Abstract:
The purpose of this research is aimed at studying the influencer marketing industry in
Azerbaijan, to better understand the behavior of consumers in the local market, to find out what
is the perception of users of social networks of sponsored content, as well as to assess the
relevance of this area in Azerbaijan. The author used both the primary and secondary data for his
research. The secondary data was retrieved from academic resources for a detailed study of the
available information, in order to get acquainted with the industry, to make a comparison with
foreign practices, and also to emphasize the risks and positive aspects of the influencer
marketing. In order to address the research question, the researcher chose a mixed methods
approach, meaning that the data was obtained through several approaches, such as survey with a
Likert Scale Data measuring people’s attitude, two sets of influencers which were considered to
be macro and micro opinion leaders, as well as semi structured – interviews, which were online
based, due to the circumstances, with marketing professionals. To address the question from
different perspectives and to be able to make comparisons, the researcher selected mixed
methods approach which gave the opportunity to use the advantages of both qualitative and
quantitative research techniques. Since the research includes a human factor, namely human
behavior and factors that influence a user's decision making, the inductive approach was chosen
to be the most appropriate way to code the data from interview.
Using the primary data and facts from the secondary data, the researcher was able to
assess the research question, bring the work to its logical conclusion, and provide some
recommendations.