Gleam Futures launches social media influencer consultancy

The agency behind some of the UK’s biggest social media influencers has launched a new consulting firm. Gleam Solutions will offer clients strategy building and mechanisms to weigh up the effectiveness of influencer marketing campaigns.

Digitalisation, the proliferation of the internet, and the rise of social media have led to disruption across the industrial spectrum in the last few years. While every type of company under the sun has been impacted, it is hard to name a market more visibly rocked by the sweeping changes than the marketing sector.

A new age of instantaneous digital content, combined with the shooting of social media celebrities to prominence, means the ground seems to be shifting beneath the feet of even the marketing industry’s established names. This new environment is perhaps best illustrated by the runaway hit of ITV’s Love Island franchise, which leverages a web of apps, interactive content and social media presences to create what is ultimately an immersive retail experience – deploying its Instagram-savvy cast to model its merchandise to impressionable viewers in real-time. The impact of influencers can no longer be ignored by traditional marketers.

This is further displayed by the fact a recent Invesp study found that 40% of people say they have purchased a product online as a result of seeing it being used by an influencer on social media, while 72% of customers trust a business more after it is recommended by an influencer. Whatever the reality might be, the nature of a social media star’s fame being linked to our willingness to subscribe to their account means they are ultimately seen as ‘one of us’, so 49% of consumers rely on product recommendations shared by influencers for their purchases.

This impression of influencers being more ‘organic’ than other modes of marketing might not necessarily be the case, it should be noted. The image of many content creators as being no different to the kid next door is somewhat at odds with the reality that many influencers are members of agencies. One such group is the influential Gleam Futures, which proclaims on LinkedIn that it “manage[s] a new generation of talent that has found its voice and audience on social media and digital platforms first.”

The firm develops and represents professional creators across multiple platforms, including but not limited to: YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, podcasting, blogs, TV, film, licensing and publishing. Among these stars, Gleam Futures represents influencers such as make-up mogul Zoe ‘Zoella’ Sugg, Grace Beverley of Grace Fit UK, and Marcus Butler. Now, as the agency looks to tap into the rising demand for influencers as part of rounded marketing strategies, Gleam Futures has launched its own consultancy practice, Gleam Solutions.

With global expenditure on advertising exceeding $500 billion in 2015, and having consistently risen since, it has become increasingly important to craft sound marketing strategies, including a solid plan for executing them further down the line. Marketers, digital or otherwise, are now under pressure to measure advertising effectiveness to ensure value for the huge flow of funds into the industry. Influencers are as much part of this as any other aspect of marketing.

Gleam Solutions’ formation will tap into digital advertisers' need to move towards the measurement of influencer marketing campaigns, beyond focusing on followers and likes, to instead address core business values – such as consumer awareness and consideration. According to a release, the new consultancy will offer brands a singular route to creating influencer campaigns, with a holistic service that includes advising on strategy, creative, talent selection, campaign delivery, distribution and reporting.

Dominic Smales, CEO and founder of Gleam Futures, said of the news, "As the industry has evolved, and as the sheer volume of talent has come to the fore, so too has our need to grow, evolve and adapt to future needs… [Gleam Solutions] will deliver effective, creative and innovative brand campaigns through a talent-first lens, to ensure authenticity and creativity come first… An all-new approach to evaluation and measurement will show the industry that no two creators are the same – and that their value should not be measured by the number of followers they have, or the number of likes they accrue from post to post.”