The phenomenon of influencers is spreading in Spain through the increasingly widespread use of TikTok and Instagram.
Glued to their screens, young and old are entertained by following the lives of these characters who share their intimates while publishing advertisements in which they themselves promote products of brands that pay them to do so. This type of marketing was born more than ten years ago with the aim of attracting young audiences and over the years it has become professional, but with practices that go beyond legality.
According to the association IAB Spain, which is part of a global marketing and advertising entity, only 17% of brand content published by influencers is identified – through a tag or a comment – as advertising, of so the practice can lead to confusion or deception of the audience, especially if one is a minor and if the content is actually paid.
"This problem has always existed and both brands and influencers should make an effort to make it clear when a publication is an advertisement", warns Carlos Ramalho, author of the report and manager at Primetag. The consultant acknowledges that it is difficult for the authorities to track camouflaged advertising, as sometimes influencers recommend brands without being paid, simply because they like them.
If the protagonists do not take responsibility for misleading advertising, the phenomenon can go further, since the community of influencers is growing in Spain. According to the report, the collective is made up of 235,000 people, 14% more than the previous year. They have more than 10,000 followers on Instagram or TikTok. The study, which collected a sample of 97 million pieces of content from the two networks, leaves out YouTube, a digital community where it is also common for these professionals to post videos recommending brands and products.
The industries in which this type of marketing has the most roots are, as the graph reflects, sports and fitness (25%) followed, at a distance, by fashion (15%), entertainment (12%) and beauty and cosmetics (9.4%). The most popular brands are, in that order, Nike, Zara, Shein, MotoGP and Prozis. "In the last year we have seen how paid content has grown a lot in technology and also in over-the-counter pharmaceutical products," he adds.
According to the report, influencer marketing generated a business volume of 118 million euros, 30% more than in 2022, thanks to the strong growth of TikTok, with a business of 66 million that already exceeds that of Instagram , with 52. Ramalho clarifies that the figures are estimates and that, in reality, they could be higher, since it is impossible to calculate the impact of misleading advertising.
Growth in brand posts on TikTok has soared 215% in the past year to 183,000, while Instagram has seen a 6% drop. However, the network remains in clear leadership with 274,000 brand publications. “TikTok will not absorb Instagram activity. The networks will be complementary to each other", assures Ramalho, who at the same time supports the tiktokenization of Instagram. In fact, the reel video format, which mimics the short videos of the Chinese network, is already the most popular among brands.
The report also reveals that the credibility of influencers increases year after year and stands at 65% in the case of micro-influencers – from 10 to 50,000 followers – and 85% in the case of those with more than half a million followers. Despite the increase in credibility, engagement – a concept that measures whether users leave comments, like or share the content – is trending downward. In the case of Instagram, it has fallen from 2.4 to 2.2% - so that only 2 users out of 100 react -, while in the case of TikTok engagement has fallen from 5.5 to 3, 4% The novelty effect fades, says Ramalho.
