It's important for brands to carefully choose which (and how many) influencers they work with, as these partnerships have a significant impact on their reputation and bottom line. At Valeria Inc. we’ve performed over 300 brand / influencer partnerships with Valeria Lipovetsky alone (total audience size, over 6.5M), ranging from a single Instagram story frame to yearlong ambassadorship with multiple deliverables per month.
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With our brand partners, we’re seeing that the haphazard shotgun approach of spraying budget across a multitude of influencers is changing due to the overall evolution of the influencer industry and the looming threat of a recession. A more responsible approach is necessary, although, according to our friends at J.P. Morgan, consumer spending is set to increase by 2% in 2023 as per the following passage from Economic Outlook 2023: Trends to Watch
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Considering the major components of GDP, we expect real consumer spending to rise approximately 2% in 2023, which assumes wage growth of 4-5%, inflation moderating to 3-4%, and further drawdown of excess accumulated pandemic savings.
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In the very recent past, it may have been lucrative to pay hundreds, or even thousands of influencers for individual posts to reach a wide range of consumers. However, as marketing budgets become tighter, brands need to consider investing a higher percentage of their budget into long-term partnerships with three or four key influencers rather than spreading the budget equally across all influencers.
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For example, if previously, a brand was working with 100 influencers and allotting 1% of their total marketing budget to each, we’re seeing a shift to this:
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One way for brands to ensure that they are working with the right influencers is to carefully assess their audience and the overall fit with their brand. Brands should look for influencers who have a large and engaged following that aligns with their target market, as well as those who have a track record of creating high-quality content that resonates with their audience.
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Additionally, it's important for brands to consider the terms of their partnerships with influencers. Licensing agreements, which allow brands to have partial ownership of influencers' content and share it across their own accounts, may become a more common component of these partnerships. By including these agreements, brands can ensure that they have more control over the content that is being created and shared on their behalf.
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Overall, carefully selecting the influencers that a brand works with is crucial for building and maintaining a positive reputation, as well as for achieving a strong return on investment. Brands should take the time to research and evaluate potential partners in order to find those who are the best fit for their goals and values.

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