Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), the self-regulating body for the Indian advertisement world, has made it mandatory for the influencers to disclose the financial or material benefits they have obtained from an advertiser for putting up a post. Here comes the question, does this initiative likely to change Influencer Marketing forever?
Deepak Sakhuja, the co-founder of Ripple Links – a digital influencer marketing agency that functions along with top brands such Nestle; Sakhuja, said that from June 14, the influencers should make use of the tags such as advertisement, ad (well known), collaboration, employee, sponsored, partnership, free gift, etc., to make disclosures revealing the content being paid for by a brand.
However, influencers have remarked that the posts with such tags will reach far less than any organic posts. Organic posts travel the best on the same day or the day after, regardless of a picture or video. Sonali Mitra, a fashion and lifestyle influencer with 1,66,000 followers, said, “But when I put branded content, I am not satisfied with the reach.”
Authentic touch
Experts said that the guidelines influence the very nature of the business. Prashant Puri, the CEO, and co-founder of AdLift – a digital marketing firm, says that the editorial touch and feel of Influencer Marketing is one of the main reasons for its success. Puri added, “Now, with a callout of an ad, brands will start to look at it as advertorial versus editorial.”
According to a report of Buzzoka on influencer marketing, after implementing the ASCI guidelines, the marketers and brands said that the primary obstacle for influencer marketing was control over the content that makes the influencer marketing look more like an out-and-out ad.
Ishita Mithrani and Rahul Kalra of The Street Stalkers said, “The consumers want organic stuff,” The Street Stalkers is a fashion and lifestyle account with 1,10,000 followers on Instagram.
Solution for this issue
Puri said, “The messaging is key now,” for which both Mithrani and Kalra agree and added, “We will have to make the branded content more and more creative to retain the interest of the viewer.”
Also, now they plan to increase the number of organic posts they upload on their social media account. They said, “Earlier, we used to have a 40-60 ratio for paid posts and organic content. Now we plan to do a 30-70,” adding that they might have to make the branded posts much more pleasant, in a profoundly meaningful or relatable storyline in its backdrop apart from simply concentrating on promoting the brand among the followers.
Growing Industry
Puri is convinced that influencer marketing has its space in the realm of digital marketing since it has proved to be ROI-driven. He added, “And it will remain there. It is going to keep growing between 5-15%.”
According to the report, “Over 90% of marketers said that despite the restrictions, they will still work with influencers and increase their spending,” The Influencer Marketing Outlook 2021-22 by Buzzoka seconds this.
Nevertheless, the relationship they had with the influencers has gone through a transformation for sure. Earlier, brands were uncompromising about the portrayal of their products; most of the time, the influencers had to adhere to the scripts shared by the brands. An influencer who wants to remain anonymous has stated, “But post the guidelines, we have done some beautiful campaigns, and brands don’t want us to do in-the-face marketing.”
The Street Stalkers said, “Earlier, the brand would have wanted the product to be shown for 40 seconds at least.” Hence, after the ASCI’s new guidelines came into effect, the brand appeared only for 15-20 seconds in a 59 seconds video of The Street Stalkers.
Mitra says that now the Brands will have to depend on the creativity of the content creator, giving more power to the creators. She added, “Since the declaration has to be there, it will no longer mislead the follower. My relationship with the followers strengthens.”
Shahir Muneer, the founder and director of Divo – a digital media agency, said, “This is a segment very relevant to the advertising industry, and it is evolving fast in India.”
Marketers and content creators see these guidelines as part of the evolution depending on how ASCI intends to carry out these guidelines.
