Majority of Businesses Expected to Significantly Boost Influencer Marketing Budgets in 2016

As more companies turn to influencer marketing to attract new customers, research indicates that they will expand their budgets in 2016. In fact, research from Grapevine Logic shows that more than half of businesses will significantly increase their influencer marketing budget in the coming months.

Grapevine Logic quotes a Forbes article in its findings which states, “The growth of influencer marketing will be huge in the years ahead, and with barriers like ad blockers interrupting traditional advertising, marketing budgets in 2016 will see a shift toward earned media — especially earned media through influencer marketing.”

The findings are based on responses from more than 40 of Grapevine’s existing partners. Some were new to influencer marketing, while others were seasoned influencer marketing campaign strategists.

In total, more than 80 percent of respondents said they were planning to increase their influencer marketing budget by some margin.

Influencers’ Impact on B2B Marketing

A report published by IDC and Salesforce in May 2015 revealed that many B2B customers are swayed by influencers in their lives. The “Selling to the Information-Driven Business” study revealed that 38 percent are influenced by professional colleagues and their network. About 16 percent are impacted by internal influencers, while 22 percent are persuaded by industry experts.

This is not the first report to show that prospects and customers can be influenced by outside sources. The IMB Institute for Business Value shared similar data in March 2015, indicating that millennials are specifically impacted by influencers.

Researchers found that 36 percent of millennials weigh the opinions of friends or family before making a B2B purchase. This makes them a more “social” demographic than baby boomers.

Additionally, 93 percent of millennials claimed that they made a purchase after hearing about a product from a friend or family member.