We receive a number of calls in a month, from clients who want to engage some influencers and get their brands booming. That’s the typical idea everyone gets, that they might get known, once they line up influencers.
A decade ago, the influencer marketing arena was limited only to celebrities and a few dedicated bloggers. Now, it seems like we’ve seen social media influencers rise, saturate the market, and even get caught up in fraud.
Influencer marketing has changed from what it was known for, consumers are aware of the trade and with so many people doing the same thing. It gets difficult for consumers to genuinely accept influencer messages as authentic and unbiased.
So, how does Influencer Marketing work, and what are the most important things to know.
At its core, influencer marketing is the process of using external content creators, or influencers, to advocate and engage with your brand’s message. As part of this, the influencers present their content to their audience, increasing brand awareness and helping to convert their audience into your customers.
Digital influencers are the trendsetters and taste-makers of today, with audiences looking for their recommendations in order to guide their purchasing decisions.
Firstly, digital influencers are content makers. They are creating shareable and communicative user-generated content about your brand that can be used for marketing promotions, email campaigns, and more.
However, influencer marketing is not just Instagram posts or YouTube unboxing videos. A detailed strategy would outline the goals and influencers with result in the niche of the client. Influencer marketing strategies are more difficult to navigate than ever as a brand, but we’re here with a guide to making sense of it all.
Like any marketing tactic, an influencer program takes deliberate targeting and planning. You won’t find strategic success just by sending free things out to everyone who asks or to your existing friends and acquaintances.
We use the Three Rs of Influencer Marketer to select the right Influencers for most of our client campaigns
- Relevance
- Reach
- Resonance
Relevance
A relevant influencer shares content relevant to your business and industry. They need to have an audience that aligns with your target audience.
Reach
Reach is the number of people you could potentially reach through the influencer’s follower base. Remember: a small audience can be effective, but you need to make sure there’s enough of a following to align with your goals.
Resonance
This is the potential level of engagement the influencer can create with an audience relevant to your brand.
Not to belabour the point, but bigger isn’t always better. As we said above, a huge follower count is meaningless if those followers aren’t interested in your offer. Niche influencers, on the other hand, can have very dedicated and engaged followers.
The final aspects is project management and that is why you need to hire an agency like Millionsworth Public Relations to ensure that the plans are executed and every influencer performs to their expected quota level.
Running a successful influencer marketing campaign is not a set-it-and-go type of strategy. It’ll involve careful monitoring and follow up. Unlike a more automated ad strategy, influencers are human and frequently balancing multiple partnerships, so some may fall behind in their commitments to post on time or make errors in your requested tags or calls to action. You’ll need to have the time to be more hands-on with these relationships to cultivate them, and refine your approach through experience about what works and what doesn’t in your niche.
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