Pascale Vigener From TERRITORY: “Authenticity Is the New Currency”

Ms. Vigener, what exactly is an AI influencer?

Pascale Vigener: An AI influencer is a digital, computer-animated character. A distinction is made here between brand-created characters, i.e. avatars that have been developed by a specific brand and only represent its interests, and independent characters. There are various manifestations of AI influencers, from animated avatars that are doll-like or fantasy creatures and animals, to human-like, realistic influencers. One very well-known virtual influencer is @lilmiquela, for example. She presents herself as an independent personality who can be booked by brands. Behind this is, of course, a company or a person who developed the AI influencer. Some AI influencers have millions of followers – the Asian market is the absolute pioneer here, but there are also already many virtual influencers in the USA. The market is also becoming increasingly crowded in Europe. We are following developments closely in order to adapt our offering to our customers' demand.

Does this mean that we will encounter more and more AI influencers online in Europe over the next few years?

Vigener: You can already see that things are happening in Europe too. AI-generated social media profiles are becoming increasingly common in our everyday lives. Some brands, including very large brands, are already implementing campaigns with virtual influencers. However, our customers still tend to view the topic with caution. Traditional collaborations with nano, micro, macro and star influencers remain a clear focus. Nano- and micro-influencers still have comparatively small follower numbers and are therefore often unpaid. This means that they are provided with products to test and recommend in collaborations. Macros are more professional content creators who usually have paid partnerships. Stars are faces that are very well known.

Let's take a look at the business from the perspective of the real influencers themselves – where could their business model develop in the future?

Vigener: On the one hand, real influencers are already using AI to animate and translate their content. I could also imagine real influencers offering a second, virtual character in the future. This would allow them to present themselves twice, so to speak, and thus implement more campaigns and jobs in the same amount of time. Let's take Taylor Swift as an example. As a star influencer, she is incredibly expensive. But I could imagine Taylor Swift developing a second character at some point, who would appear purely virtually and could be booked by a brand. For customers, this concept would have the advantage that the virtual Taylor could be a cheaper brand ambassador than the real Taylor.

What risks or dangers does AI influencer marketing entail?

Vigener: One major topic, for example, is the perfect beauty ideal in the beauty sector. Especially when virtual influencers are portrayed in a very real way, it is incredibly important to communicate and label that they are AI-generated so as not to convey a distorted image to the outside world. This also applies to the topic of deepfakes. It is often not clear who is behind a virtual influencer and users do not know who they are actually dealing with. The business is likely to get bigger and bigger in the future and you have to learn – and this also applies to us as an agency – how to be selective.

What character traits does an AI influencer need to have to be well received?

Vigener: This is difficult to generalize, because real influencers are booked because of their very own type, their individual tonality and certain character traits. The content of AI influencers will perhaps be similarly diverse. But here, too, it's difficult to make predictions – it's a super exciting time at the moment because the market is only just developing.

How much content on social media is already AI-generated?

Vigener: It is difficult to make an exact statement. Studies show that more and more AI-generated content is flooding the platforms. What is becoming increasingly important is transparency. As users, we are sometimes no longer able to distinguish AI-generated content from genuine content. The platforms have already started to respond to this by offering the option of labeling. There has also been a new legal directive since the beginning of the year with the European AI Act, so legislators are also addressing the issue.

How does this flood of AI-generated content affect the work of real influencers?

Vigener: The more content is played on the platforms, the more relevant the question becomes: Who do I give my attention to as a user? Authenticity is an important decision-making factor here. And it is also the core benefit of influencer marketing. The fact that so much AI-generated content is being published can also be an opportunity for influencers: Nano- or micro-influencers in particular are becoming increasingly popular. You can tell that many users are looking for smaller, authentic social media channels right now because they are close to their community and still engage in direct communication. This gives followers the feeling that they know this person and are much more likely to accept recommendations from them. The platforms themselves also have an interest in ensuring that AI-generated content is recognized. Instagram, for example, recognizes AI-generated images and marks them visibly for followers.

To what extent does artificial intelligence change the work for you as an agency?

Vigener: It influences us in three areas. Firstly, we work with AI-based tools to become more efficient, for example in selection, analysis or reporting. In this case, AI is a useful tool for us that can make us more effective and creative. We could also expand our portfolio in future to include this fifth, virtual influencer type and thus offer our customers a wider range of services. And finally, we are also wondering whether we will create avatars ourselves at some point. That would also be something new for us and we would first have to learn: How do you go about it? Which companies do you work with to create AI influencers?

How will the use of AI influencers change user behavior on social platforms?

Vigener: We are convinced that authenticity will become the new currency. Influencers will only be credible to their community if they are authentic. Based on long collaborations with nano- and micro-influencers, we realize that their content resonates and believe that this will only increase. Perhaps real influencers will have to be even more fallible and human in the future in order to set themselves apart from virtual influencers.