Want Growth in 2025? Here’s How Top Brands Are Doing It

1. Why Engagement Rate Matters to Brands in 2025

If you're trying to grow your business in 2025, you’ve probably considered influencer marketing. But here’s the truth: influencer marketing isn’t just trending, it’s transforming how top brands go viral, increase revenue, and build community faster than ever.

So, what’s the secret behind those high-performing influencer campaigns? It all starts with knowing who you’re working with.

Smart brands in 2025 don’t just chase follower counts. They look at real engagement. Because when you collaborate with creators whose audiences care, you’re not just gaining visibility, you’re driving results.

Before spending on a collab, brands now ask:

• Does this influencer get actual engagement (not just likes from bots)?
  
  

• Will their content lead to clicks, saves, or purchases?
  
  

• Can we measure ROI?
  
  

That’s why engagement rate is often the first thing marketing teams evaluate.

According to Influencer Marketing Hub, Instagram engagement is still the top performance metric for 72% of brands.

2. What Is Engagement Rate on Instagram?

Engagement Rate is the percentage of an influencer's audience that interacts with their content (likes, comments, shares, saves).

It helps brands:

• Understand how active and loyal an audience is
  
  

• Predict potential performance of a campaign
  
  

• Compare influencers in the same niche more objectively
  
  

3. How to Calculate Instagram Engagement Rate Accurately

Most brands make the mistake of looking at just one post. But smart marketers calculate engagement based on multiple recent reels.

Formula (used by INFLUISH & top agencies):

Engagement Rate (%) = (Avg Reach of Last 5 Reels / Follower Count) × 100 (Exclude reels uploaded in the last 48 hours)

• Avg Reach = Total Reach of Last 5 Reels ÷ 5
  
  

• Avg Likes = Total Likes on Last 5 Reels ÷ 5
  
  

This gives you a real performance score, not one inflated by a viral moment.

Pro Tip: Always exclude recent uploads (under 48 hours) to avoid reach fluctuations.

4. Best Tools to Check Engagement Rate of Influencers

Want to dive deeper into selecting the right influencer? Don’t miss our blog on How to Find Influencers for Your Brand: Without Wasting Time or Money.

INFLUISH stands out by showing engagement verified directly via Instagram’s API no guesswork. Explore the INFLUISH App to start verifying influencers instantly.

5. Benchmarks: What’s a Good Engagement Rate in 2025?

If an influencer’s rate falls way below these numbers, their audience may be disengaged.

6. Red Flags: Fake Engagement & How to Spot It

• Sudden follower spikes with no rise in engagement
  
  

• Same 5–10 people commenting on every post
  
  

• Very low reach despite high follower count
  
  

• Bot-like replies and spammy giveaways
  
  

Using platforms like INFLUISH protects your brand from fake performance by directly showing you the engagement rate & other Instagram insights.

7. Smart Ways Brands Are Going Viral in 2025

A. Use Micro-Influencers with Hyper-Relevant Audiences

Instead of chasing one big celebrity, many brands now work with 10–50 smaller influencers who directly speak to niche audiences.

Why it works:

• These influencers have higher trust and engagement within their communities.
  
  

• They spark conversations, not just impressions.
  
  

• Their content often looks more authentic and less like an ad.
  
  

Use platforms like INFLUISH to instantly discover and filter such Influencers by niche, location, and engagement and try the app now if you're serious about finding genuine creators.

B. Piggyback on Trends (But With a Twist)

Trends get reach, but originality gets shares.

Rather than blindly copying a trend:

• Twist it to match your brand voice or product angle.
  
  

• Add storytelling or humor to stand out.
  
  

• Track what's trending via tools like Tokboard, Reels Trends, or even INFLUISH’s AI Content Studio available on INFLUISH.
  
  

Done well, trend-based collabs can deliver viral engagement + conversions.

8. Why INFLUISH Is the Safest Platform to Find Influencers

Here’s what makes INFLUISH stand out for brands:

• ✅ Verified metrics from Instagram’s official API
  
  

• ✅ Engagement rate updated in real-time
  
  

• ✅ Reels & post performance from last 5 uploads
  
  

• ✅ Filters for niche, location, follower range, and gender
  
  

• ✅ Legal contract + escrow payment system

You don’t need to ask influencers for screenshots you get clean, verified data upfront.