Influencers not only play an immensely important role in the areas of health, fitness and lifestyle, but are now also established players in the financial market. In addition to traditional corporate financial communications, private investors are increasingly using platforms such as YouTube, Instagram and Twitter, as well as blogs, to find out more about a company. But why does influencer marketing work so well in the financial sector?
Wiesbaden, June 03, 2022. The year is 2022 and the communication of content in the financial sector has evolved over time. Today, it is not only analysts and experts from financial institutions who make investment recommendations and provide information about companies and their business models, but influencers are also increasingly forming the interface between private investors and the capital market and are playing an important role. In addition to social media such as Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, however, podcasts have also become a popular medium for educating oneself and seeking information about investment opportunities.
Influencers, who often have no professional financial background, have in some cases built up a large number of followers and thus also influence and are increasingly blurring the original boundaries between investor relations, research and sales.
Influencers act as catalysts
The influence of influencers is hardly doubted today, and the impact of recommendations for action and critiques from financial influencers has taken on unimagined effects. They serve as part of the investment advisory process. Influencers can thus influence stock prices through postings, as has recently happened increasingly on the Reddit platform, for example with the Gamestop stock, which only multiplied due to the collected activities of private investors.
Apart from such negative examples, influencers basically enable very precise target group targeting through targeted campaigns, which did not exist before. Above all, the group of under-30s, who have discovered the stock market for themselves in recent years, are looking for new ways of obtaining information and are served here in a way that is appropriate to their target group.
From recommendations to warnings to tips and tricks
Financial influencers provide private investors with a broad basis of content: from basic explanations of stock market events to detailed company analyses and interviews with insiders to updates on the overall market, everyone can find suitable information depending on their interests and level of knowledge. Thus, access to financial education has never been easier.
The demand for expert knowledge and help in dealing with money is particularly strong among young people. It is precisely this expertise that investors are looking for online today in order to make an investment decision. In the process, followers can benefit from the knowledge of influencers; in contrast to conventional media, they are given a much more private approach. For investor relations departments, this opens up new ways to get in touch with investors, to talk about their company in digital formats and to be able to explain concrete facts. The emotional factor, which often falls by the wayside in conventional media, is conveyed directly to followers via podcasts and videos, buzzword authenticity.
Would you like to catch up with the time and integrate influencers or new media formats into your investor relations strategies? Contact us! Together we will create a promising concept to present your company in a modern and personal way and to address new investor groups.
Lukas Oftring : Consultant
Lukas Oftring gained experience working on investor relations and corporate communications projects after studying biology and ecotoxicology at the University of Bonn, RWTH Aachen and Stockholm University. He has profound knowledge in the field of sustainability due to his previous professional activities in regulatory affairs or registration of environmentally relevant chemicals.
