Influencer Advocacy for Good.

With the outbreak of COVID-19 and mandated social distancing, it’s not a surprise that an increasing proportion of people’s time is shifting to social media. In fact, an increasing proportion of social media real estate is being dedicated to COVID-19-related content as online audiences desperately try to make sense of the rapidly evolving pandemic.

“Global social media usage rates have grown by about 50 percent since 2014, [...]. And recent major news stories [...] have not had the same global impact as coronavirus on individuals, businesses, and governments.” – RECODE

With the increasing time spent online, the nature of influencer content is changing. While branded posts are grinding to a near halt, influencers are taking to social media to communicate with their audiences, share stories or merely to escape the reality we all face today. Understanding their content themes can help brands to engage authentically and appropriately.

Content themes:

• Offering an Escape: Some influencers are continuing their normal content in an effort to be “as normal as they possibly can.” It’s clear that audiences are also desperate to cling to anything that might remind them of pre-COVID-19 times.
• Lightening the Mood: With memes making light of irrational quantities of toilet paper and songs about the importance of isolation, creators are looking to find new ways to keep creative, lighthearted, yet still relevant, content.
• Looking to Inspire: Other creators are choosing to keep people emotionally inspired, sharing positive, heartwarming content featuring people helping one another cope.
• Creatively Providing What We Miss: We’ve seen a notable rise in fitness influencers offering free home workouts or entertainment influencers – such as DJs – rapidly gaining traction.
• Sharing Personal COVID-19 Stories: From influencers speaking up about their personal experiences with the disease, creators are using their platforms to spread awareness.
• Tackling Misinformation: We’ve seen a drastic demand for content from healthcare professionals with an established or growing online presence. Doctors are on a mission to answer questions about the disease, the latest government protocol and more.

Amidst this evolving landscape, brands have an opportunity to influence for good, although it requires more careful consideration. There is an undeniably heightened sensitivity around how and what brands communicate via influencers. If done right, influencer partnerships present an important opportunity to build brand equity through engaging and connecting with audiences on a whole new level.

BCW helps organizations to design authentic, appropriate and impactful influencer advocacy strategies through an approach we call BCW Trufluence™. Driven by data and careful selection based on four key dimensions – Reach, Relevance, Resonance, Risk – BCW Trufluence™ is designed to creating true value for brands, influencers and their audiences.

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