AI Influencers: How Social Media Marketing is Changing

AI influencers, also known as virtual influencers, are one of the biggest upcoming marketing crazes. Staying on top of this trend might help you position your business prominently as we enter this new era of artificial intelligence technology.

In this article we’re going to explore how AI is rapidly changing the influencer world and how this will play into the future of social media marketing.

What is an AI Influencer?

AI influencers, also known as virtual influencers, are digital personalities created with the help of AI and other digital technology.

At present, most digitally generated influencers do not rely on AI – their actions are controlled by humans in the background. This phenomenon, also known as Vtubing or Virtual Tubing, involves 3D digital models that use motion capture technology to replace real people with digitized characters, usually while live streaming.

However the digital influencer movement has recently expanded quite a bit, with these digital personas invading social media and creating big followings.

Digital influencers post on Instagram, live stream to their followers, comment on Twitter, and sound natural when they speak.

Up until now, however, this technology has been gatekept to a certain degree. MoCap technology is expensive. Streaming rigs are expensive. It takes a lot of time, money, and effort to create the 3D models. Then there is the actual interaction with fans, streaming, social media posting, and overall marketing to think about.

Put it simply, most of the public hasn’t had easy access to digital influencer technology, which is why there are so few digital influencers in the first place.

AI is about to change all that.

We are on the verge of seeing a dramatic rise in “AI influencers,” or virtual influencers that are powered with AI in some way.

Many reading this might already be familiar with ChatGPT, Lensa, and other popular AI apps. It’s no secret that AI is absolutely everywhere, and social media marketing is just one more realm where it will be making a huge impact.

Here are just some of the ways AI could alter the social media landscape:

• Digital models generated instantly with AI image generation tools.
• AI influencer personalities developed by AI
• Dialogue and social media content created with AI
• Real time AI chat. AI chatbots are already coming into usage, as are AI audio generation tools. It won’t be long before we see a synthesis where users will be able to ask an AI influencer a question on Twitch, and the answer will be turned into spoken dialogue in real time on a live stream.
• Realistic models. Right now, most digital influencers are very “cartoonish.” This is of course appealing in certain ways, but at present there are no real looking digital people that are live streaming or posting on social media. AI will change this, enabling digital influencers to take on a more realistic appearance.
• AI influencer selfies. Social media platforms like Instagram are about to be swamped with AI generated images of digital personas. Right now, there are entire accounts dedicated to AI art, but the future will be in AI personalities: accounts that are dedicated to one particular “character”, with hundreds of selfies and lifestyle pictures of them alone in their own world.
• AI influencer video. Yes, AI is already moving into the world of video. Soon, AI video generation will be just as commonplace as AI image generation is now. TikTok and similar social media platforms will have fully AI generated video content full of digital personalities.

How to Leverage AI Influencers In Your Social Media Marketing Strategy

eCommerce merchants have a lot to gain from working with AI influencers. In fact, this technology will revolutionize the influencer space.

Currently, influencers are very expensive, and very niche specific. Working with popular personalities can be a hit or miss for some merchants, and very often, they only accommodate specific industries. Skincare, beauty, and fashion being some of the top examples.

What about eCommerce merchants that sell power tools, or plumbing parts? There are hundreds of integral industries that sell essential products, both B2C and B2B, that don’t really have an outlet to influencers right now.

AI influencers changes this.

Because they are AI generated, and will be endlessly customizable according to specific needs, this means that every industry will be able to tap into influencer marketing. Merchants may even be able to “purchase” pre-configured AI personas off of digital marketplaces, that are aligned with that particular industry.

This would only require a bit of technical know-how and a marketing strategy behind it, and overnight you could have your very own influencer or digital personality that could become the face of your brand or an adoring fan. The possibilities are endless, and somewhat surreal.

At present, AI can be used to augment your social media strategy in a multitude of ways. AI tech is even being used to help develop sophisticated marketing strategies and enhance content output. However, the AI influencer scene isn’t developed yet.

What merchants can do to stay ahead of the curve is dive into the world of AI and modern social media marketing, or retain the services of an eCommerce marketing agency that is staying on top of the latest trends in AI and social media marketing.

Next Gen Social Media Marketing Agency For eCommerce Stores

Even with the streamlined simplification that AI will bring to the influencer scene, most merchants will still struggle to wrap their arms around it and implement this tech in a strategic fashion.

It’s important that when the time comes and this tech rolls out, however, that you have what you need to develop a battle plan and then execute on it.

AI influencers might be several months or even years off, but as we have seen with ChatGPT and other forms of AI tech, things could change overnight. You need a forward-thinking social media marketing strategy that is able to position your brand as top in your niche.

Here at 1Digital, we specialize in social media campaigns for eCommerce businesses and see where the market is headed in terms of AI innovation. Our marketers are aware of the latest trends and are finding new avenues every day to deliver superior results for our clients. If a progressive social media strategy is something you are interested in, give us a call at 888-982-8269. Our experts can fill you in on the latest trends and help you devise a strategy that will give your brand or business the edge it needs in the AI age.