Yesterday’s Sunday Times Ctrl Alt Delete column, ‘So who’s really the biggest fake – the CGI influencer or the human?’ piqued our interest’.

When we work with clients building their messaging and brand story, we tell them that authenticity is important, and this extends to being really clear about influencers we engage with on their behalf. Seeing #ad #spon and #gifted has become the norm compared to just a short time ago which is great in terms of transparency even though this whole new vocab is potentially making things more confusing for consumers!

Two stats that Emma Gannon quoted were interesting, the first that “4 in 10 consumers feel everything on Instagram is fake” and that “55% of the 18 to 34-year-olds who follow a virtual influencer say they have purchased a product as a result.”  She goes on to suggest that CGI influencers are less confusing for consumers because we know these computerised cartoons are not real. And she finds it refreshing that they are more honest in their selling strategy than their real-life counterparts whose staged lives can be misleading.

Will the robots take over as influencers?  To find out more about our views and our work with influencers contact us here.