By Mark Seavy 

Influencers large and small are increasingly being engrained into licensing strategies. 

Macro influencers are social media content creators with a million or more followers while micro influencers have a smaller but dedicated following that can range from 1,000 to 500,000 followers. Partnerships with these influencers have developed into a two-tier system. Under this structure, macro influencers—with their broad access to millions of followers—are serving to introduce IP to consumers. Micro influencers, meanwhile, supply deeply connected communities with more intimate and authentic ties. 

Those connections are forged by influencers spending hours talking to their online communities and creating content that keeps their followers coming back. The lure is authenticity, which has become the name of the game—especially for micro influencers, according to a Morning Consult study.  

The majority (88%) of those polled by Morning Consult said it is important influencers be authentic and care about the interests of their audience. And because of those deeper connections, micro influencers’ engagement with followers is 60% higher than those of macro influencers. 

Working with micro influencers also tends to be cheaper than collaborating with their larger counterparts or paying for ads on social media platforms and YouTube. Micro influencers typically charge a budget-friendly $100-$1,000 per post versus large-scale creators or celebrities who charge much more. Additionally, the cost per engagement for these smaller influencers is typically 20 cents against 33 cents for larger creators.  

These cost savings come as the total market for influencers, both large and small, has more than doubled since 2019. The market is currently valued at about $25 billion, up from $1.7 billion in 2016, and is forecast to reach $56 billion by 2029.  

“Celebrities have always been influential in fashion, but micro influencers are probably the biggest change,” said Richard Cox, Chief Merchandising Officer at Pacsun. “The macro influencers serve to introduce consumers to what is available, while micro influencers educate them and solidify those connections. Those micro influencers focus on how we connect from a community aspect, something you have already seen at the local hobby stores, but which are now being taken online in the digital age.”  

However, it is possible for those connections to smaller, more focused consumer communities to be forged by influencers that have millions of followers.  

Bonkers Toys, for example, introduced a line of plush figures last year under a licensing agreement with Jessica “Aphmau” Bravura, who has more than 25 million followers and launched a YouTube channel in 2012 that helped popularize Minecraft roleplay videos. The plush is based on Meemeows, a fan-favorite group of cat characters that are front and center in licensed products as well as a licensed book deal with publisher HarperCollins.  

The interest among Bravura’s fans is undeniable. The tickets for a meet-and-greet at a Barnes & Noble store in Huntington Beach last year sold out in less than 48 hours. But brands closely connected with macro influencers can still benefit from the attention provided by smaller creators. Meemeows has also spurred interest among micro influencers, including those dedicated to toys such as @minimysteries on TikTok (87,500 followers) and tanjastoyreview on Instagram (171,000 followers).   

Both influencers were part of Bonkers’ Valentine’s Day promotion for the plush. In the case of the Valentine’s Day promotion, Meemeows plush was mailed to 30 micro influencers and the earned media value (the value of unpaid organic brand exposure through social media shares and influencer mentions) was about $400,000, said Dan Meyer, Head of Brands at Bonkers. Bonkers, which has launched a similar campaign for Coolabi-licensed Warrior Cats plush, tested with micro influencers prior to the product drop, Meyer said. 

Other companies have a slightly different approach.  

Pacsun created a Youth Advisory Council, a group of Gen Z and Gen Alpha consumers who have partnered directly with the retailer’s executives in workshops and mentorship sessions to weigh in on topics ranging from denim fits to marketing campaigns.  

“Most licensors don’t struggle with awareness but with relevancy around Gen Z and Gen Alpha. Think of them not just as someone who you can sell merchandise to but someone you can communicate the next generation of youth culture with and be disruptive with that audience,” said Ryan Vogt, VP of Business Development at CAA Brand Management, which last year connected Pacsun with its client, Formula 1. “It is less about the dollars and cents and more about what they can do for brands as an ancillary part of the business.”