When marketers pay influencers to back their brands, they better be prepared to deal with political baggage. A new report from communications agency M Booth found that 72% of Americans believe that if a company or brand works with an influencer or celebrity who is vocal about their political stance, the company endorses that point of view. The report also found that 75% of those surveyed agreed that brands do not need to play in politics.
The findings do not mean that brands should stop using influencers. But it is vital that brands understand their mission and values before taking a stand, according to the agency.
“We are not seeing the market back away from influencers,” said AG Bevilaqua, chief creative officer at M Booth. “We recommend that brands look at their beliefs first. More activist brands will have a different risk tolerance. The vanilla middle is not appealing to consumers, so either do not comment if you cannot back it up, or take a stand and do not retreat.”
The report is based on an online survey of 3,015 Americans, ages 18-55. It was fielded by research partner Savanta between Aug. 24 and Sept. 6.