On The Content Mix podcast, we’ve talked to dozens of social media specialists from all over Europe over the last few months, and several of them have given us important advice on working with influencers. Based on their experiences, we’ll share nine efficient influencer marketing tactics in this piece.
Here’s where to begin if you’re ready to reap the benefits of influencer marketing.
1. Identify the influencers with whom you’d like to collaborate.
Influencers abound in today’s industry, and new ones emerge on a daily basis. This means you have a plethora of choices, but not all of them will be appropriate for your business. So, how do you pick which ones to collaborate with?
Although influencer agencies can be beneficial, if your company (or budget) is modest, you will have to make this option on your own. Remember that, while the amount of followers is significant, the content and engagement rates of influencers are often far more important.
“To construct an effective campaign, the quality of an influencer’s material and their relationship with the audience are critical.” — Alessia Coletta, Trainline’s worldwide brand manager
To locate the ideal influencer for your brand, follow these three steps:
1. Find out who the influential people are in the area you wish to target. Look for the latest trends and discover which influencers are talking about them if you work in fashion, for example.
2. Examine each influencer’s prior campaigns, as well as their postings, values, and background. Their entire image must be consistent with your company’s.
3. Calculate their engagement rates by dividing their total number of followers by the average number of interactions (comments or likes on a post, for example).
You can create a strategy for reaching out to the influencers who would be a good fit for your company now that you know who they are, what they stand for, and how they interact with their audiences.
2. Decide on the best platform to concentrate on.
Influencers who are well-known use a variety of platforms to distribute their content, including Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and others. Each platform is best suited to distinct formats, techniques, and audiences, and your influencer marketing plan should reflect this.
Consider why your target consumer would create a YouTube account. What are they hoping to discover on Facebook? Is your marketing up to par with their expectations and needs?
“Brands shouldn’t push hyper-branded or overly polished material on TikTok because it’s a lighter and less serious area than other prominent channels.” Furthermore, its consumers are younger than any other site.” — Jo Burford, Whalar’s global head of marketing
If you just want to focus on one platform, Instagram (especially if you’re targeting millennials) is the obvious choice. It has a shopping component that makes it easier and faster for consumers to purchase things, in addition to photographs and tales.
Put your money on new and developing platforms.
Although Instagram is a safe bet, there’s plenty to be said for taking chances in new areas:
“Find a new format, a new product, and get there before the big guys.” Because you won’t be able to emerge in a field where huge companies are already investing millions, here is your chance. You have to be strategic about the networks you choose and how you present your material.” — Rudy Dupuis, a social media expert with a global reach
3. Consider the size of your company.
The popularity of the influencer who promotes you should be precisely proportionate to the size of your firm. That isn’t to say you have to have the same number of followers; rather, you should be realistic about your influence.
The methods used to locate influencers can also be influenced by the size of the company:
“Big businesses should work with influencer agencies all of the time.” To uncover effective micro-influencers, smaller firms should employ social media sites like YouTube and Instagram’s trends or discovery tools.” Alessia Coletta (Alessia Coletta, Alessia Coletta, Aless
Furthermore, the influencer you choose may be determined by the goals of your campaign:
“You may look at the number of views to see how macro-influencers are leveraged to generate brand or product awareness.” Because micro-influencers have a closer relationship with their followers, KPIs could include clicks or sales conversions.” — David Robson, Deep Silver’s worldwide community and influencer manager
4. Work with micro-influencers to maintain authenticity.
Although you may believe that having more followers equates to better success, many brands, not only small businesses, want to collaborate with micro-influencers.
Micro-influencers can have anything from 1,000 to 100,000 followers, which may not appear to be a significant number. However, studies suggest that because they are viewed as more approachable and trustworthy, they frequently have higher engagement rates than mega- and macro-influencers.
Develop a sense of trustworthiness.
These influencers build trust by sharing details about their life with the public; their followers’ allegiance is warranted since they receive something in return. People are more likely to believe influencers’ endorsements when they have a personal relationship with them. It’s like getting a friend’s advice instead of a celebrity’s.
“[Micro-influencers] communicate with customers and consumers—often people they’ve met in person—who are keen to hear what they have to say. We don’t want our influencers to be overly branded; instead, we want them to be real.” — Piera Valentina Toniolo, Estée Lauder’s social media expert
Sperry is one brand that has run a successful micro-influencer campaign. The brand enlisted the help of 100 influencers who were already promoting its footwear to develop content for the business’s official Instagram account. This was a win-win situation for both the influencers and the business, since the influencers received tremendous exposure and the brand received free excellent content.
