Look for more from the outdoor industry’s legion of influencers this year as these enthusiasts go beyond the expected and embrace new trends head-on. The role of outdoors influencers already reaches beyond marketing spokespeople. These content creators embody the brands they represent, and they authentically rep the thrill-seeking, competitive lifestyles of their followers. The fact that the future of outdoor influencer marketing promises even bigger opportunities in 2025 should have any performance company excited.
The importance of influencer marketing for outdoor brands will skyrocket in 2025 as consumers shift their attention from aggressive sales pitches and trust their buying decisions to the local experts and enthusiasts they follow. Companies must showcase the stories, vistas, and unbelievable moments their audiences crave to highlight their performance gear and services, and influencers are changing how brands get this done.
As you ramp up this year’s promotions, look forward to the evolution of influencer marketing, which will leverage community-centric social strategies, niche targeting, and new channels to share your brand’s story like never before.
Shifting Social Strategies
If you’re in the outdoors industry, your social media agency likely has a handle on your organic campaigns and pay-per-click ads, but today’s consumers may need more convincing to develop an affinity for your brand. Companies who view social media as an ‘advertising channel’ should prepare to ditch this thinking. Not only are Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn valuable ad spaces, they’re platforms where people find community. Passion-driven marketing campaigns can help connect brands to these audiences, and when these strategies feature influencers, you can expect impressive results.
This year, shift your social strategy to include a realm of outreach styles, from ads to branded posts and user-generated content to pique enthusiasts’ sense of adventure and shape their purchase decisions throughout the sales funnel.
Broader Marketing Campaigns for Wider Reach
Companies who once tried to squeeze into molds shaped by other brands can rest easy in 2025, because there’s a demand for unique, diverse campaigns—and outdoor influencers are leading the charge. Users have always expected original content, but the emphasis for future campaigns will also be on original content creators. Using influencers can appeal to a broader demographic, keeping your brand’s messaging inclusive to draw in loyal consumers while introducing your products to those who might love the lifestyle (but don’t know it yet).
Leave the technical specifications for product description pages and use your social campaigns to tap into different perspectives and experiences, enhancing how your products appeal to real consumers. When you share influencer-made how-tos, tutorials, videos, and images refreshingly unlike what anyone else is doing, your campaigns will stand out in a way that’s difficult to duplicate.
Nano Influencers Dominate Niche Markets
As we see the barrier to influencer marketing drop, we’ll see increased opportunities for niche brands to harness these powerful campaigns. Influencers don’t need 100,000 followers to make a difference for an outdoor brand, especially one targeting a specialized audience. Nano, Micro, and Mid-Tier influencers still offer big personalities and visual campaigns (with a lower price tag). Consumers trust ‘everyday people,’ so a like-minded social personality who offers advice on the latest performance wear or sporting gear can be just the push someone needs to purchase.
Toss out what you think you know about follower counts and open your brand to marketing opportunities with influencers who match your needs rather than an audience metric.
New Channels, Bigger Opportunities
Expect cross-platform posting to increase soon if it hasn’t already, as everyone is trying to get more bang for their marketing bucks. Thankfully, social media agencies and influencers interested in self-preservation have already mastered the gamut of platforms, giving outdoor brands a break.
The will-they, won’t-they status of TikTok and the general fatigue of the usual channels have made LinkedIn somewhat of a sleeper in the marketing race. This platform bulked up its creator tools and tweaked its algorithm to make it more attractive, and outdoors industry creators and agencies have taken note. Lifestyle brands need to consider this and any other neglected platform to increase their marketing opportunities—and if they’re running low on fuel—influencers can help.
If you’ve never considered LinkedIn beyond B2B marketing, or your social presence is limited, consider 2025 your year to expand. Let outdoors influencers’ enticing content or a social media agency’s original video production team step in. With help, your brand will permeate feeds on all your target audience’s preferred platforms to showcase your products, brand mission, and sustainability efforts to a crowd eager to listen.
All In on Influencer Marketing
The efficiency and out-of-the-box deliverables content creators produce continue to drive results for brands. Many companies saw favorable returns on professional content creation, making it a must for specialty companies, startups, and major brands alike. The outdoors industry must strategize carefully to stay competitive because the stakes—aka the budgets—will be higher this year than ever. Nearly a quarter of respondents in the Influencer Marketing Hub Benchmark Report planned to spend more than 40% of their entire 2024 ad budget on influencer campaigns, and this number is only expected to grow in 2025.
If you’re prepared to spend more on outdoor influencer marketing, get ready to measure more, too. The metrics you’ll need include the usual suspects—reach, impressions, and engagement—but any social media agency will tell you you’ll also need to zero in on awareness, purchase intent, and brand recognition, to measure performance and dollars meticulously.
How Can Outdoor Brands Better Use Influencers in 2025?
Influencer marketers offer opportunities to create integrated campaigns that help brands achieve performance marketing and brand marketing goals. Expect these content creators to ask for more than a one-time, hired gig, and see how mutually beneficial these relationships are.
Influencer partnerships are a marketing trend to embrace in 2025 and we’re here for it. If you’re ready to hit the ground running with intelligent, integrated campaigns, contact us today. We’ll put the best creatives and analytics to work for you this year and beyond.