For decades, companies have used famous faces to market their products. From print ads to TV commercials, using a high-profile person to create rapport and demand is nothing new. But as our culture moves to digital, brands are having to up their marketing and advertising game, in a whole new way.
Today’s consumers prefer authenticity over traditional advertising. They want reviews, ratings, and testimonials from people with similar tastes as them. That’s where Influencer Marketing comes into play.
Today, I’d like to dive into the state of influencer marketing and how you can use it to supercharge your businesses’ inbound marketing strategy.
Influencer Marketing uses people with authority, expertise, and popularity to influence consumers to take an action. (i.e make a purchase, write a review, fill out a form.) Influencers typically have solid followings online (think blogs or social media) and a notable impact within their online community and network.
Interesting Statistics
Utilizing an inbound approach with an influencer marketing campaign can drive awareness, cultivate a qualified audience and strengthen owned media over time. So how do you tie these two together?
Here are a few ways to get started:
Before reaching out to a potential influencer, you’ll need to consider what Hootsuite calls, “The R’s of influence.” Ask yourself these questions when qualifying a potential influence as a “best-fit”r:
Fun Fact: There is such a thing as "fake influencers." Instagram is cracking down on this, but some users have been able to cheat the system and buy thousands of fake followers, known as bots. The best way to avoid these fake influencers is to do your research. If you find someone on social media that you think is a good fit, follow up by visiting their blog or website. Confirm their social media posts have an equal amount of engagement compared to their follower count.
The cost of influencer marketing really depends on the factors that go into your campaign. For example, will the influencer post on one network or across all of their channels? How large is their following? What is their engagement rates like? Once you’re able to factor all of these details in, you’ll have a better ideas of the costs involved. Influencers can charge anywhere from a couple hundred to millions of dollars .
According to Chelsea Naftelberg, Associate Director of Content and Partnerships at Social Media Agency, Attention, Instagram posts can cost around $1,000 per 100,000 followers. For social stars with less than 50,000 followers, you can start your bid at $250 per post, then add $1,000 for every 100,000 follower.
For well-known celebrities, the price is much higher. Hollywood Branded reports that Kim Kardashian, charges over $250,000 per Instagram post. (WOW!)
The best way to approach an influencer is by first building a relationship with them. Start by following them on social media, signing up for their email address, and engaging with their content. Get to know them inside and out. Once they have you on their radar, reach out to them with a personal email. For top VIP’s, you’ll likely work with a gatekeeper such as an agent or publicist.
If you don’t hear back, don’t freak out yet. Just continue to nurture the relationship and follow up, follow up, follow up.
By curating a relevant message and audience, mapping out your “best-fit” influencers and utilizing social engagement best-practices, your inbound marketing can reap massive rewards. Those include improved word-of mouth marketing, an increased number of expert opinions gained and social proof. All of these factors are essential in gaining customer trust and loyalty. Those pay the bills.
Influencer Marketing will continue to grow, but marketing’s big trend-forecasting focus right how is predicting how it change and evolve with consumer demand. One hyphenated word: Micro-influencers.
While the cast of the current Bachelorette may be able to reach millions of people through social media, their audiences tend to be fragmented. And for some businesses, it may make more sense to reach a highly-targeted audience instead.
That’s where micro-influencers come into place. Micro-influencers are people with a smaller, more loyal following that can be just as powerful with your message. These types of influencers are not only more affordable, they’re also able to share more highly targeted content. Small businesses, or those with a smaller marketing budget, should consider using micro-influencers.
Influencer marketing presents a glorious opportunity for brands to leverage the power of word-of-mouth through personalities that consumers already follow, trust and admire
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is what you need to know about Influencer Marketing. When you combine this type of marketing with your inbound strategy, you maximize ROI by increasing word of mouth marketing, customer reviews, expert opinions, and social proof.