Influencer Marketing: Which Way Is the Wind Blowing?

A couple of days ago, a friend who works in marketing asked me:

"Is influencer marketing still worth throwing money at?"

I didn't answer right away. Instead, I pulled out a 2023 influencer marketing benchmark report and read the numbers off to him, one by one.

What Is an Influencer Marketing Report?

It's a check-up for the entire influencer marketing industry.

How big the industry is, where the money flows, and who has claimed the top seat — it's all written into the numbers.

The 2023 edition is the combined answer of more than 3,500 people.

Who answered? Agencies, brands, advertisers, and professionals who've spent years in the trenches of this trade.

Just looking at where the answers came from already has a global flavor: Africa made up 31%, the United States 16%, Asia 14%, Europe 8%, South America 4%, and the remaining 28% ticked "Other."

Right at the top, the report offers a forecast: in 2023, the influencer marketing business as a whole would grow to roughly $21.1 billion.

Signal 1: AI Steps In to Help Pick Creators

The oldest headache in this trade is finding the right influencer.

How do you do it? In the past, it was a set of eyes, a few pages of recommendations, and a guess — repeated one after another.

The 2023 report shows that shift is already in motion: 63% of respondents plan to fold AI into their influencer marketing.

And of that 63%, what do two-thirds plan to use it for?

Finding influencers.

A step that has always run on gut feeling has, for the first time, been handed over to machines.

Signal 2: The Platform Crown Has Changed Hands

For years, who has been the face of influencer marketing?

Instagram.

In 2023, the tables turned: TikTok edged past Instagram — 56% usage versus 51% — for the very first time.

Behind them come Facebook at 42% and YouTube at 38%.

Five percentage points don't look like much.

But a crown changing hands for the first time is a warning in itself.

Signal 3: Money Flows Toward Smaller Influencers

In 2023, 23% of respondents told the report they planned to stake at least 40% of their entire marketing budget on influencers.

Forty percent or more. Think about it — a company has only so much budget in a year, and nearly half of it would go to influencer marketing.

What does that tell you?

It tells you people genuinely believe that money is well spent.

So the way payments work is changing too: in 2023, 42% of people pay creators directly in cash rather than sending a free product. The old trick of trading freebies for word of mouth has dropped to just 30%.

And the influencers themselves?

People keep leaning toward the little guys: nano influencers at 39%, micro influencers at 30%, macro influencers at 19%, and celebrity influencers at 12%.

Why does the money flow toward smaller names?

Small creators don't have huge followings, but they're closer to their audience. One of them can move people; ten of the biggest stars might not. A celebrity is big — but so is the price tag. Pay ten dollars and you won't get back ten times the attention; it stops being a bargain.

So the money flows toward the small.

The Number You Can't Get Around

One person's take can be an illusion; when more than 3,500 people hold the exact same take, it's usually a direction.

In 2023, 83% of respondents still say influencer marketing works.

71% say they've been creating and sharing more content than before.

And 67% of the people who set influencer budgets plan to raise them again next round.

When nearly everyone agrees on a thing, this line of business can hardly be called cold.

But One Line Keeps Sticking With Me

Farther down in the report, there's a line mentioning that nearly six in ten influencers say they were discriminated against in 2022.

Six in ten.

An industry that pushes people into trending lists — and yet nearly six in ten of its own say they've been treated unfairly.

Keep all the flashiest numbers you like; once this line is laid side by side with them, the whole picture turns heavy.

Back to the Question

Alright, back to my friend's question: is it still worth it?

My answer is this: influencer marketing has really changed. AI has stepped forward to pick creators, the platform lineup has been shuffled — TikTok now at the top — and the money is moving toward smaller creators.

But one thing hasn't changed: the vast majority still believe it works, and a big portion still wants to spend more.

So, has the industry gone cold? No.

It's taken on a new face, brought in the new players, and adopted a new playbook.

The wind?

It is no longer blowing toward the "big" names.

The wind is now blowing toward the small influencers — toward those who stay closest to ordinary people.

As for the budget in your hand, you probably already have a good idea where to point it.