Beyond Direct Response: The True ROI of Influencer Marketing via the Halo Impact

Influencer marketing has matured. Once considered a top-of-funnel brand awareness tool, it's now becoming one of the most effective media investments that holds an evergreen nature, when measured correctly.

The industry is shifting away from outdated last-click attribution models and embracing a more holistic view of performance, one that includes Halo Impact.

What Is the Halo Impact?

The Halo Impact refers to the broader, often untraceable, influence that influencer marketing has on consumer behavior. While direct response metrics like click throughs and promo code redemptions capture a fraction of a campaign’s impact, we know that up to 80% of influencer driven purchases occur through untraceable journeys. This means the majority of results aren’t being captured in traditional analytics platforms.

Attribution Beyond Last Click

Pepper has developed advanced attribution models to bridge this measurement gap, helping brands and organisations to understand the true return on investment (ROI) and return on ad spend (ROAS) of influencer marketing campaigns. By analysing how influencer marketing affects multiple business levers, we move beyond direct response into performance marketing that reflects real-world customer behaviour.

Our Clients Have Seen:

  • 56% increase in brand search volume during influencer campaigns.
  • 27% uplift in online purchases during campaign periods.
  • 4.2% higher engagement on owned brand channels, showing a ripple effect across other digital touchpoints.
  • Up to a 92% new audience visiting their site, expanding the intent pool and advancing re-targetting opportunities through paid spaces. 
  • Up to 50x campaign cost returned through earned media (UGC, PR and shares). 

These metrics aren't captured by traditional last click or promo code tracking, but they are key to proving influencer marketing works.

Building Better Business Cases

Historically, influencer marketing budgets were justified through CPM and engagements. Today, our work enables clients to build bulletproof business cases grounded in performance marketing principles.

We’ve seen clients unlock 20–60% increases in business impact using our attribution model within three months of launching influencer-led campaigns. Whether it's eCommerce uplift, CRM expansion or social brand equity, Halo Impact is the missing link in connecting brands with measurable outcomes.

Want To Know How We Measure the Halo Impact?

We implement a multi-touch attribution approach using first-party data, campaign timestamps, and behavioural signals to track indirect impact. Get in touch to find out how we can do it with you.

posted on:
June 18, 2025
written by:
Joe Friend
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