Influencer Marketing for Toy Brands

By partnering with influencers, toy companies can tap into the trust they have cultivated among their followers, reaching younger audiences through creative, playful content that resonates with both parents and kids. This approach drives product awareness and fosters long-term brand loyalty, which is increasingly important in today’s toy market. As nearly half of all toy sales now occur online, according to eMarketer, and major players continue to thrive by adapting to changing consumer behaviors, influencer marketing has become an essential tool for maintaining relevance and driving growth.

The importance of influencers in the toy industry 

Influencers have become vital marketing tools in the toy industry because of their reach and ability to connect with audiences. By showcasing products in authentic, hands-on ways, influencers create a sense of excitement and familiarity around toys that rivals traditional advertising. Their content is often seen as more trustworthy and relatable because it feels like a genuine experience rather than a direct sales pitch. 

Connecting with kids and parents

Influencers play a crucial role in bridging the gap between two key groups: children, who are the primary audience for toys, and parents, who are the buyers. Through fun, engaging content, influencers capture the attention of kids while simultaneously appealing to parents by showcasing any value, safety or educational benefits of the toys being promoted. This dual engagement makes influencers a powerful marketing tool, helping toy brands navigate the unique challenge of appealing to decision-makers and end-users.

Creating trust 

Trust is at the heart of influencer marketing, particularly in the toy industry. Influencers such as parent bloggers, toy reviewers and even child creators can form authentic connections with their followers. Parent influencers provide honest reviews and recommendations that other parents can trust, while toy reviewers offer in-depth, unbiased insights that help parents make informed purchasing decisions. Meanwhile, child creators offer relatable play experiences for younger audiences. This trust drives purchases and builds lasting brand loyalty, keeping families coming back for future recommendations.

Visual appeal 

Toys are perfect for influencer marketing because they work well in visual and video content. Influencers can create compelling content through unboxing videos, skits, product demos, playtime sessions, or DIY activities like slime-making, which resonate strongly with young audiences. Visual content allows kids to see how toys work in real-life scenarios, making it easier to envision themselves playing with the product. This visual engagement helps drive toy sales by sparking excitement and curiosity among children

Types of influencers for toy brands 

As toy retail e-commerce sales are projected to grow by 5.4% year-over-year this holiday season, per eMarketer, brands are poised to capitalize on value-focused consumers searching for deals. With significant sales from giants like Amazon, Target and Walmart kicking off in early October, toy brands can boost visibility and engagement by partnering with the right influencers. From parent bloggers to kid reviewers, leveraging different types of influencers can help brands connect with their audience and drive toy sales during this critical shopping period.

Parent influencers

Parent influencers are trusted voices for families, providing insights on toy safety, educational value and affordability. Their relatable content, often featuring real-life use of toys with their children, helps fellow parents make confident purchasing decisions, making them key advocates for toy brands.

Kid influencers

Kid influencers are among the most relatable for younger audiences. They review toys and demonstrate how toys work in playtime scenarios. These influencers provide peer-level recommendations, which resonate strongly with children and can drive immediate interest in the toys they feature.

Educational and niche influencers

These influencers specialize in toys that focus on learning and skill development, such as STEM toys or products related to hobbies like arts and crafts, collectibles or building sets. Their expertise and passion for these categories help connect with parents and children seeking educational or niche-category toys.

Micro-influencers 

Micro-influencers may have smaller, more focused audiences, but their followers tend to be highly engaged. Partnering with micro-influencers allows toy brands to promote their products personalized and authentically to niche communities, often leading to more meaningful interactions and sales conversions.

Gaming influencers

Gaming influencers are a great fit for brands promoting video games, consoles and tech-related toys. Their large followings among tech-savvy children and teens provide an ideal platform for marketing interactive toys, educational games and other digital play products.

Grandparent influencers

Grandparent influencers offer a unique perspective, sharing advice on toys with multi-generational appeal, quality and durability. They often focus on family bonding through play, providing recommendations for toys that foster togetherness, making them great advocates for family-friendly brands.

DIY and craft influencers

DIY and craft influencers create content that features toys related to arts, crafts and creative activities. These influencers appeal to parents and children who enjoy hands-on projects, showcasing toys like craft kits, modeling sets or other creative play options. Their tutorials and DIY project ideas inspire toy purchases by showing their fun, practical uses.

Lifestyle influencers 

Lifestyle influencers who are parents or family-focused often weave toys into their daily routines and content, showing how toys fit into everyday life, whether during playtime, educational activities or family events. Their casual integration of toys makes the products feel more approachable and appealing to their followers.

Unboxing and ASMR influencers 

These influencers focus on creating visually and audibly engaging content through unboxing toys or creating ASMR videos related to toys, such as slime or squishy products. Their content captivates viewers, particularly children, sparking excitement among the young demographic. 

Strategies for successful influencer campaigns 

Developing a successful influencer campaign requires more than just selecting popular content creators—it involves strategic planning and thoughtful execution. From identifying the right influencers who align with your brand’s values to creating authentic, engaging collaborations, every step is crucial to achieving impactful results. By utilizing diverse content formats, such as unboxing videos or TikTok trends, and tapping into unique strategies like ASMR or challenges, brands can maximize their reach and drive impactful engagement with their target audience.

Identifying the right influencers 

The success of an influencer campaign starts with selecting the right influencers. Brands need to ensure a strong alignment between the influencer’s audience and the target demographic. Beyond follower count, it’s important to assess audience engagement, the influencer’s values, and how well they align with the brand’s message. By partnering with influencers who genuinely resonate with their audience, campaigns become more influential and credible.

Creating authentic collaborations 

Authenticity is key to any successful influencer campaign. Collaborations should be crafted to feel natural to the influencer’s content style and their audience’s expectations. Influencers need the creative freedom to seamlessly integrate the brand’s products into their content to avoid being overly promotional. This builds trust, making the campaign feel more genuine and relatable.

Using different content types

Maximizing the reach of a campaign involves leveraging various content formats. YouTube videos can offer detailed reviews, Instagram Reels provide engaging clips, TikTok trends can introduce playful, viral moments, and blog reviews allow in-depth, thoughtful reflections on products. Each platform offers unique benefits, and incorporating a mix ensures broader audience coverage and engagement.

Unboxing videos and playtime reviews

Unboxing videos and playtime reviews are highly effective in toy marketing because they provide live demonstrations and first impressions. These videos let audiences experience the excitement of discovering a new toy, seeing its features in action and imagining how they would use it. This type of content creates a strong emotional connection with viewers, making it easier to influence purchase decisions.

Challenges 

Challenges are a popular and engaging way to involve influencers and their audiences. Creating interactive challenges related to toys can go viral and encourage user participation. Influencers lead the challenge while their followers are inspired to try it themselves, increasing product visibility and engagement.

ASMR

ASMR content has become a growing trend, especially for toys like slime, squishy toys and other sensory items. Influencers who create ASMR videos offer a unique, calming experience that focuses on sound and touch, enhancing the appeal of these products. This type of content attracts children and adults looking for relaxing, sensory experiences, broadening the toy’s audience reach.

Measuring success in influencer campaigns 

Measuring the success of an influencer campaign is crucial to understanding its overall impact and effectiveness. By tracking key metrics such as engagement rates and brand mentions, brands can gain valuable insights into how well their campaign resonated with the target audience. Additionally, evaluating the return on investment (ROI) through tools that track conversions and long-term benefits helps determine the campaigns’ immediate and lasting value. 

Key metrics

To gauge the success of an influencer campaign, brands need to track several key metrics that offer insight into both short-term impact and long-term brand growth.

• Engagement Rates: This includes likes, comments, shares and saves across platforms, demonstrating how well the audience interacts with the content.
• Conversion Rates: Tracking the percentage of clicks that result in purchases or sign-ups helps assess the campaign’s ability to drive sales.
• Brand Mentions: Monitoring how often the brand is mentioned during and after the campaign indicates increased awareness.
• Follower Growth: A spike in new followers on social media platforms following influencer campaigns suggests increased interest in the brand.
• Sales: You can see sales generated by each influencer in your campaign using tools like tracking links.

Examples of successful toy influencer campaigns 

Here are some examples of influencer campaigns that successfully boosted brand visibility, drove engagement, and created memorable experiences for young audiences.

The Hutchison Home and Brio: This TikTok video promotes the Brio Railway Set by showcasing the toy in action during a family playtime experience. The parent explains how the set helps her connect and engage with her child, highlighting the toy’s interactive nature. The video’s playful and warm presentation creates a relatable, genuine atmosphere that resonates with parents, driving interest and engagement.

The Mint Chip Mama and Rubik’s Cube: This engaging Instagram reel promotes the Rubik’s Cube Match app through a product demonstration that shows the influencer enjoying the game. In the caption, the influencer highlights the app’s value, mentioning how it enhances cognitive skills. The video’s strong visual impact creates a sense of anticipation and excitement, encouraging viewers to explore the product further.

Best practices for toy brands working with influencers 

Because toy sales are projected to be more than 59% higher than in 2019, influencers have become vital to marketing strategies for brands looking to build and maintain growth in this competitive space. To maximize the effectiveness of influencer partnerships, toy brands need to adopt best practices that ensure compliance and lasting impact. From following advertising regulations to creating long-term collaborations, here are key strategies for toy brands working with influencers.

Compliance and regulations

When working with influencers, particularly in the toy industry, brands must be mindful of child advertising laws and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) guidelines. It’s crucial to ensure that all sponsored content is disclosed as advertising and that any content directed at children complies with regulations such as COPPA (Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act). This helps maintain transparency and protects the brand and influencer from potential legal issues.

Maintaining long-term relationships 

Building long-term relationships with influencers can lead to more successful collaborations over time. Brands that nurture ongoing partnerships with influencers can have credibility, making future campaigns feel more authentic. Long-term collaborations allow influencers to become familiar with the brand, deepening their ability to promote products authentically and creating a stronger connection with their audience.

Tailoring campaigns for holidays and major events 

Timing is everything when it comes to marketing. Aligning influencer campaigns with critical moments such as holidays, back-to-school season or major toy fairs can significantly boost visibility. During these peak times, value-conscious consumers actively seek deals and new product launches, making it the perfect time to leverage influencer content that resonates with seasonal themes and gifting opportunities. Additionally, holiday campaigns allow for more creative content, from gift guides to themed unboxings, helping brands tap into the festive spirit.

Trends and future of influencer marketing in the toy industry 

Here’s a look at key trends and future directions shaping influencer marketing in this space, from the rise of kid creators to the push for sustainability in toy production.

Growth of kids as creators 

Platforms like YouTube Kids and TikTok have created a new generation of kid creators who resonate directly with their peers. These young influencers bring an authentic voice to toy reviews, unboxings and playtime demonstrations, helping brands connect with children in a relatable, engaging way. This trend is expected to grow as more children become content creators, offering new opportunities for brands to tap into peer-driven marketing.

Expansion into digital play 

As virtual play and gaming spaces become more popular, influencer marketing will likely expand into these digital realms. With the rise of platforms like Roblox and Fortnite, toys are no longer limited to physical products—they are also being integrated into virtual worlds. Influencers in these spaces can introduce kids to digital toys, games and interactive experiences, helping brands reach tech-savvy younger audiences. 

Sustainability and ethical toys 

As sustainability becomes a priority for many consumers, influencers play a key role in promoting eco-friendly and ethical toy brands. Influencers focused on green living and conscious consumption are helping educate parents about the importance of sustainable toys made from recycled materials or sourced through ethical practices. This trend is expected to grow as brands increasingly highlight their commitment to the environment, and influencers help position these products as the go-to options for eco-conscious families.

Whether you’re seeking to work with kid creators or need assistance with campaign execution, IZEA’s managed services provide the strategic insight and tools needed to reach the right influencers and maximize your brand’s reach.