India’s influencer marketing industry is valued at Rs 3,600 crore in 2024, with a projected growth of 25% in 2025, according to the India Influencer Marketing Report 2025. The report, released by The Goat Agency (a WPP Media influencer and content marketing unit) in collaboration with Kantar, outlines current trends and challenges in how brands are integrating influencers into core marketing strategies.
The study found that nearly all participating brands now view influencer marketing as either a strategic or high-priority initiative. A notable shift is occurring in how influencers are selected: brands, particularly in the manufacturing sector, are placing greater emphasis on content quality and creator relevance over follower count. According to the report, 85% of manufacturing brands now prioritise content quality.
There is also a marked trend towards long-term influencer partnerships, with 72% of brands favouring sustained collaboration over one-off engagements. Additionally, macro-influencers are being prioritised by 95% of brands, largely due to concerns around content control and brand safety.
Despite this, micro-influencers are gaining attention in high-involvement sectors such as automotive and consumer durables. In these categories, 85% of marketers indicated plans to increase investment in niche influencers. However, influencer discovery remains a significant challenge, cited by 83% of marketers overall and 95% of those in the BFSI (banking, financial services, and insurance) sector.
When measuring campaign effectiveness, marketers are moving away from vanity metrics. Engagement rates (39%) and content quality (36%) are now considered more important for evaluating ROI. From the consumer perspective, influencers continue to play a key role across the purchase journey. The report states that 63% of users rely on influencers for product discovery, 69% for information, and 60% for taking purchase action. Trust and credibility were cited by 70% of brands as the main reasons for working with influencers, a sentiment particularly strong in BFSI (77%) and FMCG (76%).