The number of online content creators popular enough to consider themselves influencers in Thailand and make money out of posting content on social media is expected to reach 3 million this year, up from about 2 million last year, says a media buying and marketing strategy planning firm.
That's about 5% of the population, said Pawat Ruangdejworachai, president and CEO of Media Intelligence Group Co.
Most of these new online content creators are people who already sell products over the internet and are keen to make more money through online advertisement fees and getting hired to review commercial products for their audience, he said.
Regulars on popular social media platforms, including TikTok, Facebook and YouTube, they review a wide range of products from new cafés to cosmetics in exchange for sponsorship, he said.
The amount of money spent on online advertising last year was around 88.06 billion baht, while this year that figure is projected to rise to around 92.04 billion baht, a 4.5% increase, he said.
Digital media advertisements are expected to record the highest growth for a second consecutive year, when compared to advertising growth in other types of media such as TV, he said.
The total amount of digital media advertisements last year outperformed TV commercials by far, which reflects a big change in TV viewers' habits, he said.
Many who used to like to watch entertainment content on TV have switched to viewing content on social media instead, he said.
As a result, about half the ads previously run on TV have shifted to digital media, leaving the rest to TV news programmes and series, he said.