If you are an active user on any social media platform then you have more than likely come across an influencer in some way, shape or form. Influencers have taken over the world of social media and made it one of their own, but what does this mean for businesses and brands and how do you implement influencer marketing in your marketing campaigns?
What is a Social Media Influencer?
Let’s start at the beginning! If you think back in time to the Dark Ages – you know, the time before social media – you might remember when advertisers used to rely heavily on celebrity endorsement campaigns, from cereal boxes to broadcast advertisements. Influencer marketing is a derivative of using celebrity endorsements to promote your business or brand. However, the idea of who might be considered a celebrity has changed throughout the years. When social media started becoming popular, so did this idea of going ”viral,” where a piece of content on the internet travels quickly through users across platforms. In short, a new celebrity has emerged now that the everyday person can join a social platform, create content and attract a community of loyal followers. And brands and companies learned how to adapt to the Digital Age and capitalize on the rise of influencers through influencer marketing.
Is Influencer Marketing Effective for Reaching Your Target Audience?
Now that you know what influencer marketing is, you might be wondering if it is truly effective for reaching your target audience. Research has shown that Word-of-Mouth marketing is one of the most effective types of marketing, as consumers are more likely to take advice from people that they know rather than strangers. This is why a lot of brands find success with influencer marketing campaigns seeing that influencers spend a lot of time, money and other resources creating authentic content that resonates with their followers to turn that following into an engaged and active audience.
According to HubSpot, 80% of marketers believe that influencer marketing is effective while 89% say that its effectiveness even compares to other marketing channels. However, the most vital part of any influencer marketing strategy is research – It is important to find influencers who will work well with and complement your brand. Whether you are engaging an influencer through a paid partnership or through a trade agreement, finding influencers who resonate with your target audience is key to increasing your campaign’s reach and overall return-on-investment.
To find influencers who can drive lead generation and raise your brand awareness, you have to take the following factors into consideration:
- The quality and type of content they produce
- If they have an authentic, engaged audience that replicates your target audience
- Will their personal brand and voice complement your brand?
- Is their budget in-line with your marketing budget?
Each of these factors play a crucial role in the overall effectiveness of your campaign and will help you capitalize on the ever-growing digital world of social media.
How to Implement Influencer Marketing in your Overall Marketing Strategy
Influencer marketing is a great tactic to supplement your marketing campaign, but it shouldn’t be your overall strategy. Some research into influencer marketing trends has shown that it can take up to eight times of seeing an influencer post before a consumer will buy-in to a purchase or another call-to-action, which is why it is vital to have other marketing strategies in place to supplement it. Even though getting into a paid partnership can come off as intimidating, there are specific tactics you can put in place to reduce your risk of loss. It’s important to know what strategy will work best for your campaign whether that is hosting Instagram or Facebook Lives, starting a TikTok Challenge, creating generic sponsored posts, hosting giveaways or implementing a social media takeover. Each of these strategies have their own costs and rewards associated with them and are great for boosting your marketing efforts.
After you know the strategies you want to implement, you have to identify the ways that you will measure their success. Some of the most popular ways to measure influencer campaigns are:
- Engagement and Reach Metrics
- Shoppable Links
- UTM Tracking Codes
- Unique Promo Codes
- And so much more!
At MHP/Team SI, our award-winning PR team are experts in pinpointing and executing influencer marketing opportunities for businesses and brands while identifying data-driven tracking methods to showcase ROI. Our team understands the value of macro-influencers for brand awareness and message reach, and the grassroots value of micro-influencers with smaller, engaged audiences for valuable endorsements and authentic messaging. To learn more about how our team can build your brand’s reputation through our influencer marketing services, click here.
