Fernando Fernandez, the new Unilever CEO is planning to follow in Donald Trump’s footsteps by increasing Unilever’s budget for social media marketing.
This is not meant as an insult or a dig at the newly-appointed Fernandez who replaced Hein Schumacher in this position. It’s actually a clever move. Trump’s controversial behavior showed how influential social media can be in attracting untapped sections of the society.
Fernandez, who recently shared his strategy for growth with the public, wants to get a share of it.
Fernandez, whose “machine for demand creation” is a dramatic title, will quickly increase Unilever’s marketing budget’s spend on influencers from 30% to 50%. This is a big shift in the balance that will undoubtedly take away money from more traditional marketing avenues.
Unilever’s marketing budget has increased from 13% to 16% since 2022. The boss still sees the benefits of increasing budget in this area.
What Unilever brand will receive influencer budgets?
When it came to the influencer spending, he made it clear what markets were going to receive the largest pots of cash. He made it clear which markets would receive the biggest pots of money when it comes to influencer spend.
“He wants at least one influential person in each of India’s 19,000 zip codes,” he said. This is a big change. This requires an entirely new machine for content creation.
Fernandez wants to “drive” the use of AI in the company over the coming years.
Will food be included in the discussion? Fernandez acknowledged Unilever’s commitment to its food business and emphasized the importance and value of it. Knorr is Unilever’s fifth largest brand, followed by Hellman’s.
It’s difficult to imagine how such influencers can inject fun and glamour into brands. Will it work?
Simply, yes. Influencers have more trust than celebrities with Gen Z. 45% of Europeans within this age group said so.
More shoppers use social media to decide
LinkedIn data shows that 34 of consumers use social media to influence and get advice on purchases. 69% of consumers now trust the recommendations made by influencers (Matter Communications).
According to State of Influencers Marketing Benchmarking 2024 Report, Fernandez’s and Unilever’s marketing teams might be most interested in TikTok. The platform is now the largest social media channel for brands marketing their products, with 66% of them using it. This compares to 33% on YouTube and 47% for Instagram.
According to Influencer Marketing Hub, Fernandez’s increase in influencer budget may yield large returns for Unilever. The data indicates a return of $5.78 on each dollar.
Fernandez is right to focus on the influencers as many marketers are investing in influencer marketing budgets.
Unilever, however, should be cautioned. Oversaturation is making it difficult for brands to grow.
Influencers are human and can sometimes make mistakes, or change their mind.
