The effects of Instagram and Youtube influencers on young people's brand perception in the context of influencer marketing

Developments in communication Technologies and changing communication approaches are increasing the impact of social media on our Daily life. With the increasing use of social media, people who have reached a certain audience on these platforms have emerged. It is possible to translate these people, who are referred as ''influencer'' in English, as ''fenomen, nüfuzlu kişi'' into Turkish. Influencers, who have increased interaction with their followers and have achieved a considerable marketing power, have also attracted the attention of brands. Companies that aim to increase the awareness of their brands by collaborating with influencers, interact more and more with influencers every day and carry out highly effective promotional activities on social media platforms. The concept created by this collaboration between brands and influencers is called ''Influencer Marketing''. The concept, referred to in Turkish as ''Influencer Marketing'', is spreading rapidly in our country, and the cooperation activities of brands and influencers that have reached a certain audience are increasing day by day. In this study, it is aimed to investigate the effect of the promotional activities that emerge as a result of the cooperation between these influeners and brands on the brand perception of young people. The study covers the social media platforms Instagram and Youtube specific influencers and the promotional activities of these influencers. The survey technique, which is one of the quantitative research methods, was used to reach the mentioned research findings. The questionnaire form prepared for social media users between the ages of 14-34 was sent to 378 people online. Before starting the research, the validity and reliability analyzes of the questionnaire were made and the questionnaire was revised as a result of these analyzes. Between 01 April and 15 May, 378 people participated in the survey online. Statistics Program for Social Scientists (SPSS 25.0) was used to analyze the data. Key words: Brand, Brand Perception, Influencer, Influencer Marketing, Consumer Behavior