Influencer Marketing Pays Off and Here's the Proof: Pixability

Working with influencers on video marketing campaigns has become a staple, but does it really lead to more views and bigger sales? A report from Pixability says yes.

The video marketing pros at Pixability have just released the company's annual report on the beauty video ecosystem, and this year the report is expanded to examine Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram videos, as well as YouTube. One of its biggest findings is that influencer marketing works.

While beauty marketers have long recognized that influencers play a role in campaign success, they've been unable to quantify exactly how much. Pixability looked at the top 100 beauty brand channels and found the answers. As the charts below show, influencer campaigns led to more mentions, views, subscribers, and engagements. The rise is dramatic.

"On a macro level, brands that partner with influencers generate more subscribers, views, and engagements," says Jackie Swansburg Paulino, Pixability's vice president of customer success. "Smart brands are now asking who's growing and who's trending versus who is on top. It's all about identifying who is on the right trajectory, like the young up-and-comers who are more attractive to a millennial audience, or the niche creator who's well-aligned with a brand's product."

Pixability also looked at the value of influencers when placing a video. "Pixability's data proves that placing videos on the right influencer channels and videos with precision is the way for a brand to win over its YouTube audience," the report says. After looking at hundreds of campaigns for top beauty brands, Pixability found that videos targeted against refined placements and affinity audiences performed better in both views and click-through rates than videos targeted in other ways.

By the way, the queen of beauty on YouTube is still Michelle Phan, the report notes, with 1.3 billion lifetime views, but Rachel Levin is coming on strong with 1.3 billion lifetime views.

For more beauty video results, download the 2016 Beauty Study for free (registration required).

Troy Dreier's article first appeared on OnlineVideo.net