Instagram Streamlines Influencer Activity Ahead Of 2020 Onslaught 

Instagram is widely considered, by marketers anyway, as the home of influencer marketing.

Which social media channels are most important for influencer marketing?

1. Instagram = 89%

2. YouTube = 70%

3. Facebook = 45%

4. Blogs = 44%

5. Twitter = 33%

6. LinkedIn = 19%

7. Pinterest = 15%

8. Twitch = 6%

9. Snapchat = 3%

10. Other = 1%

Source: Mediakix’ 2019 industry benchmark study.

Be that as it may, the opportunities for the majority of influencers to effectively monetise their attention on Instagram is not that easy. However, with Facebook’s latest update to the Brand Collabs Manager, this may be about to change.

Facebook Brand Collabs Manager launched in the US in 2018 and was expanded to further markets globally in 2019.

Part search engine, part database, part match-maker, Collabs Manager provides businesses with a detailed, unbiased, ‘warts and all’ view on online creators based on the demographics of their audience and portfolios of their past sponsored content.

At launch Brand Collabs Manager centred on Facebook influencers (or Creators as it prefers to call them) and within recent weeks, it has begun opening up the platform to Instagram influencers.

While in beta at the moment, a full Instagram tie-in is probably closeby as Facebook looks to scale up its influencer marketing solutions in 2020.

Easier & Smarter Influencer Campaigns

For the uninitiated, Brand Collabs Manager is a tool to help marketers identify, research and connect with Creators. As a brand, the tool lets you:

1. Set an audience match to see the percentage of each creator's audience that matches yours
2. Choose any creator or group of creators and find others with similar audiences
3. Explore customised lists of creators based on your past branded content partners, creators who like your Page and more

If you're a brand, sponsor, advertiser or marketer interested in gaining access to Brand Collabs Manager, Page admins can apply here.

Likewise, Brand Collabs Manager can also work similarly for Creators, helping them manage client partnerships and streamlining reporting.

“Creators in Brand Collabs Manager can also search for like-minded brands looking to partner on content creation. They can source new deals, manage partnerships, and automatically share insights with them (before this, many creators could only send brands screenshots of their analytics).

We’ve also made it possible for brands to see insights when they’re tagged in branded content in both Brand Collabs Manager and the Instagram app.”

Marketers working on influencer campaigns usually only have access to campaign engagement and reach data, but now they can also get information such as breakdowns across age and gender for impressions and reach.

In addition, side-by-side comparisons of the performance of the same content as an organic branded post and a branded content ad will also be available, offering a marked improvement in perfomance analysis.

Instagram & Facebook Branded Content Opportunities

Presently, Facebook Brand Collabs Manager is a bit light on the ground when you drill down into Aussie or Kiwi movers and shakers on the platform.

Especially outside of mainstream figures. Although, for those seeking more mainstream reach its pretty much good to go now.

Inevitably, uptake across influencers will broaden, and suitability will improve across the board for marketers through 2020. At the same time, functionality is likely to expand as influencer marketing and social advertising collide.

Up until June 2019, branded content on Instagram had been entirely organic. Now, advertisers can use tools in the ads system to drive business outcomes with Branded Content ads, taking influencer marketing to whole new levels of performance.

Therefore, the Instagram integration into Brand Collabs Manager made perfect sense and is only a matter of time before it all comes together within Facebook Business Manager:

1. Discover FB/IG influencers and establish campaigns in Collabs Manager
2. Amplify campaigns with Branded Content ads via Facebook Ads Manager

Simples.

Branded Content ads have been live since June 2019, but are currently only available within Facebook via Instagram Feed, Stories and Explore.

And, as is often the case, they are also presently only available across select ad objectives, including Brand Awareness, Video Views, Reach, Conversions, Traffic and Engagement.

The set-up process for Branded Content ads is somewhat convoluted, so it perhaps reasonable to expect that this will improve through 2020, as Brand Collabs Manager and Branded Content ads become ever more intertwined.