Gone are the days when celebrities were the only ones who could influence public opinion, at least in commerce. We’re now in the age of social media influencers who have saturated the market.
With the help of an influencer, one social media post could make all the difference for your brand. So if you have not even considered looking into the potential you could tap into with influencer marketing, you are missing out a lot.
But what entails influencer marketing and why should you try it out now for your brand?
Influencer marketing is a form of social media promotion that uses product recommendations and endorsements from influencers or people with large social followings who are recognised as authorities in their fields. Most businesses do it for brand awareness which proves extremely helpful for those just starting to expand their customer base.
According to Oberlo surveys, 74 percent of people rely on social media to make purchasing decisions, while 49 percent of their customers depend on influencers for product recommendations.
More than brand awareness, collaborating with an influencer also helps your products and services score authority among a wider audience you could not reach on your own. Like celebrities in TV advertisements, people trust the influencers they follow. An influencer’s recommendation becomes social proof of what you are offering.
However, you should meticulously choose influencers to represent your business. Dealing with an influencer who is not fit for your brand could end up ruining your reputation instead of lifting it.
Partnerships with micro-influencers also cost relatively cheaper compared to when you make advertisements with celebrities. Yes, the follower base may be smaller, but this is incredibly beneficial for small businesses as they can work with personalities with a specific audience. If a service or a product is limited to Melbourne, for example, you do not have to hire someone who will promote your brand all over Australia.
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Besides, you never know when a post can go viral with the unlimited audience reach that social media offers. An account with only ten followers can publish an exciting reel, photo or tweet and it could get a million views/reach and reactions if it is unique and relatable.
Although as other marketing strategies would require, you’ll have to explore the world of influencer marketing to figure out what is most appropriate for your brand and making mistakes could be costly.
Moreover, you would not need to worry about producing quality content while working with an influencer. Pieces of content made by influencers are frequently more exciting and compelling than those created by corporations.
So if it is not apparent yet, your success in influencer marketing highly depends on choosing the right influencer. In the process of selecting one, you should ask yourself these:
Even while working with influencers has certain special considerations, the steps for building up a campaign are similar to those for other marketing campaigns: research, budget setting, goal setting, finding your influencers, and reviewing and revising.
And as you would expect with other strategies, the results take time. But, again, if you are critical and lucky enough to find the perfect influencer for your brand, you will be reaping benefits in no time.
You may also want to read: 5 common corporate workplace communication pitfalls (commsroom.co)
Jaw de Guzman is the content producer for Comms Room, a knowledge platform and website aimed at assisting the communications industry and its professionals.
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