BlogFrog Predicts Key Industry Trends That Will Shape Influencer Marketing In 2013

BOULDER, Colo., Dec. 19, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- BlogFrog, (http://www.theblogfrog.com), the industry leader for influencer marketing technology, today outlined major trends it believes will shape the influencer marketing industry in 2013. Influencer marketing has emerged as one of the fastest-growing social marketing practices as brand marketers look to connect with consumers and customers in meaningful and authentic ways – often through the collective voice of active bloggers that are passionate and vocal about the brands they love.

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"During the past year, influencer marketing has experienced tremendous growth based on the continued maturity of technology platforms, best practices and the savvy work of brand marketers across a range of industries," said Rustin Banks, co-founder and CEO for BlogFrog. "We see strong momentum continuing to build in 2013 as PR, digital marketing and advertising domains all bring specific areas of expertise to influencer marketing that will further increase its value to major brands."

Major trends for influencer marketing in 2013 include:

1. Earned Media will Rival Paid and Owned
   Maturation of paid search and banner advertising tools drove the shift in spending from traditional media (print and TV) to digital starting in the early 90s. Owned media had its fame this past decade as publishing tools and the globalization of social media made it easier for marketers to create and publish content on branded assets. The rise of influencers and social distribution will make earned media the Holy Grail for marketers in 2013. Marketers realize that peer-generated content engages consumers better than branded content, and increased earned media focus will naturally follow.
2. Stand Alone Solutions Will Give Way to Marketplaces
   Most industries that experience rapid innovation tend to remain fragmented for several years before integrated platforms emerge. This happened with operating systems, social platforms, data solutions and is happening in influencer marketing.  Marketers and influencers will tire of the stand-alone ways influencers and their content are identified, rated, mobilized, distributed and measured. In response, the industry will develop marketplaces where brands and content creators can connect, negotiate, collaborate and compensate, all within a single platform.  
3. Influence will be Modeled, not Just Measured
   Once the industry accepts standards for measuring influence, look for models to emerge that let brands predict how much reach, engagement and impact an influencer marketing program will have based on sophisticated algorithms that take into consideration more than just unique visitors and Twitter followers. Leading marketers will find ways to quantify engagement, relevance, audience affinity and consumer influence, and model these impact factors as strategic elements of social campaigns.
4. Data will Drive Content Creation
   As better data becomes available to marketers, data-driven approaches will emerge to determine what type of content gets created and where it gets disseminated. Both marketers and publishers continue to get more sophisticated about predicting which content will be most viral, and then surfacing that content for consumers. Content creators and publishers will work together to provide the analytics needed to determine its success based on pre-determined KPI's.
5. B-2-B Companies will Embrace Social
   It's not just B-2-C companies that benefit from social media marketing. In 2013, B-2-B marketers will build stronger fan bases and improve their ability to show ROI from social campaigns. B-2-B marketers will continue to embrace social tools, like LinkedIn, Twitter and corporate blogs, to drive traffic to websites, build product awareness and connect with customers online. Marketers will work with influencers to generate content that will be seen by professionals looking for thought leadership and builds brand credibility
6. Niche Content will Give Way to Crossover Content
   Early banner ads and SEO systems were able to predictably generate millions of impressions and thousands of click-throughs. However, consumers are now "ad-blind" and websites are saturated with ads, driving engagement rates to ineffectively low levels. Influencer marketing enables brands to be an integrated part of targeted content, instead of a distraction in the sidebar. Today's leading branded social networks, like Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest, are blending the use of sophisticated targeting algorithms with content integration strategies to reach target consumers like never before.  In 2013, we'll see this trend continue as brands leverage cross-over content options to reach even more targeted consumers.

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About BlogFrog
BlogFrog is the industry leader for influencer marketing technology. The company works with brand marketers, agencies and publishing partners to harness the power of social influencers through content-driven campaigns that are meaningful and useful for consumers. Its Influencer Marketing platform manages all aspects of high-impact social marketing campaigns, helping brand marketers identify and activate influencers, distribute content across all social networks and measure campaign performance. Brands that use BlogFrog for impactful influencer marketing campaigns include ABC News/United Nations Foundation, KOA Campgrounds, Udi's Gluten Free, Horizon Organics and Random House. For more information please visit www.theblogfrog.com.

Media Contact:
Christie Denniston
Catapult PR-IR
O: 303-581-7760
M: 303-827-5164
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SOURCE BlogFrog