Diversity In Influencer Marketing Surges Over The Past Five Years

Over the past five years, sponsored post prices charged by influencers of African descent have increased 1,374 percent from $129 to $1,773 on average, according to IZEA’s second annual “State of Influencer Equality” report. As a result, for the first time ever, African American influencers earned the most per sponsored post in 2020.

The surge comes after a year full of calls for racial justice—including the murder of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement and ensuing initiatives such as the 15 Percent Pledge—caused marketers to embrace diversity and inclusion in their influencer marketing efforts.

Over the past five years, the average influencer earnings for all self-reported races and genders have grown dramatically.

“In 2015, Caucasian influencers received 73 percent of all sponsorship transaction volume. That number has been decreasing over time and now mimics the U.S. population. Thirty-five percent of Americans identify as Non-White, and sponsorship deal flow for those racial minorities has now reached thirty-seven percent,” said Ted Murphy, founder and chief executive of IZEA.

Year-over-year, influencers that identified as “non-white other” saw the second highest increase in cost paid per post, growing from $1,145 in 2019 to $1,679 in 2020. Cost paid per post for Asian and Hispanic influencers remained relatively flat YoY, while prices charged by Caucasian influencers grew.

Women continue to dominate the influencer marketing industry, accounting for 87 percent of all transaction volume over the past five years. Due to the abundance of female influencers, however, when measured across all forms of social media, IZEA found that women have consistently been paid less per post during the same time frame than males.

Still, the pay gap between women and men influencers narrowed considerably YoY, from 47 percent in 2019 to 24 percent in 2020.

Over the past five years, male influencers’ fees have increased 778 percent from $290 to $2,258 on average; female influencers’ fees have surged 1,202 percent from $143 to $1,719 on average.

Among all age groups, Gen Z influencers continue to command the highest premium, earning $1,597 per post on average across all social platforms in 2020. Gen Z earns 1.7 times more per post vs. those aged 25 to 34 and 2.3 times more per post compared with those aged 45 to 54.

Influencers between the ages of 18 to 24 on average get paid $1,158 per post, while influencers between the ages of 25 to 34 on average get paid $928 per post.

IZEA’s research also revealed that influencers with an annual household income of $150,000 or more per year charge 1.6 times more for a sponsored post compared to their counterparts earning $20,000 or less per year.
The findings are based on an analysis of influencer earnings—from micro-influencers to celebrities—observed in IZEA’s online marketplace spanning 2015 to 2020.