If the recent collaboration between the Ghostbusters movie and the rapper Nas tells you anything, it should be readily apparent that social influencers are perhaps the most important aspect of marketing in the current business landscape. Nas, with 2 million Twitter followers and 4 million Facebook followers, is introducing Ghostbusters to an audience that would normally skip the movie, while the producers of the movie gain new revenue sources and possibilities for licensing because of the association.

Google Trends and Social Influencers

Searches for the term “social influencer” shot up exponentially at the end of 2015, and the trend is still moving up. As the current online home of social influencers, Instagram recently introduced business analytics for its profiles and bolstered a nearly $3 billion business from it almost overnight.

Online “celebrities” also cost much less than hiring Brad Pitt or Alicia Keys to get involved with your campaign, and the content that influencer creates stays on the Internet indefinitely – videos don’t come down! Additionally, if a product is marketed indirectly, neither marketers nor content creators face anywhere near the scrutiny from the FCC that the traditional ad business puts up with. How can you legitimately tell a content creator to remove a brand from his or her bedroom wall while posting that just so happens to be there in every video?

The New Trend

In short, if you are a marketer, then it is time to drill down into the social influencers who are helping your market pop. Finding these people is as easy as a Google search and an click onto an Instagram profile. You will not only save money, but you will also gain access to a new audience that trusts its online spokespeople more and more.