What to expect with influencer marketing
Social media influencer marketing continues to be a popular tactic for reaching targeting audiences, and it’s a tactic we continue to suggest in our content marketing work.
Influencer marketing isn’t totally standardized from creator to creator, which means launching a successful influencer engagement takes time, research and budget.
Some creators may work in an unpaid capacity in exchange for free product, but that kind of engagement isn’t as common as it once was. Before you start outreach, we have four pointers for you to keep in mind.
Treat influencer marketing like media relations
While influencer campaigns are usually thrown into the social media category, many of the same principles of good media relations outreach apply. Increase your odds of getting a “yes” by researching your influencer targets extensively.
- How frequently does the influencer post about products?
- What types of products does he/she share about?
- Does your product fit within the influencer’s brand? Will this person be a good representation of your brand?
- Where does this person share? Which social channels do they use? Do they have a newsletter, podcast or other outreach platform?
Just as with media relations, we do not endorse spray and pray. We have our best results when we’ve taken the time to research our contacts and cater our outreach to each individual influencer.
Be Open to Collaboration
When you approach an influencer with an engagement opportunity, you should come to the table with a budget in mind but also have an open mind about what they can do with that number. Remember, influencers are content creators – they want to be creative! If you say they need to only use this product in this way, the authenticity may not come through as well as if they came to you with an idea on how to market that product.
Don’t expect every influencer to be interested
Even with extensive research, it is unlikely that every influencer you contact will want to attend your event or sample and share your product. Be realistic about your expectations. We wouldn’t expect every media pitch to result in a media placement, and the same concept applies to influencer marketing.
Depending on the contract agreement, you may or may not be able to inform the exact copy and creative that’s used in your engagement. Be aware of any potential critiques that might exist and be ready to address public criticism when necessary.
Engage, interact and track
The outreach piece is just the beginning of your influencer marketing efforts. You’ll also need to be ready to put in the time to engage, interact and track your results.
When an unpaid influencer raves about your product, engage with them — thank them whether it’s over direct message or commenting on their post. Take things even further by interacting with their followers who might be commenting or asking questions about your product.
Pro tip: you might also assign someone on your team to keep “clips” (aka screengrabs) of influencers sharing about your product since Story-based content has a finite shelf life.
Lastly, keep the lines of communication open. If an influencer really loves your product, put in the time and effort to grow a mutually beneficial relationship. That might mean working with them in an ongoing basis to help amplify your future campaigns.
This blog post was originally published in January 2019. It has been updated and republished to keep you up to date.
Leave a Reply