A Tangerine Communications project
The role of influencers in built
Index
> The history of the influencer
> But this is business (to business)
> Influencers vs the influential
> The democratisation of the rostrum
> Why are influencers on the rise in B2B?
> What is an influencer in B2B terms?
> How you should use influencers in built environment marketing
> The future of influencer marketing in the built environment
Summary
Influencers have been proclaimed as a 21st century marketing phenomenon.
Part of our everyday language and a contender for the Collins Dictionary 2019 word of the year, the influencer has revolutionised mainstream marketing strategies with brands such as Estée Lauder reportedly spending 75% of their marketing budgets on sponsored content.
But are influencers anything new?
In this report, we chart the rise of the influencer, explore the democratisation of ‘influence’ with the growth of social media and explore the role of the influencer in business to business (B2B) communications.
Using research findings gathered from built environment professionals and the words and insights of those dubbed influencers themselves, we consider the opportunities and pitfalls of B2B influencer marketing, the impact of coronavirus on the relationships between influencers and their communities, and predict its the future evolution of B2B influencer marketing in a period of great societal change.
Most crucially, we highlight how influencers are definitely not just a consumer ‘thing’ and built environment brands that dismiss the power of the industry influencer could be missing out on a highly effective channel to reach and connect with audiences - particularly in times of crisis and uncertainty.
From Stoke-On-Trent to Beverley Hills: the history of the influencer
(ˈɪnflʊənsə)
NOUN
a person who uses social media to promote lifestyle choices, commercial products, etc to his or her followers
2019 was, arguably, the year of the influencer.
Globally, businesses spent around $8 billion [1] of their marketing budgets on paid partnerships and Google Trends saw an exponential rise in the term across its search engine.
2019 also saw an update to the word’s meaning to include the above definition, placing it decidedly in a digital and commercial space.
While last year may have been the moment the term was preserved in an online world by lexicographers, influencing is nothing new.
(ˈɪnflʊənsə)
NOUN
any person or thing that exerts an influence
Michael Jordan’s $2.5m deal with Nike to create Air Jordans and Jennifer Anniston’s partnership with L’Oreal Elvive are just some examples of celebrity endorsements that pre-date mainstream social media.
Yet as early 1760, there's a record of one of the first influencer collaborations when Stoke-On-Trent potter Josiah Wedgwood made a tea set for Queen Charlotte. The partnership’s success and his subsequent fame led to him describing himself as the ‘potter to her majesty’.
Even earlier than this, influence referred to ‘the radiation of an ethereal fluid from the stars, regarded as affecting human actions and destinies’ and was an astrological term. While a definition not widely used today, the effects of a different type of star on our choices and actions has endured.
But this is business (to business)
Undoubtedly, influencer partnerships have become a mainstay of a robust consumer marketing strategy and the profile of the influencer is most commonly understood in a consumer context.
But do influencers have a place in business to business (B2B) communications? And, in particular, built environment marketing?
Putting the ‘human into B2B’ has long been a mantra of the sector – whether that's something which has been achieved or not is up for debate and definitely varies from brand to brand.
But the adage ‘people buy from people’ is as true of B2B brands or corporate industries as it is the consumer sell.
Influencers are not just a consumer marketing phenomenon. And as with its consumer counterpart, the role of a respected figure on shaping opinion, action or a purchase is equally nothing new.
Talk to Tangerine about influencers today
Influencers vs the influential
Sharing the views and opinions of a company’s chief exec, researcher or head of innovation has been a B2B marketing tactic since the late 1990s, just under a different title.
In 1994, Joel Kurtzman, editor-in-chief of US magazine Strategy & Business coined the phrase ‘thought leader’ as someone recognised “by peers, customers and industry experts[…] who deeply understands the business they are in, the needs of their customers and the broader marketplace in which they operate. They have distinctively original ideas, unique points of view and new insights.”
For many years, we’ve read the viewpoints of CEOs in broadsheets, listened to speakers at industry events or even bought and studied the books of lauded business leaders.
Although the role of influencers in a B2B context is still developing, when asked, business professionals are not constrained by fame or celebrity in their definition of an influencer. In fact, according to a survey of built environment leaders [4], 44% defined an influencer as a ‘credible expert in a particular industry or sector’, versus just 20% who said a celebrity paid to promote a product.
What has changed since the late 1990s however, is the evolution of social media and in turn, the channels through which CEOs and business experts can share and air their views.
Industry influencer and Chief Executive of the UK Green Building Council (UKGBC), Julie Hirigoyen (@JHirigoyen) who was interviewed as part of this report, agrees with the opportunity social media brings, as well as it being an extension of more traditional networking and influencing:
“[There’s] more opportunity now that social media channels are so prevalent …I think given the nature of what I do, I’m constantly trying to influence, I’m trying to get people to change, to adopt a more sustainable mindset and set of actions. It’s in my DNA.”
The democratisation of the rostrum
Until the dawn of social media, the platforms via which an individual or organisation could share a viewpoint, recommendation or even simple information were somewhat limited.
Newspapers, radio, trade press and events were the key ways for brands to communicate and word of mouth almost the only means for an individual to give their endorsement.
When the internet, forums and social media became part of our daily lives in the 2000s, that changed.
Now, the pace at which we can share information has increased exponentially. “When I first started in TV, we’d explore trends in design and it would take six months before it aired,” said Oliver Heath, expert in architectural and interior design (@Oliver_Heath). “Today, it’s much more immediate. You can discuss and communicate more rapidly…there are more places to draw influence from.”
As well as this greater immediacy, every individual or business now also has the potential to become an influencer or an opinion former, share their views or give their backing to something they’re passionate about.
And revealingly, a fifth of respondents in our survey stated that they have aspired to be an influencer themselves.
Why are influencers on the rise in B2B?
Our research found that 58% of respondents believe the role of influencers is set to get bigger in B2B.
But what is making influencers increasingly popular in our industry and driving their ability to affect opinion and decisions?
Research carried out by Tangerine in conjunction with Competitive Advantage, as part of its renowned Construction Media Index, may hold some of the answers. [5]
Assessing the impact of influencers across industry sub-sectors an interesting pattern emerges. Take main contractors in the construction industry for example.
Typically, main contractor employees are part of large organisations, have lots of peers who they work alongside and are supported by internal recognition structures. Working in this environment, it might not be surprising that just 2% stated they currently follow industry influencers.
Conversely, trades such as plumbers often work for themselves or in isolation and tend to reach the ceiling of their progression early on. Here industry-specific influencers have a much greater role, with one of the most prominent in the sector – Plumberparts (@plumberparts) – having more YouTube subscribers than there are registered plumbers in the UK.
This is something confirmed by fellow plumbing influencer, Andy Cam (@cosywarmplumber) who has 39k followers on Twitter: “My role is to help and show people…[plumbers] have a strong sense of community. It's diverse but we want to be all together.”
In isolated industries such as construction trades, which, for many years have relied on learning informally on the job and peer-to-peer recommendation, it’s clear to see how social media influencers are the natural next step when sole traders are looking for sources of help and advice.
Considering the role of influencers as a driving force for change, Julie Hirigoyen also believes its prevalence is more societal, political, as well as individual:
“I think [influencers] are absolutely crucial at this point in time…We know we’re facing unprecedented change and at an unprecedented pace… whether it be digital transformation, robotic technology, environmental degradation. I think the role of influencer is in being able to cut through and encourage positive change, positive action and somewhat disruptive thinking, to enable people to navigate all of that change in a constructive way.”
In practice: trade attitudes to influencers in lockdown
In 2020, coronavirus altered the very fabric of our society.
Our day-to-day lives changed overnight, with our homes morphing into workspaces, while also providing us with protection and sanctuary. During lockdown we saw a massive digital shift across every aspect of life, whether it was catching up with friends and family on video calls, communicating with colleagues or just entertaining ourselves. To gain insight into this new world, and how it was impacting the lives of tradespeople who rely on being able to go and work in people’s homes, we carried out fresh research and listened to the stories of people on the tools.
A third told us that almost immediately, their usage of digital channels and social media increased significantly, as they tried to keep up with the latest updates, communicate with peers and loved ones, and understand this profound change to their way of life.
This is where trusted trade influencers really came into their own, providing industry-specific advice around working (or not in some cases) during lockdown. Their videos and social media content helped their audience get to grips with the new and ever-changing government and industry guidance.
We saw this relationship play out on Wavin’s plumbing arm, Hep2O. Instead of distributing advice and guidance as a brand, we tapped into key plumbing influencers to share their genuine experiences. This in turn began a conversation which encouraged the audience to share its stories – and from there, we showcased these ordinary trade heroes at work.
Ultimately, this helped to position Hep2O as a mouthpiece for the industry, rather than a brand trying to dictate key messages or one that was set on sharing “business as usual” content. This in turn engendered – more genuine engagement and trust from real plumbers.
Talk to Tangerine about influencers today
What is an influencer in B2B terms?
While social media has contributed to the democratisation of opinion sharing and allowed people to communicate their views and advice more easily, just having a platform isn't enough. And especially in B2B.
As part of our research with decision-makers in the built environment, we asked how they’d define an influential online personality and over 40% said ‘a credible expert in a particular industry or sector’, closely followed by ‘people with the ability to attract the right people to your brand service or product.’
When asked what they think it takes to be an industry influencer, respondents said their top five attributes were:
As these results show, success as a built environment influencer is about more than just the capability to or the frequency at which you share views and information. It’s about having a rounded skill set that is focused on knowledge and trust.
Compared to influencers in a consumer context, it also isn’t solely about popularity and follower numbers. In fact, just three respondents out of 99 surveyed mentioned follower numbers as an attribute of an influential online industry personality, something that makes them very distinct from the ‘internet famous’.
Trust became a more critical issue than ever in light of coronavirus.
In a post-lockdown survey with real tradespeople, 37% told us the reason they headed to social media in their droves during this time was for advice from trusted industry influencers.
As these influencers are adept at showing their tips and methods in practice, through clear video and photography content, 60% of our tradespeople said they found this advice important (with 20% of this number saying they found it “very important”).
While trust has always been an important part of the tradesperson/influencer relationship, the fact that they were often delivering content on how to safely carry out work during the pandemic made it a make-or-break factor. It takes a significant level of trust to go to a particular person or influencer for advice which can affect your health and safety at work.
Influencers who were prepared to take on this vital role were rewarded with heightened trust from their audiences, with 13% of our tradespeople saying that lockdown only served to increase their level of trust.
Lockdown has thus cemented the fact that trust and relevance trumps popularity and follower numbers in the minds of a B2B audience.
Followers do not equal influence
As is the case in more traditional B2B marketing, a successful industry influencer doesn’t have to reach all the people, just the right people. As a result, many successful B2B influencers are more likely to fall into the ‘nano’ category of influencer segmentation.
Instead, what’s more important in a B2B space is engagement and the ratio of followers versus those who like, click or share a person’s content.
Breaking this down further, you can split successful B2B influencers into two groups:
The experts and opinion formers: those who have built their status based on knowledge. This status is likely to exist on and offline. They’re likely to have a large but niche network, with the genuine trust of their followers.
The advocates: those who share their interests and views on products, brands or industries on social media within their niche community. Their position is often based on honesty and credility, with followers knowing they’ll get the truth
“I suppose I’ve got to admit now, I am an influencer…I’ve been a plumber for 40 years, I’ve had my own business for 28 years. So I’ve got a bit of authority.”
Perceptions of influencers
While 2019 may have been the year of 'peak' influencer, it was arguably also the year when the perceptions of influencers have taken a hit.
A lack of transparency around paid-for posts saw the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) introduce new guidelines around partnerships, and new terminology like ‘influencer fraud’ – the title given to those who inflate their statistics by buying followers, likes or clicks to secure marketing deals – were invented.
While the immediacy of social media has proven a great opportunity to share information, trends and have a quick-fire discussion, the ease of pressing send has also been the downfall of influencers in recent years. "It takes a lifetime to build a reputation, but just a tweet to ruin it", said architectural designer and industry influencer, Oliver Heath.
In fact, the declining reputation of the influencer has seen many try to turn away from the term, instead calling themselves ‘content creators’.
When interviewing our three industry professionals, there was reticence to be labelled as an influencer, yet whether this is due to its reputation or if these experts feel they fall into the same category as Zoella or Saffron Baker, is open to interpretation. “I’m a recognised expert on certain topics,” Oliver added, “so I guess I am an influencer?.’
Exploring the reputation of influencers in a B2B environment further, the results are mixed.
Built environment decision-makers side with the wider public perception, stating they dislike the 'selling out', 'fake news' and biased recommendations associated with influencer culture.
Drilling down into the construction industry specifically, findings from our research with Competitive Advantage revealed that housebuilders rank the trustworthiness of influencers at an average of 5.8 out of ten, while plumbers and architects place it at 6.5.
But conversely, contractors rank their trust of influencers at 8 out of ten, and in our study of the Futurebuild database, a quarter of respondents had recommended an industry influencer to a colleague or friend.
Results also found that LinkedIn and Twitter are the two most popular channels for following influencers, with half of respondents using LinkedIn for this purpose.
These conflicting results from the built environment sector back-up the belief that different audience groups have different views on influencers based on their role and working life. More broadly, it also shows that B2B audiences recognise industry influencers as a distinct entity from the more consumer idea of an influencer and as such, have a more positive than negative perception.
How you should use influencers in built environment marketing
Despite the negative perceptions of influencers in a consumer context, the positive impact of influencers in built environment communities far outweigh the negatives.
A study by TapInfluence, for instance, found that influencer marketing content delivers a return on investment that’s 11 times higher than traditional forms of digital marketing [6].
Likewise, research shows that 19% of the overall US economy (B2B and B2C) is driven specifically by word of mouth, but 91% of B2B transactions are at least impacted by word of mouth to some degree [7]. This suggests that in fact, the opportunity and potential role of influencers in marketing campaigns is much larger in B2B than in more saturated consumer spaces.
While the statistics are convincing, a challenge faced by built environment marketers is knowing where to start, and especially in a space that, at times, can feel volatile and open to criticism.
Knowing your audience
Influencer marketing should be considered as part and parcel of any rounded marketing communications strategy, and as always, it must start with the audience first. Think about who you want to target, where they source their information and who they trust.
If your audience has a positive perception of industry figures, find out who influences them and who they look to for support and advice.
You might find there are individuals or organisations who are perfect partners, or you might find an opportunity to build an online profile for someone already in your business. Perhaps they’re well regarded in their sector, but haven’t made the leap to online? Consider how you can support them in building their social media presence and driving engagement.
Think beyond the follows
While reach should be considered when identifying influencers to work with, levels of engagement are much more important. As B2B often involves more niche audience groups, it’s unlikely partners will have macro levels of followers. What’s more important is that the influencer genuinely connects with your target audience group
Balance advocate and experts
Think about what you're trying to achieve. If your aim is to drive legislative change or stimulate high-level discussion, you might want to opt for an influencer more focused on opinion forming.
If you’re looking to build awareness of a product or build confidence and credibility in a new solution or way of working, grass-roots advocates might be better suited.
With influencers, credibility is key so it’s important that your partnership feels natural and authentic.
The future of influencer marketing in the built environment
So what does the future hold?
Research shows that influencers aren’t going anywhere. But there is an overwhelming trend towards greater authenticity, and in many forms.
Trust and transparency
Better transparency and truthfulness were cited as a growing trend by all of the industry influencers interviewed, perhaps as a direct response to declining authenticity that has been well publicised in consumer circles.
“Responsibility” was the word used by architectural designer, Oliver Heath, placing a similar moral duty on influencers as he would a journalist.
Likewise, Julie Hirigoyen questions whether social media has allowed for too much democratisation, making it hard to identify the genuine experts from those sharing an opinion, or worse, constructing a false narrative.
At a more grassroots level, plumbing influencer, Andy Cam also shared this view saying that some influencers will say "anything they're paid to", yet professional communities are quick to identify the genuine from the fake.
Robustness and rigour
As a direct result of trends such as influencer fraud, the coming years will also see marketing teams approaching influencer selection with greater rigour and insight – the same approach they would ordinarily take in selecting any other marketing channel.
Influencer marketing experts also believe that businesses will take a step away from quantitative results of influencer marketing campaigns, in favour of more qualitative measures. Following the changes to Instagram with the removal of post likes, perhaps brands will begin to favour reporting more based on sentiment and perceptions?
Real and organic
The popularity of behind the scenes content and #instareality is a direct reaction to the curated perfection influencer feeds that the public is growing tired of. Taking this a step further, it’s likely that the power of influencer culture will shift even further into the hands of nano influencers and beyond.
'Organic influencers' have been lauded as the next big thing on social media, but again it's not a revolutionary concept.
Rather than relying on mega or macro-influencers, brands are seeing the power of real-life reviews from genuine customers who are taking to social media to recommend and endorse their products. Companies that openly encourage feedback mechanisms and provide platforms and communities for customers to share their experiences are reaping the rewards and creating powerful advocates (regardless of their follower numbers) in return.
[1] https://www.businessinsider.com/the-2019-influencer-marketing-report-2019
[2] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-44952480
[3] https://www.vuelio.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/UK-Bloggers-Survey-2019.pdf
[4] Futurebuild survey of 99 built environment professionals carried out on behalf of Tangerine in October 2019
[6] TapInfluence with Nielsen Catalina Solutions, 2016
[7] Research by University of Southern Mississippi