Engaged online influencers to help spread info on govt work, no money paid, LS told

Tewari had sought the information based on a tender dated March 7, 2023 for “Request for Empanelment (RFE) for selection of Influencer Marketing Agencies for Empanelment with MyGov”. He also sought details of money spent on empanelment of social media marketing agencies/influencers through the tender.

Thakur said the Central Bureau of Communications (CBC), under the I&B Ministry, undertakes campaigns related to publicity or awareness generation on government programmes and schemes. “For this purpose, CBC has in place transparent policy guidelines for empanelment of media/agencies and release of advertisements and other promotions on media platforms, including digital media/social media,” he replied.

Thakur said MeitY has informed that in March MyGov undertook a process for empanelment of influencer marketing agencies to enable wider dissemination of and enhancing citizen engagement on information related to various government “schemes/campaigns/initiatives”. “Based on response to the bid, MyGov has empanelled four agencies,” he said. “No amount has been spent under the said empanelment process till date.”

As per the tender, the empanelled agency will be required to provide services at every stage of the influencer marketing campaign — from discovering the right mix of influencers based on campaign objectives, through influencer management, assisting with content creation and media planning and execution, and analysing and reporting on a campaign’s success. The empanelment, the tender mentioned, will be initially for three years and could be extended based on periodic reviews and performance assessment.