Breaking down influencer marketing, from Joe Rogan to Selena Gomez to MrBeast

Global influencer marketing spend has more than tripled since 2019 — it’s estimated to reach a record $24 billion in 2024, according to Statista. Whether through product placements, sponsorships or even organic executions, these content creators make up a major part of brands’ marketing strategies today. In fact, there are some 64 million influencers on Instagram alone, while the numbers on TikTok, YouTube and Snap are still growing.

It’s also worth noting there are some differences between content creators and influencers.

“Content creators are the next generation of influencers,” explained Julian Reis, founder and CEO of social commerce and creator company SuperOrdinary. “As social media has evolved, people understand that there’s more to the experience than just influencing. That influence has to be earned and it has to come from an authentic place. Content creators find what truly appeals to them, rather than following trends. With that authenticity, they find a community that is truly invested in them, their content and their success.”

Let’s dive into the major categories of influencers working with agencies and brands these days.

Livestreamers

Think of these as content creators known mostly for streaming, gaming, lifestyle and social commerce content. Whether it’s live shopping or broadcasting themselves playing video games, Kenneth Tan, co-founder and CEO of live video platform BeLive Technology, explained that influencers create more curated and “edited projections of themselves and the products they promote” — while livestreamers “thrive on the currency of authentic, unfiltered content.”

Compared to other major influencers, livestreamers generally make more non-sponsored recommendations for products, but they also garner a strong following when doing live shopping. For brands, content like this on YouTube or TikTok Live can help drive people to their shopping pages.

Tan added traditional influencers and livestreamers both offer followers different content and connections: “Influencers provide aspirational content and curated expertise, while livestreamers offer a sense of immediacy and personal connection.”

Reis also mentioned livestreaming becoming more popular for brands because this type of audience connection allows them to generate sales on and off social networks.

“You can talk to someone in real time, see their reactions, get their honest feedback about products and more,” Reis added. “This is a great way to generate sales for brands and creators. At SuperOrdinary, this is a strong driver for our partners and something we see as becoming more and more important for brands in this era of social commerce.”

Social media stars

For this category, think TikTok and YouTube stars like MrBeast or the D’Amelio sisters, who grew large followings via social media and have branched off onto other platforms, including movies and original shows. Besides these relative mega-stars of the influencer set, there are tens of thousands of smaller influencers (also called micro-influencers) and creators with niche content — from parenting to food — who are also becoming more desirable for brands trying to reach various communities.

“They can reach niche subsets of the internet and serve a specific purpose, or they can have massive reach like celebrities or athletes,” Walters said.

“Micro-influencers generally have followings between 15K to 75K and while their audience is smaller, their audiences are highly engaged in their content across multiple platforms, making them very influential within their respective communities,” Reis said. “Nano-influencers have less than 15K followers.”

TikTok influencer DeMarcus Shawn, who has 6.6 million TikTok followers, said his content is inspired by “observing everyday life.” Shawn started making content in 2021 during the pandemic and was named a TikTok Black Trailblazer in 2022. He makes point-of-view videos about family, cultural trends and his daily life.

“I take what I see in real-life situations and implement them into the content I create,” Shawn said.

Reis considers these types of “mega-influencers,” and they usually have more than 5 million followers across multiple platforms. The way brands work with them can vary, depending on where these influencers’ fan bases developed.

“For instance, someone who was an OG YouTuber, building a fan base with vlogs, ‘get ready with me’ [content], etc., and then now we see has blown up on TikTok,” Reis said. “These creators are akin to celebrities in the sense that they’re almost as recognizable among their social communities, but their followers have a lot more access.”

Commentators and pundits

These influencers include personalities like Joe Rogan, who boast millions of followers on Spotify and YouTube (one of the only platforms to apply to multiple types of influencers). Other commentators in politics, culture and sports make up this category of influencers, and they can use formats from YouTube videos to written content, such as Substack or Medium newsletters, blogs and other mediums.

For example, some Substack creators include popular fashion content hubs like “The Cereal Aisle” by Leandra Medine, with more than 100,000 subscribers, and “Magasin” by Laura Reilly, with over 20,000 subscribers.

Podcasting is another major way brands can tap into these influencers through audio content. Reis mentioned podcaster Alex Cooper and her Spotify show “Call Her Daddy,” which recently expanded to Apple, iHeartPodcasts and Amazon Music as it grows on other services. Cooper previously inked an exclusive three-year deal with Spotify worth some $60 million.

Agency NP Digital defines podcasters this way: “Hosts who produce audio (and sometime visual) content on various topics, ranging from storytelling to interviews and discussions, distributed through platforms like Spotify, Apple Podcasts or Google Podcasts.”

“People form close bonds with podcasters,” Reis added. “They share their genuine opinions and personalities, their takes on pop culture and news with their listeners every week.”

“Podcasters are also meeting the demand for long-form content and they are a standout subcategory of commentary influencers,” Walters added. “We’re seeing many influencers break through on podcasts and many social media influencers turning to podcasting to further connect with audiences that are choosing to devote their attention for prolonged periods of time.”

Celebrities and traditional A-listers

Hollywood A-listers and celebrities fit this category, however, this is fairly obvious, since they’ve starred in advertising for decades. From creating behind-the-scenes social content to posting things that are more unfiltered, celebrities, athletes and public figures lean into their social media platforms these days to connect with their fans. These types of stars include OGs like The Rock, who totals more than 74 million TikTok followers, as well as emerging athletes like track star Sha’Carri Richardson, who counts some 4 million Instagram followers, and WNBA rookie Angel Reese, who leads her league in social media followers.

Other top celebrity influencers include actor Selena Gomez, reality TV star Kylie Jenner and soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo — each amassing hundreds of millions of followers across social platforms.

“Whether they’re promoting their latest projects, walking the runway, or touting a new brand collaboration, this cohort is growing increasingly savvy with all social media platforms,” said Brit Starr, svp of marketing at CreatorIQ.

B2B experts and SMEs

These creators include B2B influencers who have a subject matter expertise and produce educational, entrepreneurial and professional content on LinkedIn, newsletters and other such platforms. B2B influencers are gaining popularity on LinkedIn, and they include people from CEOs to academics sharing insights in their sectors, Walters explained.

“Corporate and job-related influencers, who post about careers like nursing, teaching and medicine, make up a significant but growing subcategory of B2B influencers,” Walters said.

Reis added: “Thought leaders have built-in expertise, usually due to education or their chosen field. Because of this, there is an additional layer of trust from their followers. This also means they have to be extremely selective about any brand deals.”

This category has been gaining interest as brands look to grow their social media presence, Reis explained. “We also have entrepreneurs who use social media to promote their business and do it by forming organic relationships with their followers. TikTok user Strawberry Milk Mob does this expertly with her swimwear line,” Reis said.