Only 10% influencers in India monetise content, but influence 30% of consumer spends

The 2-2.5 million creators in India are influencing over 30 percent of consumers and $350-400 billion in consumer spend, generating $20-25 billion in value for the participants in the economy.

By 2030, the creator-influenced spends are estimated to reach over $1 trillion, unlocking more than $100 billion in ecosystem revenues.

Brands that do influencer marketing spend between 10-20 percent of their marketing budgets on the creator economy today.

Many brands or as many as 70 percent of them plan to scale creator budgets by 1.5-3 times in 2-3 years.

Creators who monetize their content can be classified in six categories and majority of them have smaller follower bases but drive high engagement and brand impact.

One category is called The Trust Ambassadors comprising 14 lakh to 17 lakh nano creators who have 10,000-50,000 followers on social media. These influencers have low to medium reach but very high engagement. They have a high degree of influence over their followers. Used by brands for awareness and conversion objectives. Typically, these creators straddle multiple categories of products.

Then there are 4 lakh-6 lakh niche creators who have very high convincing power among their narrowly focused audiences, given their expertise in a specific category, and have the potential to shape product beliefs. Used by brands for both awareness and conversion objectives.

The third category is the inquisitors with 75,000-1 lakh influencers. These creators post thought-provoking questions and explore ideas, creating dialogue that drives audience engagement and interest. Used mostly for awareness generation.

Another category includes 60,000-80,000 influencer icons who generate hype and create excitement around products specially in cases of products with a shorter shelf life/more frequent launches.

Around 10,000-15,000 influencers come under the disseminator category. They are primarily used for brand awareness and to drive high reach for introducing new ideas and products to a wide audience.

The last category includes 2,000-4,000 creators called as the trend setters who protect brand integrity and solidify brand loyalty through consistent, reliable endorsements and long-term partnerships. Used largely by market leaders/category creators.

While brands are looking to increase their spends on influencer marketing, the future growth in India’s creator economy hinges on high-potential yet under-penetrated models of virtual gifting, subscriptions and live commerce.

Regional Indian platforms have carved a niche in virtual gifting within live streams.

Virtual gifting in live streaming allows viewers to send digital items to hosts during broadcasts. Users purchase in app currency which can be used to buy gifts and participate during livestream

While all popular apps in India offer virtual gifting, regional platforms with a strong base in tier II and tier III towns have seen high rates of adoption.

Adoption and engagement is higher in verticals like entertainment (singing, comedy, gaming), spirituality and self help (motivational, astrology).

Creators host their shows live on platforms where audiences participate through virtual gifting or through microtransactions between Rs 10-100.

Another monetisation model is live commerce which in India is still in early stages, but has been steadily growing since 2020.

Subscription monetisation model which allows influencers to charge their followers a recurring fee to access exclusive content is also a less tapped monetisation model.