More marketers are recognizing the power of influencers to help sell their brand. Influencers aren’t just celebrities, they are people of all ages and all walks of life on instagram, twitter, Facebook and youTube who have mass followers. Influencers have a voice, and their followers agree with and listen to that voice. As influencer marketing gains in popularity, marketers have to be careful, because there are people out there who try to look like influencers by buying followers. Here are some tips for how to locate influencers and how to employ their services.
1. Look to Social Media
Your customers are on social media and so are your potential influencers. Today, social media is one of the most important advertising platforms a company can market in. Once you’ve found an influencer, don’t have them post the same message across different social platforms. Each platform offers a different type of audience, so make sure their messaging is tailored to each individual platform. A good influencer campaign will have the influencer create posts around your brand a few times a day.
2. Follower Engagement
To know who is an influencer and who is not, a company must look at loyalty and engagement. Influencers don’t just have followers, but their followers are loyal to the influencer and actively engaged with the content provided by the influencer. That same loyalty can be transferred to your brand if the influencer is a good match.
3. Appropriate Content
Content is everything an influencer creates and shares with his or her audience. Just as a company must share its philosophy with the consumer, for an influencer to be a good match with your company, they should provide content that reflects the values of your company. Not every influencer is going to be a good match, but the one that is a good match is going to be relatable to your audience.
4. Customers
A lot of times, a company will find the best influencers for their product are people who are already using their product. To find these customers, look through your email list for customers who are loyal and active. There is new software coming out on the market to match these customers with their social media habits. Until then, a little research on your part may help locate these customers.
Influencer marketing as it pertains to social media is still relatively new, so it continues to evolve. Being a part of that evolution would benefit your company’s marketing efforts.
