The rapid increase in the number of social media influencers has opened a new avenue of marketing known as influencer marketing. Influencer marketing is a branch of the social media marketing that utilises the power of influencers to push campaign ideas. Influencer marketing skills amplifies social media marketing and helps small businesses reach potential customers that they would have otherwise not been able to reach. The online networks of the influencers are reached out to, and your marketing message and ideas are spread through their portals. Influencers are either paid in currency or the brand’s merchandise.

Whether you own a small business or a multi-national corporation, influencer marketing is one the most efficient methods to increase brand awareness and drive sales. One of the reports by Influencer Marketing Hub, for every $1 spent by businesses on influencers, they are likely to get $5.78 in return. Influencer marketing rose from $6.5 billion in 2019 to the current $13.8 billion in 2021. Our team of expert influencer marketers who have amassed countless successful marketing campaigns is sharing tips to improve your influencer marketing skills.

Be Patient

Companies that seek to establish a long-term relationship with high-performing reliable influencers are the most successful in the current market. Marketing is a long, tedious battle that cannot be won overnight. Instead of focusing on a single influencer, make a list of potential influencers that you can employ. Also, keep a keen eye on rising channels and profiles. Establish healthy relationships with rising influencers and capitalise on their growing fame.

Do Your Research

Employ a good team marketing team that does a full background check of the potential influencer and hire the best one. It greatly helps to hire influencers with a proven track record and stellar recommendations. Look at the companies that hired them in the past, evaluate their previous content, and enquire about their standard fees. Also, take a note of answering the following important questions:

• Do the values portrayed by the influencer’s content align with your business values?
• Do they punctually post the marketing posts?
• What were the past performances of marketing posts?
• Did their posting help drive web traffic or generate sales?
• What was the audience’s response to the ad posts?

One Time Won’t Work

The most common mistake by small businesses who are sceptical of influencer marketing is that they expect sales results after the first post. To fully reach the influencer’s audience, engage with the influencer in multiple campaigns. This allows the audience to get familiar with your product and help you identify the potential reach of the influencer.

As a general rule of traditional advertising, the customer has to see your ad on average at least three times before they make a purchase. Hence, this maxim can be applied to influencer marketing as well. In addition, the more often the influencer posts about your product, the more trust is engendered in the audience.

Where to Find Useful Influencers

Look for an established influencer network if your company is new to influencer marketing. Influencer networks are similar to modelling agencies. These networks provide a list of all the legitimate influencers and compile the key data such as niche, location, demographic, engagement, and more. These markets can virtually help you run your entire influencer marketing campaign. From recruitment of useful influencers to creating the best suited relevant content for the influencer’s audience, they can handle it all for you. Each network works slightly differently, and the major variations are observed in the method of the fee charged. Some networks charge a flat compensation for their assistance, while others charge on a CPC (cost-per-click) basis.

Influencer marketing is a great avenue for small businesses that wish to reach audiences beyond their conventional marketing strategies. However, to successfully leverage the most out of an influencer marketing campaign, recognise your company’s objectives, mission, and establish a budget. Use these as a framework to identify the best influencer suited to your needs. Remember not to be too impatient and take the help of influencer networks if you don’t want the hassle that comes with such a campaign.

Source – Entrepreneur