Influencer marketing and covert advertising: two case studies, Spain and Mexico

Abstract

Introduction: Through influencer marketing, brands reach millions of potential consumers around the world. Their millionaire audiences consume their publications, among which there is sometimes room for promotional content not always declared as such. Our purpose is to describe how influencer marketing operated in the framework prior to the approval of Royal Decree 444/2024, which establishes for the first time the requirements to regulate this activity in Spain in order to comply with the General Law on Audiovisual Communication. In parallel, it is also analyzed the Mexican legislative framework, which is at a different point of development, although can have comparable incidence and problems. Methodology: A total of 4,000 publications from 80 Instagram accounts of Spanish and Mexican influencers were examined. Results: Instagram content has functioned as a covert advertising medium in both countries: brands appear in more than half (Spain) or more than a third (Mexico) of the publications analyzed. Only in 40% of these cases is the advertising or promotional nature of the content explicitly stated. Conclusions: This evidence confirms the need and opportunity for legislative adjustments such as the Spanish Royal Decree, which could be considered as an example for other advertising systems, in a context in which influencer marketing acquires a growing weight within advertising investment around the world.