Is influencer marketing forcing traditional agencies out of the game?

Brand budgets for influencer marketing will continue to rise, with 54% of multinational brand marketers saying they plan to boost spend in 2025, and 61% agreeing that influencer marketing will become more important in the future.

This is according to a recent research study by WFA, developed in collaboration with the UK Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) along with other advertising self-regulatory organisations (SROs) from around the world, alongside the International Council for Advertising Self-regulation (ICAS). 

WFA found that that delivering on these new spending commitments has seen marketers working increasingly closely with influencer agencies to identify and manage influencer relationships. 

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Additionally, the use of influencer agencies by marketers has risen to nearly 74% when it comes to identifying influencers, an increase of 20% when compared to the last time WFA ran similar research in 2019.

Brands are also looking to agencies to help manage influencers much more, with nearly 79% using influencer agencies as part of a suite of partners. Nearly 54% are also looking to their social media agency and PR agencies taking a role in managing influencer relationships.

Attention and authenticity

While its easy to think of marketing partnerships in the influencer space as product pushes, the direction it needs to move into is around driving culture, conversations and consumer action, explained Marcus Chew, group chief marketing officer for Lazada.

Chew explained that attention has become the new currency, and influencers play a critical role in capturing and sustaining consumer interest in an increasingly fragmented digital landscape. "With audiences spending more time on social platforms, brands that invest in influencer marketing are not just reaching consumers but engaging them in more meaningful ways," Chew said, adding that the trend should be incorporated as a must-have strategy, rather than just an add-on. 

While capturing consumer attention is key, authentic connections are also vital in the marketing world to sustain customer relationships, especially when it comes to picking the right faces for your brand. Eugene Lee, former chief marketing officer of McDonald’s International highlighted the importance of focusing on quality instead of quantity in this playing field, stressing the need to meet customers where they are. 

"What I’ve learnt over my years in marketing is that when you take the time and effort to curate your influencer list with the right ones, the result is often more impactful and brings about a 1+1=3 outcome," he said. 

Lee who has worked across the globe in his prior stint with McDonald's also added that Asia has been at the forefront of influencer marketing, largely due to the celebrity culture across the region, which has now led to micro-celebrities or influencer culture. 

"Many brands in Asia have moved away from having just one or two large brand spokespersons, which usually have to be mass in nature to reach a wide audience, to now realising that they can reach their exact target audience better and engage them more deeply through influencers," he added.

Influencer agencies taking over traditional relationships?

Echoing the findings of the survey, Chew added that while traditional creative agencies still play a role, influencer agencies bring agility, authenticity, and performance-driven strategies that align better with today’s fast-moving digital landscape. 

"Working closely with influencer specialists has helped us move at the speed of culture, allowing us to tap into trending content formats, optimise campaigns in real-time, and create more engaging, native experiences for consumers," he added. 

Despite the growing use of influencer agencies, Lee has observed many campaigns where influencer content feels unnatural and disconnected from traditional marketing efforts, highlighting that the critical part of employing such agencies is ensuring the brand strategy flows across all aspects of a campaign.

"Working directly with an influencer agency might not bring about the best outcomes if they are often brought in later and not involved in the planning process," he said. 

What do agencies have to say?

With an evident increase in influencer demand, how are agencies moving with the times? Companies such as Publicis have dished out big bucks in recent times after the agency acquired global influencer marketing company and platform Influential back in 2024. Prior to that, We Are Social bought a majority stake in Singapore-based influencer marketing agency Kobe Global Technologies to beef up its influencer marketing services across Southeast Asia.

As brands shift their focus to this prominent strategy, Kristian Olsen, managing director at Type A said the shift for marketers isn't just a move away from traditional agencies, but more towards relevance and speed.

"Brands no longer want eight-week timelines to create a hero film that eventually gets chopped into numerous different social formats. They want to move at the speed of culture; and influencer-led content often hits that sweet spot of authenticity, speed, and bang for buck," he added. 

At Type A, Olsen has seen firsthand how the right influencer-led idea can punch well above its weight, noting that one of the agency's standout campaigns delivered top-tier results on a fraction of a typical media budget. As such, he emphasised the importance of flexible production models and deep creator insights to capitalise and win big in this arena. 

Arguing that influencer marketing is less prominent in Asia compared to the global scale, VJ Anand, founder and chief experiment officer of ballsy prompted those in the region to give it a go. 

"It's as simple as no one wanting to see a brand sell sell sell on social platforms. People follow certain influencers, and some even trust them, so why not use them to put the message out instead of dropping it on your brand channel," he said. Sharing some campaigns during his time working in the UK with VaynerMedia, he said influencers were used as a vehicle to get the brand's message out and sell its products. 

Anand also urged agencies to hire individuals who connect with influencers, highlighting the importance of producing materials, such as a creative brief, for this group in order to maximise their full potential. 

Keeping it ethical

While influencer marketing certainly has its perks, many marketers we speak to share the fear of being caught up in their "drama" or being cancelled. To this end, WFA outlined five critical areas marketers must address to ensure their influencer marketing campaigns are ethical, responsible, and compliant with global advertising standards.

1. The first key area is disclosure and transparency, emphasising the need for clear and properly placed disclosures in language that is easily understood by audiences.

2. Content accuracy is another essential factor, urging brands to ensure that influencers provide genuine opinions and truthful claims that can be substantiated. Misleading statements, exaggerations, or omissions about products or services should be strictly avoided.

3. The report also stresses ethical considerations, advising brands to steer clear of content that could be seen as offensive, discriminatory, or socially and environmentally irresponsible.

4. Furthermore, brands must ensure compliance with local laws, understanding and adhering to advertising regulations in every country where content is distributed, while also considering age restrictions and audience appropriateness.

5. Lastly, the report recommends best practices such as clear contracts, proper training and guidance for influencers, and ongoing monitoring to help brands maintain control over their influencer partnerships.

These steps can help marketers build more responsible and effective influencer marketing strategies.

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