Influencers have become a major part of social media. Followed by fans from around the world, even regular people can become famous if they’re posting the right content. And, if they’re popular enough, they might even be worth investing in.
Influencer marketing is a form of social media marketing that includes product placement or endorsements from a person or business that holds a level of social influence. In 2017, 86% of marketers used influencer marketing. And 88.5% considered it a valuable part of their marketing strategy. The figures pretty much speak for themselves.
By using influencer marketing, you leverage someone else’s social media following to get your business’s name out there. In a lot of cases, an influencer will already have a loyal and consistent following. So if you were to receive a testimonial from this trusted and valued influencer, you can expect to see a sudden influx of new people who know and are curious about your product, service, or business more generally.
Influencer versus celebrity
Let’s start by comparing influencers and celebrities. It’s worth noting that influencer and celebrity marketing aren’t the same thing.
In general, influencers are much more accessible to their audience. There’s more likely to be two-way interaction and engagement between the influencer and their following. They may even have built up a rapport with their audience and consider them as an extended friendship group rather than a die-hard fanbase.
Because of this, an influencer’s opinions tend to be more trusted and valued. The audience feels they know the influencer and value their opinions and what they have to say. As their content appears a lot more genuine, it can be better for converting sales and seeing results. 70% of millennials are more influenced by bloggers than celebrities.
While celebrities may reach a bigger audience, their audience is likely to be less trusting, involved, and engaged. If a celebrity’s positioned on a pedestal, an influencer’s more like your cool next-door neighbour.
Exposure
Collaborating with an influencer gives you instant access to a target audience. You don’t have to worry about making them listen to you as they’re already listening. You’re just putting your product or service in front of them.
Not only can influencers help spread your name, but they can also influence their audience’s perception of you. If they’re raving about your product and business to an audience that trusts what they have to say, by default they’ll recognise you as a trustworthy and valuable business.
By getting the influencer to include a link through to your site or product, it’ll be easy for their audience to quickly come over and browse or buy. It makes the eCommerce experience better for the consumer as they get a trustworthy review and easy access to the product. And through the exposure generated by influencer marketing, your business can expect more leads, conversions, and a higher ROI.
Considerations to make
Before moving forward with influencer marketing, it’s important you take the time to establish a well thought out strategy. And make sure everything’s covered. Figure out your aims, end goals, expectations, and non-negotiables before you bring another person into the strategy.
Key to influencer marketing is choosing the right influencers. You ideally want people who share the same values as your business, are trustworthy, and match with your expectations. An audience will see straight through a fake endorsement, so make sure you partner up with someone who genuinely sees the value in your product.
It can be beneficial to offer an incentive for the audience. Look into giving your chosen influencers a discount code they can promote along with your product. It’ll encourage more people to engage with your brand and bring better results to your business.
Influencer marketing can be an incredibly effective way of spreading the word about your brand. You get instant access to a new audience and can build a positive reputation for yourself in the industry. With the right influencer-brand collaboration, everyone wins.
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Surahi believes in that good people, good processes and structure produce great companies.
With a keen interest in globalisation and personalisation, she writes about the opportunities for growth to everyone