Because ad blockers, DVRs, and streaming music mean we don't see as many ads as we used to, influencer marketing has become the most effective form of advertising.
Influencers have a loyal following, are real, and can be trusted, which all help them get people to buy things.
You know who the big names are in this field. Most likely, they have a lot of fans on social media, where you can keep up with their expensive lifestyles, trips to faraway places, and stylish clothes.
Who wouldn't want to be able to work from home and still make a good living and get a lot of free stuff? What does it take to become an influencer?
1. Set a Goal
As long as your goals and objectives are clear, marketing will succeed.
Influencer marketing isn't an exception. I can't emphasize this enough: you must have a clear vision of your end goal. Be sure to know your audience, your message, and the action(s) you want them to do before you start creating goals.
Consider this:
- What is our company's message?
- What audience are we aiming to reach?
- As a result of the campaign, what should our audience do?
These kinds of inquiries are easy to overlook, but it's imperative that you dig deep and come up with relevant responses. Clearly, our goal is to attract new clients, but who are these individuals? What are they looking for? Is there anything you can give them that they'll be interested in? Create comprehensive profiles of your customers.
Before you do anything else, ensure you understand exactly who you’re trying to target with your campaign, and what actions you want your audience to take as a result of it. Next, steer your campaign in the right direction by setting out “SMART” goals.
2. Have a Purpose
Remember that a large part of an influencer's reputation is based on their ability to select and recommend only the best things. They run the danger of alienating their audience and possibly driving some of them away if they start talking about things that aren't a suitable fit for their demographic. Because of this, it's understandable that they'd be quite selective about the businesses and goods they deal with and endorse. They'll tell you if something doesn't fit, and you should respect that.
It's also improbable that publicity from an influencer who doesn't align with your brand can help you in any meaningful way. It's likely you may locate an "influencer" who will say "yes" even if the fit isn't quite perfect, usually because they're in it for the money or a freebie. Don't take the easy route out.
If the relationship is mutually beneficial, influencer marketing works. You don't want to start contacting everyone who has a blog without doing some research beforehand. It's fine to be choosy; in fact, it's encouraged.
But before contacting an influencer, spend some time getting to know them and their audience. Pitch only those who are a good fit for your brand, product, and business objectives.
3. Be Realistic!
All influencers aren't created equal. Rand Fishkin, Wil Reynolds, and Danny Sullivan would all be great for the digital industry, but for most of us, that's just not possible.
Influencers like Rand, Wil, and Danny aren't just influencers; they're also celebrities in their own right. Is there any chance they'll be invited to the Oscars? No, I doubt that. However, when it comes to digital clout, these people are unbeatable.
Try to engage influencers of this quality in your marketing unless you're already relatively well-known and regarded yourself.
Instead, take a step or two backward. Aim for influencers in the second or third layer instead of the first. To find "small people" to work with, you need people who are well-respected in their field and enjoy interacting with their fans.
Avoid working with influencers that are already at the top of their game (unless you have a large budget to work with). Those at the bottom of the organizational ladder are more receptive and less likely to demand high costs for their time, so target them.
4. Focus on Interaction Rather Than Followers
Likes and dislikes aren't all that horrible, either. For obvious reasons, you wouldn't want to work with an "influencer" with just 100 or so followers on all of the social media platforms they use. There's no need to limit yourself solely to looking at the "number of followers" in order to be successful.
By just following a huge number of other people, you can quickly create a significant number of followers. The true measure of a person's influence is how engaged their audience is.
Look at how many people are actually watching a video; not just how many people have subscribed to it on YouTube.
Look at the number of people you follow compared to the number of people you follow on Twitter. A ratio of one to one (or close to that) indicates that the majority of their fans have grown as a result of the following others.
Consider the "influencer's" number of followers, as well as the number of likes and retweets, as well as the number of genuine discussions they are having on the platform. You can see how popular a photograph is on Instagram by looking at the number of likes and comments it receives. Don't be deceived by the sheer size of the statistics. Once you have a list of potential influencers, focus on the ones with the most engaged followers and those with the most relevant followings first.
5. Start by establishing a rapport
A list of influencers you'd like to work with isn't always a good idea to just start emailing them. You'll achieve considerably greater results if you take steps to grab each influencer's attention— to show them that you care about their brand and business objectives, as well as your own.
No matter what you've got to offer, this counsel still holds true. Seriously. You can give influencers free yachts, but if you take the effort to create a relationship with them beforehand, you'll get better results.
Why? Because they'll be more willing to help if they enjoy both the influencer and the product or service, you're offering them. Be friendly and take the time to get to know your fellow man. Don't simply think of them as people who can help you; think of them as prospective friends, not just business associates.
6. Make an effort to create long-term relationships
To maximize the benefits of influencer marketing, you might think it's best to work with as many influencers in one campaign as feasible. There are a lot more folks you can reach this way. Possibly. However, this does not imply that it is the most effective approach.
Working with the same influencer frequently over a lengthy period of time is far more beneficial. Why?
Because an influencer's audience may be slow to respond at first. They'll only see your goods once, so what happens if they don't become a customer after that? There is a good chance that they will forget about you and never buy from you. There are some customers who will only remember your brand if they are bombarded with subtle reminders of your brand over a long period of time. It's possible that they won't buy immediately away. You never know how long it will take for them to buy. It's possible that they'll remember your company's name if they ever need a product like yours. What's going to happen?
The likelihood that they will choose to purchase from you is obvious, in my opinion.
Building relationships is the initial step in all of the strategies listed above. Influencer marketing efforts that last is the most valuable. It may take longer to see results from this technique than it would be to have your product in the hands of several influencers, but perseverance pays off in the long run. Rather than working with a large number of influencers on a one-time basis, focus on working with a select few over an extended period of time.
7. Give Up the Controls
They are doing you a favor if they agree to market your product or service with you. Even while it may not feel like it at first, the fact is that they hold the power regardless of what is being exchanged. Damage your relationship and decrease the likelihood of working with them again if you try to control what they do or say.
All that aside, influencers have a deeper understanding of their audience than you can ever have. They have a good sense of what their audience likes and dislikes. You don't need to worry about it.
Educate them and show them examples of your work. Do not be afraid to express yourself. Just let them get on with their work.
In the event that you're concerned that an influencer's work won't "FIT" your business or give it justice, then your investigation is lacking. Take a fresh look at your strategy, and only work with influencers that you are confident will represent your business accurately.
It's important to keep in mind while working with an influencer, that they have a keen understanding of their target demographic. You can point them on the right path but resist the urge to impose your will or try to dictate their every move.
8. Keep an eye on the Finish Line
Marketing that can be tracked and measured is the most successful. It's a matter of determining whether or not what you're doing is genuinely working for you. You need to know if an increase in traffic or income is attributable to your marketing or not. Also, you need to know why things aren't getting better on the whole if you can't figure it out.
For this reason, it's critical to know which initiatives are working and which aren't.
Unique codes are the simplest way to monitor the success of an influencer marketing campaign. An influencer can simply be provided with a unique offer code that they can use to track how many sales are made through the code.
This isn't infallible — anyone can use the code even if they've never heard of the influencer you're working with or any of their content.
Providing each influencer with a trackable, tagged URL that they may share with their audience is a more dependable choice. WP Affiliate, an affiliate tracking program, can automate the creation of these URLs and track sales by an influencer.
Keeping tabs on everything is a must. With no other way to tell which of your marketing efforts are bringing in the results you desire, you could be wasting money on efforts that aren't.
9. Don't Rush to Judgment
It was just a moment ago that I instructed you to keep track of everything. If you want to succeed in business, you have to be willing to put your money where your mouth is and put your money where your heart is.
Unlike paid search, where you can immediately see the return on investment of an ad or campaign, influencer marketing doesn't have the same level of transparency. Influencer marketing is more like SEO in that it takes longer to see results and is more difficult to attribute results to specific actions.
It's important to create long-term relationships with influential people if you're implementing the tactics above.
Assuming you are, don't jump to conclusions about whether or not a campaign is successful. If you think things aren't going in the correct way, chat to the influencer on the issue before making the decision to end the relationship.
A change in strategy or reassurance about when to expect results may be possible with their help.
If your influencer initiatives aren't yielding results right away, don't be discouraged. Reap the benefits can take some time.
10. Reach out to influential people
