How Influencer Marketing can change the advertising game for BFSI companies

If you happen to be an Instagram user, chances are you have already seen the images above. HDFC bank tied up with top social media influencers for the launch of their Millenia Card, a card targeted towards the millennial.

According to HDFC Bank, recent research has shown that almost half of millennials (people born between 1981 and 2000) have just one credit card, and less than half of them use their cards at least once a week. You would think the seniors (born before ’46) and the Gen Xers (born between ’65 and ’80) would use their credit cards even less — and you would be dead wrong! 61% of seniors use their credit cards at least once a week and 40% of them carry around three or more cards, as do 27% of Gen Xers.

Here’s are a few numbers from the campaign that might catch your attention:

1) The campaign got over 1 million engagement when someone intentionally interacted with a post that is an engagement (Instagram likes+comments). The actual number being 1,021,182 as of today.

2) Assuming the average engagement rate to be 2.5%, the reach of the campaign might be at 40 million.

3) There are currently 122 posts on Instagram with #HDFCBankMillennia

Here’s why influencer marketing made sense for such a campaign:

1) More than print media: Only 22% of millennials depend on newspapers to stay informed, a number which was 36% last year.

2) More than a TV ad: TV viewership has dropped amongst millennials as they have adopted to OTT platforms and Social Media for entertainment. According to a new report from eMarketer, a research company, 64.2 million people born between 1981 and 1996 will stream a video or downloaded a video onto a device at least once a month this year. By contrast, 59 million will watch traditional TV at least once a month. That means almost 9% more millennials stream video than watch TV.

3) More than a digital ad: The fact that HDFC adopted influencers to create content, made it more authentic and easily reachable to masses. They used the power the influencers have over their audience to help them make a decision in a sector otherwise intimidating for the current generation.

4) A friendly approach: Influencers act as a bridge between the BFSI sector and the prospective customer, allowing customers to interact with the brand in a more friendly way.

Influencer marketing can help companies in the BFSI sector become more relevant and attractive to a potential customer. Helping them reach a wider audience and at the same time get more leads. If you are looking to connect with influencers and do not understand the right strategy going forward, please reach out to me and I will be happy to guide you.

You can also mail me your thoughts at sagarwal3@babson.edu