Influencer marketing – the age of ‘smart selling’!

Have you ever bought a random product just because your favorite rock star advertised and endorsed it? Well, I for one – am guilty of stacking multiple items – most of them are useless – as they were advertised by a celeb. And I did it in my teens – so blame it on immaturity and blind faith in my famous idols! This form of advertising and promotion is almost like influencer marketing.

It is a type of marketing that prioritizes influential individuals rather than a ‘market.’ Influencer marketing involves the identification of ‘influential people’ who possess the power of – influencing – potential buyers into taking the necessary marketing actions.

The marketing strategy used for identifying and propagating influencers is called influencer marketing. And influencer marketing for small businesses is what we are going to talk about today.

Who is an influencer?

Influencers are individuals who are capable of persuading a target audience to take the necessary purchase decisions or desired actions. Influencers are not restricted to being famous personalities. They can be bloggers, passionate social media users who have numerous followers, who are active on blogs, social media, gamers, online community members that possess the knowledge, and authority and have a healthy relationships with fellow members, journalists, etc.

Influencers are advocates and promoters of brands, products, services, etc. They increase awareness and drive action.

Why should small businesses opt for influencer marketing?

1. Expansive audience reach
2. Boost brand awareness
3. Increase business/brand credibility
4. Streamlines marketing focus
5. Inexpensive
6. Effortless
7. Boost SEO performance
8. Guaranteed Profit

Do’s and Don’t’s of Influencer Marketing

via GIPHY

1. Choose influencers that have potential engagement and reach, not simply because you like him/her.
2. Do the necessary research and checks on the chosen influencer. Determine his / her record or results related to the brands s/he collaborated with.
3. Remember to make the necessary payments to the influencer.
4. Allow the influencer to be creatively independent.
5. Approach influencers strategically, keeping your business goals and user needs intact.
6. Search for influencers who can become advocates for your brand.
7. Be completely transparent to the influencer – from your brand, its purpose; your wants to even the marketing budget.
8. Don’t shy away from using micro-influencers. They might have a higher engagement rate, in spite of a lower reach.
9. Building connections and networking is not an easy task, especially, if you’re solely responsible for business growth. The best thing to do is hire a community manager to do the job.
10. Invest time and effort in helping the chosen influencer trust your brand and believe in it. This will help him/her to emit passion in his / her work towards brand promotion.
11. Influencers are more than buzz-creating individuals.
12. Allow your influencer to churn in as much creativity as possible and make way for storytelling that will garner a higher rate of attention and engagement.

How to choose the right influencer for your brand?

Before you go ahead connecting with a prospective “influencer,” to collaborate with your brand, you should understand the different types of influencers. It’s key to delivering the best results for your small business using influencer marketing strategies.

via GIPHY

So, what are the types of influencers?

There are basically four types of influencers:

1. Nano influencers
2. Micro-influencers
3. Macro influencers
4. Mega influencers

Nano influencers 

Nano influencers usually have followers anywhere between 100 and 10,000. They are like any social media users — yet to be on the “pro” side of being a bonafide “influencer.” Their social media content mostly revolves around images of themselves, family, friends, pets (like their dogs), and other viral content.

Micro-influencers 

Micro-influencers are “influencers” with followers between 10,000 and 50,000 across their social accounts. You can say they are almost treading the lines of being a celeb….. Almost!

Macro influencers 

Macro influencers typically have between 500,000 to a million followers and/or subscribers (in case of them having YouTube channels). The follower-subscriber number proves their impact on brand deals and audience.

Mega influencers

Mega influencers are your A-list celebrities with over a million followers across different social media platforms. As the term suggests – they are MEGA. And having them as your brand ambassador would not only deliver impactful results but also be an expensive deal at the same time!

Influencers are not hypnotizers or sorcerers who can cast a spell on your audience and get them take the desired decisions. They are your strategic marketing partners and resources, with whom you have to collaborate and execute the strategies utilizing the techniques and methods of influencer marketing.