• Some brands plan to launch influencer-marketing campaigns in the coming months after an industry slowdown, but sales are not the top priority.
  • In a new report, the influencer-marketing agency Linqia looked at how the pandemic has shifted strategies and plans for 59 marketers and agency professionals. 
  • Thirty-two percent of the marketers surveyed said appearing insensitive was the top concern in their marketing strategy right now.
  • For those planning to run influencer-marketing campaigns, getting the right creative and message was listed as the "most important" objective for 63% of respondents. Sales came in at 0%.
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Forty-one percent of marketers plan to hire influencers over the next few months, but driving sales isn't a priority, according to a new survey.
In a recent report, the influencer-marketing agency Linqia looked at how the pandemic has shifted marketing strategies and plans. The agency analyzed data collected in May from 59 marketers and agency professionals.
Once social-distancing measures began to take effect in the US in March, many influencers and brands took a break from sponsored social media posts, and brands postponed influencer-led campaigns.
Nearly all of the marketers surveyed by Linqia said the pandemic changed their Q2 marketing strategy. But now that some parts of the US are opening back up, brands are beginning to plan upcoming campaigns, and 32% of the marketers surveyed said appearing insensitive was their top concern in their marketing strategy.
At the time of the survey, 41% of marketers said that they were planning to run an influencer-marketing campaign in the next two months.
Here were what they listed as "most important" objective in the Linqia survey:
  • Right creative and message: 63%
  • Engagement: 21%
  • Awareness: 17%
  • Sales: 0%
Many brands have adjusted their messaging on social media in recent months (and weeks), and have begun establishing new ways of engaging with influencers in an effort to avoid appearing insensitive, both with regards to the pandemic and the ongoing protests against racism and police violence.