Professional collaborations

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“Industry players have a better understanding of the work involved, and as a result, the focus of influencer marketing within organisations is shifting. Today, we see influencer marketing directors occupying senior positions, and influencer activities are being integrated across all departments, from e-commerce to paid growth to PR.”



The maturity of the influencer marketing environment in France is reflected in the growing professionalism of influencers of all kinds and the vast improvement in the quality of the content produced.

Before agreeing to brand collaborations, professional KOLs conduct detailed research into brands’ values ​​and manufacturing methods. They maintain close connections with their communities, which in turn has become key to their ability vp safety email database to hone content for the benefit of brands and audiences. With Reach , KOLs are increasingly attuned to the business requirements of potential partners.

“ Influencers and ambassadors are very receptive to the commercial objectives we have. They listen to us if we say that a certain concept is not going to promote the product properly,” says Malaika Coco, head of influencer marketing and communications at global cheese company The Bel France. “That’s where the balance is being struck, because they are more professional, and on the brand side, brands are giving them more freedom.”

«[…] Before, influencer marketing was just about product placement, today there is a real challenge around the creation, staging and quality of the content . Honestly, I am sometimes surprised by how [what they produce] aligns with the brief but also incorporates their creative ideas.»

However, some traditional brands are still hesitant to give creators free rein in campaigns, especially for activations that require large investments, says Juliette Orain, head of social media at Razorfish (Groupe Publicis).

“Sometimes they expect more passivity from influencers. They get very nervous as soon as they see that there are several co-creation processes and iterations that are put in place. Sometimes you have to educate clients a little on the fact that it is a collaboration and not a purchase of space,” says Orain.

Push platforms
The maturity of the influencer market in France is evidenced by the relative stability around dominant platforms and KOLs. While brands are starting to see the value of TikTok campaigns for awareness , most are still focusing on Instagram (despite recent issues encountered with feed changes) and YouTube, says Orain.

“We have had an explosion of micro and nano influencers over the last three years, and today they make up a fairly constant volume,” he says. “ The only thing that is not stable is the price, which has increased considerably . There are many reasons for this, but in terms of the structure, practices, platforms and big stars of the discipline, there has not been much change in recent years.”

While it remains cheaper for influencer marketing than Instagram, brands are aware of the need to start experimenting with TikTok given the high engagement rates achieved with short-form video. Orain predicts that influencer marketing on TikTok will grow rapidly over the next year.

Brands that are heavily focused on generating sales and quantifying ROI say TikTok campaigns have not yet evolved to the point where they make the investment worthwhile. This makes sense when you consider that Instagram remains by far the most used social network in France among 16-25 year olds, with 82% on the platform, compared to just 38% on TikTok in 2021.

For online grocery startup La Fourche , which operates on a subscription business model, Instagram Stories continue to offer a vibrant platform to explain the brand’s concept to potential customers, says influencer marketing director Anaëlle Antigny. However, given the changes being rolled out to Instagram’s algorithm , the brand is looking to focus more on video content and Reels going forward .

“A lot of people say that YouTube is dying, that the statistics are going down, I don’t agree. If you choose a good community for which your offer is relevant, it can be very powerful and you will reach people who are much more attentive to your product . It may be riskier because it is more expensive than stories , but it lasts over time ,” says Antigny.

“We would like to figure out TikTok’s algorithm before we jump into YouTube Shorts – we have never tried to invest significantly in TikTok and I feel like it is time, even if there are still a lot of open questions, such as performance. If you want to run an image campaign, TikTok works well, but when you have an ROI approach and conversion goals, it is often not the best.”