How AI is impacting influencer marketing & content

Summary

Summary of "How AI is Impacting Influencer Marketing & Content" – MarTech Podcast ™

Release Date: April 17, 2025

Hosts: Benjamin Shapiro (Host) and Daniel Shotland (Guest, COO of Linkia)

In this insightful episode of the MarTech Podcast™, host Benjamin Shapiro engages in a comprehensive discussion with Daniel Shotland, the Chief Operating Officer of Linkia, delving into the profound ways artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping the landscape of influencer marketing and content creation. The conversation explores the evolution of influencer marketing, the integration of AI technologies, the emergence of AI-generated influencers, and the future challenges and opportunities within the industry.

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1. Introduction to AI in Influencer Marketing

Benjamin Shapiro kicks off the episode by setting the stage for a deep dive into how AI is transforming influencer marketing. He highlights the shift of influencer marketing from experimental campaigns to a core component of major brands' marketing budgets, emphasizing the scalability that AI brings to the process. [01:15]

2. The Evolution of Influencer Marketing

Daniel Shotland discusses the maturation of influencer marketing, noting its transition from small-scale test campaigns to significant investments by Fortune 500 companies. He explains how brands have moved from merely identifying social media handles to leveraging sophisticated AI tools to scale their influencer strategies effectively. [01:58 – 02:41]

Notable Quote:

Daniel Shotland [02:41]: “AI has really made a difference... we're now able to search for very niche influencers…”

3. AI in Influencer Sourcing

A significant portion of the discussion centers on how AI enhances the influencer sourcing process. Daniel outlines the challenges brands face in identifying the right influencers among millions and explains how AI addresses these issues by analyzing vast amounts of data, including images, videos, and text. AI tools assess influencers' affinities, brand safety, and audience alignment, making the search for suitable partners more efficient and effective. [02:41 – 05:57]

Benjamin Shapiro summarizes the impact of AI in four key areas:

1. Sourcing Influencers: Building relevant influencer lists using AI.
2. Brand Safety: Vetting content to ensure alignment with brand values.
3. Performance Analysis: Understanding content relevance and effectiveness.
4. Content Creation: Utilizing AI for data-informed content briefs. [05:57]

Notable Quote:

Benjamin Shapiro [05:57]: “First off, sourcing influencers, right? ... brand safety... performance analysis... content creation…”

4. AI in Content Creation and Strategy

The conversation shifts to the role of AI in content creation. Daniel explains how AI assists brands in developing effective narratives and content archetypes that resonate with their target audiences. For instance, a pet food brand can use AI to identify themes like "healthier and playing with their owners," ensuring that the content created by influencers aligns with these narratives. This approach allows for more strategic and impactful content briefs. [06:50 – 08:06]

Notable Quote:

Daniel Shotland [06:50]: “We can tell these creators to leverage a particular narrative... to have more resonant effects or impact on the target audience.”

5. The Rise of AI-Generated Influencers

Benjamin Shapiro brings up the emergence of AI-generated influencers—virtual personas created entirely by AI. He shares his observations of AI-generated images of celebrities on platforms like Instagram, questioning their authenticity and effectiveness in creating genuine audience connections. [08:13 – 09:01]

Daniel acknowledges the potential role of AI influencers but remains skeptical about their ability to replicate the emotional and authentic connections that human influencers establish. He argues that while AI can generate entertaining content, it falls short in storytelling and emotional engagement, which are crucial for building strong brand-audience relationships. [09:01 – 10:24]

Notable Quotes:

Benjamin Shapiro [08:15]: “There are influencers that are out there that are not real people… AI influencers. That's what we're calling them now, correct?”

Daniel Shotland [09:01]: “AI can do a great job creating content and entertain, but is it making a connection with the audience? Probably not at the same level as an actual person.”

6. Challenges and Future of AI in Influencer Marketing

The discussion moves to the regulatory aspects and the future challenges of integrating AI into influencer marketing. Daniel highlights that major platforms now require creators to disclose when they use AI in their content, aligning with FTC guidelines for transparency. He expresses doubt about the longevity and acceptance of AI influencers, describing most AI-generated accounts as "gimmicky" and not providing real value to audiences. [11:51 – 13:16]

Benjamin emphasizes the necessity of human oversight in AI-driven campaigns, noting that while AI can enhance efficiency, human creativity and understanding of brand values remain irreplaceable. He anticipates that platforms will implement stricter regulations to manage the rise of AI-generated content, ensuring authenticity is maintained. [13:16 – 15:12]

Notable Quotes:

Daniel Shotland [11:51]: “AI can do a great job creating content and entertain, but is it making a connection with the audience? Probably not at the same level as an actual person.”

Benjamin Shapiro [13:16]: “There are influencers that are out there that are not real people… AI influencers. That's what we're calling them now, correct?”

7. Conclusion and Final Thoughts

The episode wraps up with final reflections on the indispensable role of humans in influencer marketing, despite the advancements in AI technology. Both Shapiro and Shotland agree that while AI significantly enhances the efficiency and precision of influencer sourcing and content strategy, authentic human connections remain paramount for effective brand storytelling and audience engagement.

Shapiro advises marketers to continue focusing on customer satisfaction and leveraging AI as a tool to support, rather than replace, human influencers. He underscores the importance of maintaining genuine connections to ensure long-term success in influencer marketing. [15:12 – 17:10]

Notable Quote:

Benjamin Shapiro [15:12]: “Artificial intelligence doesn't do a very good job of understanding your brand and promoting your products or services. That's really something only a human can still do.”

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Key Takeaways

• AI Enhances Efficiency: AI tools streamline the process of finding and vetting influencers, making it easier to identify those who align with brand values and target audiences.

• Content Strategy Optimization: AI assists in developing effective content narratives and archetypes, ensuring that influencer content resonates with audiences.

• Authenticity Remains Crucial: Despite advancements, human influencers are essential for creating authentic and emotionally engaging content that AI-generated personas currently cannot replicate.

• Regulatory Considerations: Transparency in AI usage is becoming mandatory, with platforms enforcing disclosure requirements to maintain trust and authenticity.

• Future Outlook: The integration of AI in influencer marketing will continue to grow, but the need for human creativity and emotional connection will sustain the importance of real influencers in the industry.

This episode provides valuable insights into the symbiotic relationship between AI and influencer marketing, highlighting how technology can enhance strategies while reaffirming the enduring necessity of human authenticity and creativity in building meaningful brand-audience connections.

Transcript

[Benjamin Shapiro]

The Martech Podcast is a proud member of the I Hear Everything Podcast Network. Looking to launch or scale your podcast, I Hear Everything delivers podcast production, growth and monetization solutions that transform your words into profit. Ready to give your brand a voice? Then visit iheareverything.com.

From advertising to software as a service to data, across all of our programs and clients, we've seen a 55 to 65% open rate.

[Daniel Shotland]

Getting brands authentically integrated into content performs better than TV advertising.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

Typical lifespan of an article is about 24 to 36 hours. If we're reaching out to the right person with the right message and a clear call to action, then it's just a matter of timing.

Welcome to the Martech Podcast, a member of the I Hear Everything Podcast network. In this podcast, you'll hear the stories of world class marketers that used technology to drive business results and achieve career success. Here's the host of the Martech Podcast, Benjamin Shapiro.

Welcome to the Martech Podcast. I'm your host, Benjamin Shapiro and today we're going to discuss artificial intelligence and influencer marketing. Joining us is Daniel Shotland, who is the COO of Linkia, which is a full service tech enabled platform that handles campaigns for the world's leading brands, providing calm in the chaotic sea of influencer marketing. Yesterday Daniel and I talked about how influencer marketing is graduating to the boardroom. And today we're going to continue our conversation talking about how artificial intelligence is impacting influencer marketing. All right, here's the second part of my conversation with Daniel Shotland, the COO of Lynkia. Daniel, welcome back to the Bartek podcast.

[Daniel Shotland]

Great to be here again. Ben, thank you so much.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

Excited to have you back on the show. Yesterday we talked about how influencer marketing is all growns up. And it's all grown up. We've gone from it being this testing campaign that we were thinking about, you know, how can we find people as social media handles that were valuable and maybe they'll create some content for us to like. Major Fortune 500 companies investing a massive portion of their marketing budget into getting other people to talk about their brands. And now there's a new wave. This is no longer a test campaign, its core budget and we're also using artificial intelligence to scale our influencer marketing. Talk to me about the influence AI is having on your industry on influencer marketing.

[Daniel Shotland]

It's an interesting world out there, right? Influencers to some extent are concerned, some of them at least, that will there be AI influencers capable of creating the same or Similar content to what they are able to do, connecting with audiences in a similar way. Are real human breathing influencers going the way the dodo probably not go?

[Benjamin Shapiro]

Carbon based life forms.

[Daniel Shotland]

Yeah, carbon based life forms are good. So what's interesting is creator or influencer is really a combination of art and science. Humans provide the art and there's always going to be a need for humans in the equation. It is influencer after all, started with people attracting audiences because of the content they created, because of their opinions, perspectives, because of their affinities and mobilizing them in some fashion so they're always going to be there. So how is AI impacting influencer marketing? When you think about finding influencers, every brand, we do a state of influencer marketing report annually and we always ask what the top challenges are for brands as it comes to or when it comes to influencer. And the top challenge for years and years and years has been finding the right set of influencers. And why is that? Well, there are millions and millions and millions of them. So how do you find the right ones? How do you find the one that's right for this particular activation that has the right affinity towards your product, that has the right content aesthetic, that indexes with the audience you actually want to reach, that has been brand safe or is brand safe, that hasn't worked with your competitor, whether it's at the product level or the category level in some period of time? Well, geez, that's really hard to do in order to do that well, you've got to really take a look at every image, every video, every piece of text that influencer has ever put forth out in the public sphere to understand who they are, what are they all about so that you can match them appropriately? So AI has really made a difference and we use it heavily in analyzing content from influencers understanding by looking at with computer vision, their videos and their images and all of the text, understanding what they're about, what affinities they have, what is their sentiment towards particular topics, what type of content creator are they? And with that we're now able to search for very niche influencers or creators to meet the specific needs of any brand, any activation that they want. This is something that oftentimes was prior to really leveraging AI. You do your best guess to start with a set of creators and you've got to hunt and peck through their feeds to really rationalize is this the right creator for me? Now we can do a quick search contextually with a few keywords with a real just kind of human description of the type of influencer you want to connect with. And we're able to surface those folks. We're able to show you the actual content from their feeds that matches exactly what you're looking for. And then you get to make a decision. So it's made finding influencers, it simplified the process and it's made it much more effective than it has been before. So that's one area that AI has made a huge difference.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

What I'm hearing from you is I got four different ways where artificial intelligence is impacting influencer marketing. First off, sourcing influencers, right? You're using artificial intelligence to build your lists to understand who is relevant to your brand and finding the type of influencers that you want. Two, you're thinking about brand safety, right? You can look through large archives of content quickly and try to understand if there's something a influencer, because these are people might stand for that isn't necessarily in line with your brand values. Three, you're doing analysis to understand in theory how the influencer has created content for your brand and is it relevant to you and how it's performing. And then the fourth, you originally started off talking about content creation. So did I miss any other ways where artificial intelligence is impacting influencer marketing?

[Daniel Shotland]

I'd say all those we think about as part of influencer sourcing. It's really just how do we connect with and find the right set of influencers to even work with? The next step would be content creation. So what is the right content? If I'm a pet food brand and I've got dog food for adult dogs, is the content narrative about dogs and parks being healthier and playing with their owners and other dogs? Is it about feeding the pet at home or who knows what. We leverage AI as a means to search for and understand what is performing organically. What are the right narratives? What are their content archetypes and specific content attributes to inform the actual brief? What does this mean? Is that we can tell these creators to leverage a particular narrative, particular content archetype, and actually include specific content attributes when creating their content that are likely to have a more resonant effects or impact on the target audience than not. And so we're using AI to help with that process that we are starting off from a much better place when creating that content. So think about it as AI informative or data informed content briefing for the influencers. So that's content creation.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

Now, before you said, hey, humans have to be involved and I'm going to use One of my favorite terms as a podcaster.

[Daniel Shotland]

Yeah, but art and science.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

Yeah, but there are influencers that are out there that are not real people, that are revenue generating social media accounts that are probably prompt, I'm assuming prompted by a person, but that are not actually showing real people. Like there are Instagram accounts showing the same person living this luxury lifestyle and it's not a real person. AI influencers. That's what we're calling them now, correct? Terrifying, right? What is real? We are in the post truth era and now all of a sudden we're looking at images of what look to be real people doing real people things when they're not actually humans. So do you actually need a human to run an effective influencer marketing campaign?

[Daniel Shotland]

I think the answer undoubtedly is yes. But like all things within influence, there's a role that an AI influencer could or can have. We've probably all played around with ChatGPT or other forms of generative AI. It's really good. It's also very clear that it is not a person. And when you see these AI influencer accounts, AI can do a great job creating content and listen. People like looking at content and they like being entertained. And that has its role in influencer. But is it making a connection with the audience? Probably not. Not the same level of connection that an actual person would make. And so I think that this goes back to where I started. Do people exit the equation here with AI influencers? I don't think so. I think they have a role. If you're looking for very cheap, effective content creation, they are good at that. If you really need to tell a story, if you need to explain how a product works, if you're trying to tug on someone's heartstrings and create that emotive connection which ultimately every brand is looking to do, you really need actual human beings to be able to do that. Now you can help inform the type of content those creators produce. You can help them understand what is the best narrative to connect with their audience around that particular topic. But you need them to bring their magic to the table.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

I'm a big sports fan. Are you a sports fan?

[Daniel Shotland]

Eh, Quasi.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

Who are your teams?

[Daniel Shotland]

I'm more into tennis and mountain biking and snowboarding.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

I'm going to go with the thing I know we have in common. You went to the University of California.

[Daniel Shotland]

Go Bears.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

Go Bears. I'm a big Cal supporter even though.

[Daniel Shotland]

I didn't go to school there.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

And when I'm in Instagram and I press the search button, I Get a feed of sports memes. Because Instagram knows that's the only type of content that I'm really there for other than seeing my friends kids. It's hard to fake friends kids pictures. But I have seen a ton of Steph Curry pictures that are created by artificial intelligence in my Instagram feed and they're getting syndicated by Instagram's algorithm, which means that they are working, that that's what's garnering attention. So that is a person, but it is not a influencer that is creating the content. So that to me is the argument saying, look, do people need to be involved in influencer accounts? If I then took a, and this is totally legal, a picture of Steph Curry that's generated by artificial intelligence and I throw him drinking a bottle of bourbon and it's not the one that he's creating, it's somebody else's brand. Now all of a sudden I have an influencer campaign. Talk to me about A, is this effective? Is it working? Are you seeing this? And B, what are some of the guardrails to stop the sort of fake influencers from taking hold?

[Daniel Shotland]

I do think, as I mentioned before, there is a potential role for AI based non human influencers. I think though that as they continue to proliferate humans and the algorithms are likely going to sort them out, at least some of it. I really don't see it becoming like the mainstay of content that you see. I think there's a place good cheap content creation that can potentially provide entertainment value. But I don't think if you think about like a brand story and a brand arc, being able to describe a new product, being able to talk about a new launch, being able to articulate the values of a brand AI is not going to be good at for at least a very, very long time. And there's always a need for that from a brand perspective. That's what brands are looking to accomplish. So how well does AI specific content or an AI influencer perform? I don't know. It's really hard to know. It's still so new. I'm sure you've taken a look at it, right? Who are the top 10 AI influencers? And they're out there. One or two of them are photorealistic. The vast majority of them are kind of animated in some way. It feels a little gimmicky. We'll see if that transcends above and beyond gimmick to actual kind of value for audiences. Do they come to prefer that over time? I don't think so, but hey, I could be wrong. It's a wild and woolly world out there. We'll see.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

Yeah, it's one of the things. Just like everything else with artificial intelligence, right now, we need humans to prompt the artificial intelligence and then to serve as editors to make a good piece of content, bit of analysis. Even with influencers and the artificial intelligence content creation look we've got, let's call them AI models. Not like large language models, but like the people on my website are not real people. Right. I put them into mid journey and said I want somebody that looks like this having this experience because it's cheaper than stock photography and I can customize them, but it required me to go in and say what I wanted them to be. Right? There is a role, a time and a place for using artificial intelligence. And when it comes to influencer marketing, just like everything else with artificial intelligence, we need humans to prompt it. We also need humans to be the guardrails. And eventually I'm sure the platforms will come in and start to clean house when this becomes more of a problem. But it's something that what brands are thinking about at the end of the day, artificial intelligence doesn't do a very good job of understanding your brand and promoting your products or services. That's really something only a human can still do. Hey, at least we're still useful for that.

[Daniel Shotland]

At least we're still useful that I should say just real quick on the topic, I don't remember top of my head which platforms. Maybe all of them, but at least a couple of them of the major platforms have all now said that content that is being produced leveraging. So if you're content creator and you're using AI to produce your content, you have to disclose it. So similar to kind of FTC guidelines around disclosing that you are in partnership with a brand if you're doing sponsored content, they're asking content creators to disclose when and how they are using AI with regard to their posts. Now, if you're an AI influencer, well then that's the entire thing. I'm not sure how that works, but certainly for real humans who are using AI when producing their content, they've asked for disclosure.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

Of course they said that. Good luck enforcing it.

[Daniel Shotland]

So good.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

Yes. In every post I'm going to have to say, well, this is actually artificial, intelligently edited or the face was adjusted. This is no way are people going to go do that level of crediting to artificial intelligence because it doesn't help their end goal. But fundamentally there will be guardrails put into place when problems become out of hand. But there's going to be a balance, and it's going to be something that we're dealing with in influencer marketing as we are in every other marketing channel. And that wraps up this episode of the Martech Podcast. Thanks to Daniel Shotland, the COO of Linkia, for joining us. If you'd like to hear more from Daniel, you could find a link to his LinkedIn profile in our show notes, or you can visit his company website, linkia.com L I N Q I A.com Just one more link in our show Notes I'd like to tell you about. If you didn't have a chance to take notes while you were listening to this podcast, head over to martechpod.com where we have summaries of all of our episodes and contact information for our guests. You can also subscribe to our weekly newsletter, and you can even apply to be the next guest speaker on the Martech Podcast. Of course, you can always reach out on social media. Our handle is martechpod. M A R T E C H P O D on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Or you can contact me directly on LinkedIn. My handle is Benjschapp B E N J S H A P and if you haven't subscribed yet and you want a daily stream of marketing and technology knowledge in your podcast feed, we're going to publish an episode every day this year, so hit the subscribe button in your podcast app and we'll be back in your feed tomorrow morning. All right, that's it for today, but until next time, my advice is to just focus on keeping your customers happy. Foreign.

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