The Creation of an Influencer Marketing Strategy to Favour Growth

Abstract: Today many companies are using influencers in the marketing strategy. However, there is an expressed need for more research on the topic influencer marketing and on how the marketing strategy should be formed in order to match and facilitate the growth of a company. Therefore, this thesis aims to fill these gaps in literature by forming an influencer marketing strategy in a growth perspective. The goal is to manage the risks with influencer marketing and contribute to the literature with more research in the topics growth and influencer marketing by answering the research questions: How can influencer marketing affect the growth of a company? And How can an influencer marketing strategy be formed to favour growth and manage the risks with influencer marketing? In order to answer the research questions both qualitative data from seven interviews with experts on the topic influencer marketing and quantitative data from a survey regarding the usage of social media. This thesis indicates that influencer marketing can promote growth but needs to be adapted according to which growth strategy the company chooses. The benefits of influencer marketing are intangible, while the risks can be handled through working more strategically and stepping away from the more common trial and error approach. The findings from this thesis are relevant for companies that operate in the demanding business landscape of today, striving for growth through various growth strategies and are invested in influencer marketing. Furthermore, the findings are relevant for anyone interested in how risks with influencer marketing can be managed and how the strategy can favour firm growth.