Funded at $10M, One Impression looks to tap into the creative economy of the Middle East

With the widespread adoption of platforms such as TikTok and Instagram, the creative economy is booming in the Middle East. This balloon industry in the region has caught the eye of a Gurugram-based startup.

The influencer marketing platform has a repository of seven million content creators registered on the platform, of which 7,000 are from the Middle East.

In a conversation with Gulf Edition of your storyApaksh Gupta, Co-Founder and CEO In the yearA viewIn the yearexplains the popularity of influencer marketing in the Middle East with a parallel to India.

Brands in India spend the largest share of their marketing budgets on Bollywood celebrities. But movie stars in the Middle East are not as uncommon as in India. Instead, brands in the region will focus on social media influencers for marketing,” he says.

Last month, One Impression raised $10 million in Series A funding from South Korean game major Crafton Inc. The group intends to use this new capital to expand in the UAE and Southeast Asia.

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Why the Middle East?

According to the data collected by the group, the Middle East has about 90,000 creators on TikTok, 21,000 YouTubers and 51,000 creators on Instagram. According to Data Bridge Market Research, the influencer marketing platform market is expected to grow at a compound growth rate (CAGR) of 32.5% during the forecast period of 2022-2029.

Working with influencers in the Middle East, Gupta describes the region as a “gateway for content creators from around the world,” serving as the first leg of international expansion for many brands.

“I often get calls from Indian brands if we know influencers in the region who are willing to be a part of their marketing campaigns,” he added.

Most of One Impression’s Middle Eastern influencer base has between 100,000 and 400,000 followers. The company introduced them to the platform to help them tap into their network and find more content creators.

“By partnering with these content creators and several local talent management agencies and running marketing campaigns with them, we have reached out to the first 2-3% of influencers in the region. Once we succeed in doing so, we will build the rest of the network organically,” added Gupta.

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Working with influencers

Founded in 2018, One Impression serves as a ‘marketplace for influencers’. A team of over 100 members, it helps brands find influencers for their campaigns and negotiate payment terms on their behalf.

The idea sprouted a year ago when Gupta, a serial entrepreneur, needed to pitch marketing campaigns to an influencer network for his third venture – a fashion company called SummerLabel. As more brands started tapping into content creators for campaigns, he realized the space was fragmented.

“Influencers had to rely on multiple talent management agencies for a stable source of income and high brand exposure. These agencies would charge different fees for the same influencer. Again, brands wanted to work with influencers but didn’t know how to do it,” he explains.

He formed an imprint with his brother Jeevesh Gupta to democratize the position.

The platform invites brands and influencers to register at no cost. It charges both parties a 10% commission for every contract signed between influencers and brands. He did not disclose his income.

However, retaining creatives with many talent agencies is a challenge as influencers have other avenues such as Mavrck and Hashtag Paid.

“To earn influencers’ trust, there needs to be a seamless payment process and not one-time business, but constant business from repeat brands. Only then can creators feel like they belong to the community,” added Gupta.

One Impression has so far executed influencer campaigns for over 500 brands including Amazon, Unilever, Meesho, Pinterest and more. It has bases in India, United Arab Emirates and Indonesia.

As One Impression moves deeper into the UAE and the larger Middle East market, it plans to ditch the invitation-only model in 2023 and introduce self-registration and access for brands and content creators. This, the team feels, will be beneficial for smaller brands who can partner with creators with smaller followings, and will truly democratize the creator economy.

(Cover image by Nihar Apte)