El influencer: herramienta clave en el contexto digital de la publicidad engañosa

Currently, the influencer implies the translation, the new version of the opinion leader applied to the online medium, taking advantage of the enormous potential shown by social networks. According to the Annual Study of Social Networks (IABSpain, 2016), 85% of users declare that they follow the influencers in social networks. The influencer is a person who has a certain credibility on a specific topic and whose presence and influence in social networks makes him or her an appropriate prescriber of a certain brand. The objective of this paper is to analyze the new panorama of the figure of the influencer as a fundamental element in the Social Media strategy of organizations, and in the development of false advertising, since the opinions presented by the influencer in many cases are disguised and They omit key information for the user. For this, a mixed methodology is applied: conceptual / theoretical and content analysis. Among the most relevant conclusions is the justification for the use of influencer by companies from different sectors in their online marketing strategy, the lack of legality in digital advertising, the recurrent practice of covert advertising using the figure of influencer.