Study: Majority of PR and marketing pros turn to ‘influencers’

A new study from reputation management firm Augure reveals that 84 percent of brands expect to launch campaigns with bloggers and people with large social media followings this year.

Marketers and PR pros are viewing campaigns with “influencers” as “a particularly effective tool for boosting a brand’s notoriety and, to a lesser degree, to generate leads and increase customer loyalty,” according to the study.

That’s likely because 81 percent consider working with powerhouse social media users to be effective or very effective when it comes to meeting their campaign and brand awareness objectives.

Though this strategy appears to be on the rise, budgets don’t always reflect the trend.