How to get the most out of influencer marketing

Influencers are 21st-century celebrities. These social media stars – whether an A-lister known for walking the red carpet or a dedicated content creator with authority and a large following – provide a powerful resource for companies. 

Influencer marketing allows businesses or brands to team up with internet celebs to promote their products and services to a broader audience. It’s like getting a testimonial from a trusted source who’s also awesome at making aesthetically pleasing content and connecting with people. 

Influencer marketing is so popular and successful that it’s not just limited to individuals with massive followings. There are now different categories of social media influencers – from those who reach a 1,000-person audience of friends, family members and colleagues to the superstars described above and everyone in between. Each tier has its benefits. The quality of interaction matters, too, so sometimes having a “nano-influencer” pitch your product to a small but loyal crowd can yield a great rate of return. 

Now that you’ve got the basics, let’s delve into how an influencer marketing strategy can help your business really take off. 

The benefits of influencer marketing

Influencer marketing is a niche sales strategy with many other niches within it. It functions like nothing else in the business because social networks are wide, vast, and full of every type of content under the sun. So, influencer marketing has massive potential to boost your company’s engagement with future customers. Here’s how: 

Establish your brand’s authority

It’s the classic marketing logic that’s been around for ages: If you can get a testimonial from someone who’s an authority in your field (think LeBron James plugging sports apparel), consumers are more likely to take a second look at your product. One of the top influencer marketing jobs is simply singing the praises of a product. Whether you sell basketball shoes or products that make a mom’s life easier, there’s an influencer with authority out there waiting to tell their audience about how great your offering is. 

Boost organic traffic

People follow influencers because they like what they see. For example, those who admire the luxury lifestyle follow influencers who spend their days eating at the world’s best restaurants and sleeping at five-star hotels. Those who love the arts follow artists. Sports buffs follow athletes. And so on. Because these followers genuinely engage with the content that these influencers make, this audience can genuinely engage with your content by extension. Hit them with a testimonial or promo from a source they trust. 

Expand your reach

Just as people follow influencers whose lifestyles they admire, they also follow individuals who are simply in the know. Social media is the perfect place to view all kinds of content at a distance. This means if your target audience is usually techies, you could reach all sorts of people by partnering with an influencer who’s big in the trade but also just big in the news. This could take your product into new territories, hopefully sparking interest from audiences you don’t usually target. 

How to use influencer marketing

Are you convinced that influencer marketing is for you? Ready to sit down and make that digital marketing plan? Here are some strategies to include. 

• Testimonials: This is no new trick; testimonials have stood the test of time. Partner with an influencer who’s already an authority on the type of products or services you offer, and their word will go a long way with followers. 
• User-generated content: Partner with content creators and have them pitch your product to generate more brand awareness. You may have to send them your product to familiarize them with your offering, but they’ll put their skills to work for you, showing off your goods favorably.  
• Promotions: We’re all willing to try out a new item from time to time, especially if it’s backed by some convincing marketing. The probability goes up significantly when a new product comes with a discount. Many audiences are accustomed to seeing influencer marketing daily, so these perks can make your content stand out. 

4 steps to building your influencer marketing strategy

So, you and your brand are ready to approach an influencer, but where should you start? Here are some tips to get the ball rolling.

1. Get to know your social media marketing audience

While you’re sure to find some potential customers outside of your target audience, stick to what you know at first. Ask yourself what kind of an audience you’d ideally like to reach, and then partner with influencers who have already built up that follower base. 

2. Understand how influencer marketing campaigns work

Each social media platform has different rules and regulations, and audiences on each platform have their preferences. TikTok, for example, doesn’t allow affiliate marketing, but Instagram encourages it – to the point that they have their own internal system for Instagram influencer marketing via affiliates. 

Audiences accustomed to viewing photo and video content (Instagram, TikTok, YouTube) might not respond as well to text-heavy campaigns. Save those tasks for the Facebook-famous and the bloggers. 

3. Find the right influencers for your partnerships

If you don’t have the budget to hire the most prolific influencer in your content area, don’t panic. Influencers with smaller followings also have a significant reach. Get familiar with the different tiers of influencers and the benefits that each can provide. Set a budget and follow influencers in that price range, tier and (obviously) your content area. When you find people you connect with, you’re ready for step 4. You can later track metrics and their performance by reviewing your influencer marketing statistics.

4. Make personalized contact with individuals or an influencer agency

No one likes a form letter, especially not someone who creates content for a living. So, reach out to influencers in a personalized manner. Send them a thoughtful DM or find their professional site, and reach out to the email address they have listed for marketing inquiries. Be sure to tell them why you chose them and how their values and aesthetics align with those of your company. If you want a hand, you can try contacting influencer marketing platforms or an influencer marketing agency. These influencer marketing hubs will help connect you with your target audience (not to mention the right influencer). 

Whether you’re looking for influencers to promote your brand or hoping to become one yourself, a solid content strategy and well-connected platforms are the way to get your start. Let Linktree help you get ahead of your goals.