Back in the summer of 2019, we told you why influencers matter.
So, to briefly recap, for our readers who are new in the industry, an influencer simply is a person on social media who constantly engages with a large number of fans and followers.
They can either be your favorite celebrities, athletes, or even social media stars.
What is influencer marketing?
Before the era of the Internet and social media, one of the most effective strategies is word of mouth. You know, it’s the I heard from a friend of a friend’s friend that your exquisite coffee is worth my 25-mile drive. You drive to that coffee shop because you trust your friend’s taste and they also believe in their friend’s opinion.
That’s kind of what an influencer marketing is. It is trusting a person’s recommendation but on a grander scale. Influencers tell their fans about how amazing a product or service is, and a high likelihood of their base will buy what the influencer is promoting. The audience does it because they trust the influencer they follow.
For the most part, a seller or marketer will share a unique discount code to an influencer who then will promote that code to their audience. This strategy allows marketers to track a campaign’s success.
When looking at an influencer’s social media, it’s important to see how many followers they have. Depending on your product or service, you may need to hook up with a nano-influencer (1,000-10,000 followers) or a mega-influencer (1M-5M).
Here are some important data to see about influencer marketing:
- 49% of consumers rely on an influencer’s recommendation
- 70% of YouTube’s teenage subscribers value an influencer’s opinion over a celebrity
- 89% of digital marketers say that influencer marketing is equal to or better than traditional channels when looking at ROIs
What this means for brands and other businesses is an opportunity to reach a wider audience to promote their product or service.
Here are 5 important tips to ensure influencer marketing will work for your small business.
Sell your brand’s vision
When reaching out to an influencer, go in that meeting with a mindset of selling your brand’s vision. Share your brand’s story, why you developed your product, how your creative process works, and what your company culture and philosophy is. Avoid focusing on the influencer’s rates and negotiating those numbers because it will not be helpful to your brand. Influencers tend to lose trust and belief in a brand when the main focus of the conversation is the financial aspect of the business.
Create lasting relationships
Like friendships, it takes time, effort, and uncertainty when developing a business relationship. But for establishing a partnership with an influencer, this painstaking part is the most profitable. Communication is key in this respect. Talk to them as often as possible. Engage them every month (ideally) to let them know about upcoming offers or releases that they can share with their followers.
The more the influencers, the better
When trying out clothes in a store, we usually pick several styles before going into a fitting room. It’s the same for when working with influencers. You reach out to as many influencers as you can and test how your product or service with the influencer’s audience. After a given amount of time, compare the results and work with an influencer who delivers the most results.
Tracking down analytics is key
The great thing about social media and digital marketing is it is easier to track movement, traffic, and analyze the data. Understanding all the facts and figures help your brand create sound decisions.
Promote products the people care about
When reaching out to influencers, search for the ones whose followers would care about your product or service. As a brand building a relationship with influencers and their followers, it’s important to maximize your online exposure. If you’re telling an influencer who’s famous for makeup tutorials to sell your top of the line drill, you’re setting yourself and the influencer for failure because their audience, for the most part, is there to learn about makeup.
Read our blog to help you find the perfect influencer for your brand.
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