Abstract
The rise of social media has transformed marketing, leading brands to weigh influencer-driven campaigns against classic media buys. This paper compares influencer marketing and traditional advertising through the case studies of Apple and OnePlus. Apple invests hundreds of millions in traditional channels (e.g. in 2023 it spent on the order of $775 million on advertising, with its largest chunk in TV, leveraging iconic TV spots and large outdoor campaigns to reinforce its premium brand image. In contrast, OnePlus targets tech-savvy consumers with 100% digital campaigns centered on influencers and social platform. Using secondary data (e.g. spend figures, engagement metrics, and brand valuations), we examine return-on-investment (ROI), audience engagement, and long-term brand impact. We find that influencer marketing typically delivers much higher short-term ROI and engagement per dollar (industry data shows ~$5.78 back per $1 spent on influencer efforts vs. ~$1.80 per $1 for typical ad campaigns), albeit on a smaller scale, whereas Apple’s broad traditional campaigns sustain massive reach and reinforce its $355B brand. The discussion highlights how Apple’s expensive omnichannel approach and OnePlus’s targeted influencer strategy each play to their audience strengths. We conclude that blending both methods—using traditional media for mass awareness and influencers for engagement—offers the most effective strategy.
Citations
IRE Journals:
Rajat Saini
"Influencer Marketing vs. Traditional Advertising: Apple vs. OnePlus" Iconic Research And Engineering Journals Volume 8 Issue 11 2025 Page 2332-2335
IEEE:
Rajat Saini
"Influencer Marketing vs. Traditional Advertising: Apple vs. OnePlus" Iconic Research And Engineering Journals, 8(11)
About IRE Journals
IRE Journals is an open access online journals established with an aim to publish high quality of research work in various diciplines. We have more than 6 years in publications. Over 2500+ papers already published.
Important Links
For Authors
Volume 9:
Issue 1Volume 8:
Issue 1, Issue 2, Issue 3, Issue 4, Issue 5, Issue 6, Issue 7, Issue 8, Issue 9, Issue 10, Issue 11, Issue 12Volume 7:
Issue 1, Issue 2, Issue 3, Issue 4, Issue 5, Issue 6, Issue 7, Issue 8, Issue 9, Issue 10, Issue 11, Issue 12Volume 6:
Issue 1, Issue 2, Issue 3, Issue 4, Issue 5, Issue 6, Issue 7, Issue 8, Issue 9, Issue 10, Issue 11, Issue 12Volume 5:
Issue 1, Issue 2, Issue 3, Issue 4, Issue 5, Issue 6, Issue 7, Issue 8, Issue 9, Issue 10, Issue 11, Issue 12Volume 4:
Issue 1, Issue 2, Issue 3, Issue 4, Issue 5, Issue 6, Issue 7, Issue 8, Issue 9, Issue 10, Issue 11, Issue 12Volume 3:
Issue 1, Issue 2, Issue 3, Issue 4, Issue 5, Issue 6, Issue 7, Issue 8, Issue 9, Issue 10, Issue 11, Issue 12