Unilever PLC is getting into the game of influencer marketing as it is trying to build a more transparent and accountable ecosystem.
According to the WSJ, the packaged-food giant is buying a stake in a software company, CreatorIQ, that helps marketers manage influencers.
“We very much love working with influencers because, as you know, they’re very influential in driving consumer opinion,” said Vasiliki Petrou, executive vice president at Unilever and group chief executive at Unilever Prestige.
These days, there have been a slew of cases where influencers were caught buying followers or using bots and accomplices to make their posts more exciting.
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Unilever has been at the forefront, complaining about the lack of transparency, accountability and fraud in influencer marketing. Unilever Ventures and TVC Capital have led a US$12 million Series B investment in SocialEdge Inc., doing business as CreatorIQ.
CreatorIQ provides services in the detection of fraud, handle proliferating influencer relationships that include micro and nano-influencers as well. Ultimately, the world we live in these days has consumers believing and listening more to influencers, and marketers have to take a step back and appreciate this consumer–focused approach to marketing.
Yetunde Adegoke WSJ
