Influencer marketing is a concept that has certainly taken over the world of marketing and it has become a quintessential element of any brand’s marketing strategy. Influencer marketing is essentially advertising a certain product or service through a well-known social media personality or content creator. Influencers typically have a broad, active audience that marketers can use to boost credibility and even sales. That is why influencer marketing
has become go-to marketing strategy of most brands worldwide. This is not a new concept: for decades, big-budget companies have paid celebrities to endorse their products. However, as consumers move away from traditional marketing and toward social media and emerging forms of digital marketing, a new method of marketing using online influencers has emerged.
Types of Influencers
Micro-Influencer – They create meaningful content for their audience and communicate with them through social media platforms, blogs, other written articles, websites, and forums. When a business has chosen a micro-influencer to partner with, they may have them write a post about their service, share an online review, or post a picture on Instagram of one of their products. Because of the manageable size of their following, they would be able to engage with their target audience about the content they share about their products and brand.
Social Media Influencer – Social media influencers are well-known and followed by thousands or even millions of people on platforms like Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter. Fitness, workouts, cars, diet, outdoor activities, travel, fashion, art, beauty, and interior design are among the topics covered by most social media influencers.
Businesses can entice them to share content that they feel complements their products or services, and since they have fans who are also members of their target audience, they can choose which content to promote. At its most basic level, influencer marketing is a form of social media marketing that relies on endorsements and product mentions from
influencers—people who have a large social following and are regarded as experts by their followers.
Celebrity Influencer – Celebrity influencers are well-known people who have large followings in a variety of fields. They are well-known and, as a result, can have a significant influence on your target audience. Since celebrities are so well-known, they are successful at attracting a wide range of audiences across various platforms. Businesses ask celebrities to pose for photographs promoting their products, explain why their products or services would appeal to their target audience, include coupons and discount codes, or write reviews about why their brand stands out.
Blog Influencer – A blog influencer is someone who writes for their own blog and has thousands or millions of subscribers and followers. Their depth and success set them apart from other bloggers. To collaborate with a blog influencer, businesses can write a guest post for their blog, request to be included in one of their posts, or sponsor a post about one of their products or services. If they sponsor a post on the influencer’s page, they will also have pictures of their products to share.
Key Opinion Leader – High-level experts in a particular area on a specialized topic are known as key opinion leaders (KOLs). A KOL is a perfect choice if the organization wishes to draw audience members in a highly specialized area as they usually have professional or academic backgrounds to make them an expert in the particular field. Eg: A fitness KOL who is a certified trainer. KOLs are respected contributors in their sectors and have followers who are also interested in those subjects. Businesses typically ask them to review their YouTube products, list them in their column, write a brand blog post, share an Instagram post about their product, or model for a print or digital ad for their product. KOLs also conduct FB/IG Live sessions where they actively interact with their followers and speak about their expert opinion on certain products / services.
Including Influencer Marketing in your Brand Strategy
- Evaluate your influencer marketing strategy carefully. Organize yourself, create a strategy, schedule, and budget, and spend time researching. Make a decision on how you’ll find influencers: organically, through a website, or through an agency. Be patient and focus on being human – people conversing with people, not businesses
conversing with businesses.
- Make a schedule. If you want to call the influencer weekly, quarterly, or biannually, or send them a newsletter? Integrate with the public relations, product release, and other schedules. Send emails on behalf of senior management. Plan corporate travel schedules and face-to-face meetings.
What doesn’t work in Influencer Marketing?
Using a generic approach to locating and utilizing various influencers
- One method does not suit everything when it comes to influencers: customize the approach to the person. It is important to identify the type of influencer you need for your brand, which area you prefer them to be in, whether it is a niche audience or the mass audience etc. Before contacting an influencer, do your research and get to know them. Before making a pitch, always start by praising their work. Make it clear what you’re offering in exchange for their time and effort. Get to the point, provide all pertinent information, but don’t make your message too long. Respect each other and leave space for further discussion and negotiation. If they don’t respond to your first post, follow up.
The more followers the better?
- Popularity isn’t the only criterion for influence. Keep in mind that your aim is to get your customers to take a specific action. Don’t believe that the people who have the most followers are real influencers. It’s important to have a clear understanding of your goals before selecting an influencer. In every industry, there are thousands of influencers to choose from, and you want to partner with the right one for your business. Every influencer isn’t the right one for you. It is highly dependent on the company’s budget and target market.
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