Women are the ultimate rulers in the new media world of social influence, according to an international survey of over 2000 global digital influencers conducted by indaHash - the technology platform that automates influencer marketing at scale.
According to the research, 68 per cent of social media influencers are female and acting as the new barometers of style, culture and taste for both women - and men. These influencers tend to live in urban areas or capital cities and their influence extends both on and offline with 88 per cent believing they influence friends in real life, not just their online followings. And in a show of sisterly solidarity, over half (56 per cent) view other influencers as business partners or friends rather than competition. 62 per cent say other social media users help them form their own opinions versus less than half (48 per cent) of male influencers questioned.
This new breed of publisher posts regularly, almost half (47 per cent) upload content 1-3 times a day versus 36 per cent of men and 89 per cent admitting to spending a “few hours a day” on social media with selfies (56 per cent), fashion (40 per cent) and travel/landscapes (34 per cent) the most popular topics.
The new professional approach has led to the rise of the “pro so” with 64 per cent treating their “influencery” with seriousness with a concrete vision, training and strategy. And there is evidence it is effective with 45 per cent purchasing something they saw in social media in the last week compared to just 31 per cent of men. When working with brands, money is not always the driving factor, with half wanting to recommend good brands and products to their followers.
Barbara Soltysinska, CEO and co-founder of indaHash.com commented: “As a woman in business, technology and media I’m delighted that feminine influence is at the forefront of our offering and they are driving trends and acting as an authentic communications channel between brands and their followers. We know that influencers work best when recommending products and services they genuinely believe in and as a result their audience trusts what they say. Our female publishers and broadcasters take their role seriously and as a result pose a real threat to traditional media and offer a real alternative for global advertisers.”
