Kiss 100 FM Presenter and Vlogger Felix Odiwuor aka Jalang’o has been ranked as the biggest digital influencer in Kenya entrenching his status as a very marketable brand besides being a very popular media personality.
A report authored by research firm Geopoll dubbed: Online Influencers’ Influence In Kenya And Nigeria ranks him alongside Njugush (comedian), Eric Omondi (comedian), Size 8 (gospel singer), Betty Kyalo (media personality), Robert Alai (blogger), Akothee (businesswoman), Churchill (comedy business executive and presenter), Jeff Koinange (news anchor and talk show host) and Maxine Wabosha (vlogger) as the top 10 digital influencers in the country respectively.
Bahati (musician), Xtian Dela (blogger), The Wa Jesus Family (content creators), Azziad Nasenya (content creator and actor), and Khaligraph Jones (rapper) complete the set of the 15 most influential Kenyans on social media.
Top 15 Influencers In Kenya
| Influencer | % mentions | |
| 1 | Jalan’go | 11% |
| 2 | Njugush The Comedian | 11% |
| 3 | Eric Omondi | 10% |
| 4 | Size 8 | 7% |
| 5 | Betty Kyalo | 7% |
| 6 | Robert Alai | 7% |
| 7 | Akothee | 7% |
| 8 | Churchill | 6% |
| 9 | Jeff Koinange | 4% |
| 10 | Maxine Wabosha | 4% |
| 11 | Bahati | 4% |
| 12 | Xtian Dela | 4% |
| 13 | The Wa Jesus Family | 4% |
| 14 | Azziad Nasenya | 4% |
| 15 | Khaligraph Jones | 3% |
Geopoll’s report conducted in the last week of July 2020 sought to understand the impact of influencers on consumers and their role within a full marketing strategy as advertising through influencers continue to grow into a billion-dollar business.
Social Media Platforms
According to the report, Facebook stood out as the most popular social network in both Kenya (85%) and Nigeria (78%)- Africa’s most active countries online.
There were variations, however, in the second most popular social networks, with YouTube (73%) and Instagram (63%) closing out the top three in Kenya. Instagram came second in Nigeria, followed by both Twitter and YouTube.
According to the survey, all of the respondents (100%) in Kenya said they follow online influencers, compared 86% of those in 86%, affirming the growth of the stature of influencers.
Facebook emerged as the top social media site to follow influencers as 73% of the respondents said they follow their favorite influencers on the platform, followed by Instagram, which is also owned by Facebook. Twitter (54%) is the third favorite followed by YouTube.
Influencer Categories
Most influencers focus on particular niche topics that they then create content around to engage their followers.
In the survey, lifestyle, fashion, and technology influencers were found to be the most popular categories of influencers.
Most Effective Influencer Content
Influencers produce their own content in engaging ways, such as video posts, or live chats.
As per the report, product reviews were the most influential form of post in both Kenya and Nigeria (23%) while videos scored 17% of the total responses.
Trust
Whether or not, Kenyans trust influencers enough to influence their decision to buy a product is up for debate. Business Today has previously reported on other reports that found that Kenyans don’t trust influencers’ recommendations for a product or service.
However, this Geopoll report found that 53% of consumers in Kenya and Nigeria said they would believe the word of an influencer over an advertisement from the brand itself.
Journalists and media personalities (51%) emerged as the most credible influencers followed by industry experts (46%) and celebrities such as musicians and actors at 44% as per Geopoll’s report.
Conversely, 69% and 55% of the respondents in Kenya and Nigeria respectively said they have been directly influenced to make purchase decisions by influencers’ recommendations.
A further 32% said influencer reviews had contributed to their purchase decisions to some extent.
“Influencers with relevant content continue to have a strong following as they win and retain consumer trust, which ultimately impacts purchasing decisions. Social media influencers who are trusted and followed by consumers still play an important role in affecting their purchasing decisions,” the report’s author Frankline Kibuacha says in a statement.
“While more research is needed to close the loop, we hope this survey will help both brands and influencers continue growing better relationships with consumers,” he concludes.
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