Gen Zs are Paying More Attention to Social Media Influencers, Here’s What That Means for the Industry

As the older generations die off and younger generations come in to take their place, it is inevitable that we would start to see a shift in how consumers make their buying decisions with all things having been considered and taken into account. One potential byproduct of this phenomenon is that influencers might become a great deal more influential than they are right now, since around 47% of Gen Z said that they trusted them while making purchasing decisions.

With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that Baby Boomers are far less likely to trust influencers. Only about 9% of them follow influencer accounts. Conversely, 55% of baby boomers followed retail social media accounts, with only 35% of Gen Z doing the same.

However, the most widely followed category of social media accounts by far is that of brands. 52% of Gen Z, 59% of Millennials, 51% of Gen X and 39% of Baby Boomers stated that they followed accounts belonging to brands.

In the world of influencers the numbers are less stellar, but they are still quite high as far as the younger demographics are concerned. 41% of Millennials said that they followed accounts belonging to influencers. 41% of Gen X also stated the same, and that means that the current influx of investment into the influencer economy has nowhere to go but up.

The influencer market is expected to rise to just shy of $5 billion this year, or $4.99 billion to be precise. That represents a solid 27.8% increase from the $3.9 billion that was seen in 2021, and current predictions estimate that there will be double digit annual growth over the next two years as well.

Influencers are becoming an increasingly central component of marketing strategies. Developing parasocial relationships with younger buyers is essential for driving a continued growth in sales as well a revenue, and that is something that marketing professionals should keep in mind. If the current growth predictions hold out, influencer marketing could become far bigger in a couple of years.

H/T: Klarna

Read next: 24% of Gen Z Willing to Pay to Get Rid of Ads
by Zia Muhammad via Digital Information World