We Are Social’s new Under the Influence report: Influencers helping Australians define themselves

Entertaining and trusted, Influencers – in all their diversity – are helping Australians define themselves, according to new research commissioned by socially led creative agency, We Are Social.

Examining why Influencers have become so popular, the Under the Influence report canvassed the opinions of 1024 Australians who followed Influencers.

We Are Social’s Under the Influence report found:

85% of Australians surveyed described Influencer content as entertaining

77% of respondents cited entertainment as the main reason they enjoy Influencer content

71% of respondents liked seeing behind the scenes of an Influencer’s life

59% of consumers “don’t mind seeing products” in an Influencer’s feed

67% of participants said they “do mind” if Influencers promote things they don’t use or don’t believe in

63% of those who follow an Influencer do so because they’re a trusted source of information

62% of those surveyed agreed with the statement “Influencers help me shape my identity”

“The growth of Influencers is accelerating. We undertook this research to get under the skin of Influencers’ appeal to consumers, so we can advise our clients how to leverage them most effectively,” We Are Social managing director, Suzie Shaw (left), said last night at an event in Sydney, launching the report.

“With the rise of Influencers, we’ve seen an explosion in the number of people deriving a living from creative pursuits and the volume of inspirational content on offer to consumers.

“And with 49% of Australians born overseas or having one or both parents born abroad*, consumers are drawn to the more diverse lineup among influencers than they see in mainstream media. From Mychonny to Superwog and Li-Chi Pan to Natalie Tran, they’re more representative of Australian consumers and their interests.”

We Are Social’s Under the Influence report was compiled with qualitative research conducted by Forward Scout and quantitative research through Pure Profile.

*Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2016 Census

Pictured above L-R: panellists – Google’s Chris Dodson, Click Management’s Emma Barnes and Forward Scout’s Frank Bethel with managing director of We Are Social, Suzie Shaw.