It started with “Mommy Bloggers”, the original influencers… or were they really? Certainly, in the then nascent digital frontier, Mommy Bloggers were new. After a few years of seeing their impact, brands took notice and began to realize the marketing potential of these unpaid public opinion ‘leaders’.  Savvy marketers began to contact and pay them to blog about whatever was appropriate for their brand. After a year or so, these independent moms had to start stating that their blogs were a paid gig, namely, a “paid sponsorship”. In retrospect, one can see the broadcast world has been rife with influencers. Arthur Godfrey and Lipton’s Tea, Stern and Snapple… the list is flush with partnerships. My personal favorite is the renown DJ Wolfman Jack hawking baby chicks. Yes, baby chickens would be delivered to your home so you could raise them, and in the words of the immortal Wolfman: “(you could) eat’m right up”.  One of the craziest ones I ever heard was the sponsorship of the Shroud of Turin which hangs in St. John the Baptist Cathedral in Turin, Italy. Some company (you can probably guess what kind) was selling pieces of that sacred cloth in which Jesus was supposedly buried. This was an actual campaign, not a Monty Python skit!

The strength of personal endorsements is POWERFUL, and radio personalities have long been a force in that area. Whether hugely popular on a national scale, or having a small but loyal audience, radio DJ’s are tremendously influential in selling product. Combined with their social media pages, these campaigns can really move the brand’s awareness and the consumer’s purchase intent needle.

Now for my shameless self-promotion: HRN’s Influencer Network is a strong vehicle for the right brand(s) that wants to reach the Hispanic audience. HRN’s four nationally- syndicated personalities have tremendous sway over their loyal listeners. This accounts for why they have remained on the air for so long: people love to tune in and listen to them.

Give us a shout to find out more about our reach and services. And, as “added-value”, I’ll give you a brief history of influential media personalities… endlessly fascinating 🙂

Pic designed by benzoix for Freepik.com.

Matt Feinberg is the Chief Strategy Officer, Sales & Marketing at Gen Media Partners, he is a seasoned media and marketing executive strategist and university level educator.