand], so businesses must be extra
prudent and strategic in the design and execution of their content in order to motivate and
sway their followers. Additionally, effective posts will implement different message
strategies based on whether they are promoting products or services. Effective posts that
market services develop brand images and use emotional appeals to connect with target
audiences. The idea is to develop a web presence that allows us to positively interact with our
audience through posts, links to content, images and videos while reinforcing the image our
brand. As David Aaker states in his article, “the brand is special because it explicitly and
unambiguously represents an organization as well as a product.” The quality and quantity of
our content will reflect our dedication to our audience. Additionally, Aaker goes on to state
that the challenges of developing and maintaining the brand manifest in “staying relevant,
creating value propositions, managing negative associations, adapting the brand to different
contexts, and making the brand identity happen.” The idea here is to differentiate our services
from those that already exist in the same and to deploy our content in a way that draws
audience members to our site first rather than seeking the information and services we
provide elsewhere. Before posting and creating content, students were asked to consider the
following questions:
● What problem are our services and brand a solution to?
● Why will our information be a more reliable and credible source for information and what
is our ability to deliver this type of content?
● How is our content different from what is already out there?
● How are we going to deal with negative interactions on our social media accounts and
website?
● How can we stay consistent with our brand identity while promoting the variety of our
information (films, actors, filmmakers, history, trivia, bar specials)? A variety of contexts
gives us the responsibility to be the best source of information each day for each type of
information we are providing.
● Why will audiences want to revisit our content for the latest information?
● What is going to resonate with our audience that will trigger our content as useful and
enjoyable information?