How to Do Influencer Marketing That Customers Actually Trust

"Influencer marketing is now a $24 billion industry. Yet CMOs face a paradox: Influencer marketing is booming, but trust is eroding."

"One study shows that while 88% of consumers say authenticity matters, nearly half believe most influencers are fake. Over a third think influencers misrepresent themselves and the products they endorse. The result is an increasingly broken influencer ecosystem: Consumers feel misled, influencers struggle to stay true to themselves, and managers don't fully grasp how authenticity is built."

Influencer marketing has grown into a $24 billion industry, yet trust in influencers is declining. CMOs confront a paradox where rapid growth coexists with eroding credibility. One study shows 88% of consumers say authenticity matters, but nearly half view most influencers as fake and over a third believe influencers misrepresent themselves and endorsed products. The combined effects create a fractured ecosystem: consumers feel misled, influencers struggle to remain authentic amid commercial pressures, and managers lack a clear understanding of how genuine authenticity is built.

Read at Harvard Business Review