Introduction
“I do not regard advertising as entertainment or an art form, but as a medium of information.” These words were said by the famous David Ogilvy, aka “The Father of Advertising.”
Advertisements today are not simply limited to traditional platforms like televisions or newspapers. With the growing influence of social media and other online applications, ads can be crafted to cater to a wider audience.
Brands have to choose between either traditional or influencer marketing advertisement strategies to drive their sales. But do these strategies really sell? What are the possibilities and challenges? Let us dive deep to understand the differences better.
Distinct Features of Influencer Marketing Vs Traditional Advertising
Traditional advertisement employs a more classical approach to running commercials. Ads are produced to be published on television, radio, print, and display ads to reach a broad audience.
They are generally expensive to produce and carry a direct brand message, which is often impersonal or professional and can reach a wider audience.
Influencer Marketing: This strategy has brands working in collaboration with individuals who are social media influencers with a dedicated following on platforms like Insta, YouTube, or TikTok.
This is a more personalised endorsement and aims at the trust these influencers have built with their audience. Being a more targeted approach, this method is likely to have higher lead conversion rates.
Both traditional and influencer marketing come with their respective advantages and disadvantages as they differ in various parameters. Let’s look closer at these pros and cons.
| Parameters | Traditional | Influencer Marketing |
| Reach | Suitable for mass marketing.It can help build brand awareness among the general public.It can cater to a wider demographic in a shorter time span. | Suitable for targeted audiences.Influencers with specific niches make it possible to tailor audience-specific advertisements.Personal endorsement leads to higher engagement. |
| Cost and ROI | Demand a significant investment in media buying, production and long-term campaigns.Hard to measure ROI due to broader reach and less specific engagement data.High exposure on TV and in publications leads to strong brand awareness. | Generally cost-effective, especially for smaller brands.Being direct-to-consumer, they are likely to have a higher ROI.Clicks, conversions and brand mentions lead to higher performance. |
| Impact on Consumer-Behaviour | Builds brand image and consistency. Has long-term conversion possibilities.Less personal ads can create trust issues However, these ads can create the impression that the brand is a key player in their specific segment.Has long-term influence. | Influencers have dedicated fans and followers who trust their opinions and views. Hence a greater conversion rate.Influencers can provide social validation for brands that are more desired.It cannot guarantee long-term customer loyalty. |
Clicks vs. Commercials: A Case Study on the Impact of Influencer Marketing vs. Traditional Advertising
We will take a closer peek at two great examples of brands that approached traditional and influencer marketing strategies to advertise their product. We can see how each individual brand benefited from it.
1. Share a Coke by Coca-Cola
In 2011, Coca-Cola launched a new Ad campaign in Australia where they de-branded their traditional “Coke” logo by replacing the “Coca-Cola” from one side of the bottle with “Share a Coke with” followed by a person’s name.
They used 250 of the most generic names in the country to be printed on their bottles, like,
“Share a Coke with Kate”
They ran traditional advertisements on TV, print media and display ads. The advertisement took Australia by storm as people felt a personal touch to the Coke brand.
Statistics say that 50% of teens in Australia had never tasted Coca-Cola, but this specific ad campaign resulted in a 7% increase in the consumption of Coke amongst young adults, and 5% more people were drinking Coke overall.
The sales for Coca-Cola increased by 3%, and volume increased by 4%. The whole campaign indirectly resulted in an 870% increase in Facebook traffic.
The success in Australia led Coca-Cola to roll out this ad campaign to 80 other countries, increasing its massive sales worldwide.
Also Check – How To Grow Your Business With Influencer Marketing
2. Mamaearth’s Influencer Marketing Success
Founded in 2016, Mamaearth positioned itself as a “safe and toxin-free” skincare product. Mamaearth started off with mother and baby products and slowly expanded into skincare.
Their Motto
Their motto is to make eco-friendly and organic skincare products that are targeted towards urban consumers focused on health and wellness- parents and millennials.
Their Strategy
Mamaearth’s marketing strategy includes collaboration with both macro-influencers (large-scale influencers) and micro-influencers (those with smaller but more engaged followings). Their target consumer ranges from parents looking for safe baby products to millennials interested in natural skincare.
Their Platform Engagement
They focussed primarily on platforms such as Instagram, YouTube and Tik-Tok before it was banned in India. Influencers who used this product would share their story of how they had a skin issue resolved after they started using Mamaearth products.
These influencers are required to make engaging content showing their daily skincare routine using organic products by Mamaearth.
Indirect Influencer Engagement
Mamaearth has also benefited from indirect influencer marketing as well. Sometimes, an influencer shares their skincare routines, and they happen to be using Mamaearth, and they share a positive thought about using the brand, resulting in an indirect advertisement which was not endorsed by the company.
Having an influencer marketing strategy has helped the brand reach its target audience better, which has also led to an increase in word-of-mouth marketing.
Overall Impact for the Brand
Today, Mamaearth is one of the top brands in India for organic skincare products. It has an expanding market in UAE, Singapore, Nepal, Maldives, and Mauritius.
Mamaearth has also onboarded Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty as a notable shareholder and product ambassador. Influencer marketing built Mamaearth up to what it is today.
The brand was built on Influencer marketing that allowed it to build trust and establish itself as an innovative, consumer-first brand in a crowded personal care market.
They are now using this success to venture into traditional ad marketing to capture a larger market share—it all comes full circle for Mamaearth.
Choosing the Marketing Strategy for Your Brand
Choosing the right marketing strategy for your specific brand can depend on factors like the product, its uses and its target consumer.
The Influencer Marketing Route
- If you want to choose an influencer marketing strategy, then your product should appeal to a younger audience and a niche market.
- It should be something that can be sold directly to customers, and the product should likely benefit from personal recommendations.
- Influencer marketing is greatly effective for brands that are looking to build authenticity and engagement with low production costs.
The Traditional Marketing Route
- Traditional advertising is better if you want your brand to reach out to a broad demographic.
- It is good for establishing brand authority and ideal for large companies with a reasonable advertising budget.
- Traditional best serves brands that offer a consistent message in their specific industry and have prospects for reaching a large market in the future.
The Hybrid Marketing Approach
- It is ideal to have a hybrid approach that combines both traditional and influencer collaborations.
- As we saw in the example of Mamaearth, they started off with influencer collaborations, and as the brand expanded, they invested in traditional advertising to reach a wider audience.
It all comes down to each company’s long-term and short-term goals to determine the type of advertisement they have to endorse to increase their visibility and sales. Long-term goals can be focussed on increasing brand authenticity and visibility, which will require traditional advertising.
Short-term goals like increasing sales during a festive season can incorporate both influencer marketing and traditional marketing to create awareness about offers.
Also Check – 10 Myths About Influencer Marketing
BuzzFame- Your Influencer Marketing Partner
Influencer Marketing requires a clear market study and a good understanding of your potential customers. Finding the niche influencer that best fits your product and represents your brand can be quite a tedious task.
BuzzFame helps entrepreneurs find their niche audience and connect with them by finding the right influencer to represent their brand. Are you looking for a celebrity, fashion/lifestyle, tech, food or mom influencer?—BuzzFame has you covered.
BuzzFame helps brands reach new audiences and boost key metrics. We are renowned for designing influencer campaigns that have been proven to increase site traffic, sales, and content engagement for companies in various industries.
If you are an influencer with a credible following and a dedicated audience, you can find opportunities to work with BuzzFame.
Visit our website or contact us to know more.
Takeaway
- Brands have to choose between a traditional and influencer marketing advertisement strategy to sell their products.
- Traditional advertising can help build brand awareness among the general public.
- Influencer marketing, being more personal, can quickly lead to conversions and sales.
- Traditional advertising offers a long-term influence on the consumer, whereas influencer marketing cannot guarantee customer loyalty.
- Choosing a hybrid marketing approach can help establish a brand name and lead to conversions.
- BuzzFame is a one-stop solution for brands to build an Influencer marketing strategy to boost brand identity and sales.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Is influencer marketing more effective than traditional advertising?
Influencer marketing often has a higher level of credibility and trust compared to traditional advertising.
2. Do people trust influencers more than ads?
Nearly 50 percent of millennials around the world have found that they engage more with influencer recommendations than regular advertisements.
3. What is the success rate of influencer marketing?
There is a 78% success rate for influencer marketing.
4. Do Gen Z consumers trust influencers?
55% of Gen Z trust influencers over traditional advertising campaigns.
5. When should I choose traditional advertisement?
If your brand has the budget and wishes to reach out to a wider audience, then you should go with the traditional advertising strategy.
