Social media influencers are the kings and queens of the digital world.
Followers are keen to consume their updates and endorsements.
Their audience is highly engaged and if positioned correctly a partnership with the right brand can deliver huge benefits to your business.
So, what is an influencer on social media?
The dictionary definition states that influencers on social media are “a user on social media who has established credibility in a specific industry. A social media influencer has access to a large audience and can persuade others by virtue of their authenticity and reach.”
The definition was added to the Miriam-Webster Dictionary in 2019, but the concept itself is nothing new.
So, why consider influencer marketing as a promotional tool for your business?
Simply putting an endorsement on social media by an influencer of your product or service will have a direct impact on your businesses bottom line.
Their followers can run in to the millions and they don’t just follow the influencers they believe them.
Currently Influencer marketing is very much a growth industry.
So, why should you partner with influencers on social media?
Generation of Sales
At the end of the day you are in business to make money.
Influencer marketing means that within days or weeks, dependant on the campaign, your business can see an increase in sales. This is after a product or service has been mentioned by the right influencer.
It is also easier to convert leads in to sales from a rightly placed promotion from influencers.
Once followers see something mentioned on the profile of someone they like, know and trust; they are more likely to consider how that product or service would look in their life and are positioned to consider a purchase.
Content Creation
Influencers are skilled at generating quality content for their audience to consume.
They know what interests their followers and what they will engage with.
An additional benefit to this is that you can also use this content on your own social media profiles.
Just remember that you must check for approval before using it across your own digital outlets.
Influencers are also adept content creators and communicators.
They will understand the value that they can demonstrate a product or service might bring, as well as what aspects will resonate with that audience.
So, combined with their creative nature they can demonstrate your product or service in a way that will maximise its appeal to the right audience, using the right language.
Brand Awareness
Pick the right influencer and your brand will be put in the spotlight by them and reach a whole new, but relevant audience.
They are a trusted voice, who have built relationships with their audience.
Their endorsement of your business, product or service will immediately see you benefit from their seal of approval.
As a rule, influencers also have a very targeted following that will fall within a specific demographic.
Partnering with them allows you to promote your brand to that niche.
Research the influencers that are active with your target audience and engage with them.
It’s all about relationships
A Hubspot report found that over 70% of consumers base their buying decisions on recommendations. This is rather than direct brand promotions. Influencers on social media are viewed as separate from the brand itself.
Influencers are a voice of authority and have established relations with their audience.
This relationship means that they can bridge the gap between you and your target audience.
The relationships they build with their audience is also key and this means that as an industry, influencers tend to be quite transparent.
They will share with their audience if they have been gifted or paid to review an item.
This in turn builds trust between them and their followers and greater interest in your item than a standard advert would do.
Time to drive traffic
It’s influencer marketing at its best and a well-placed mention or link to your website can deliver the right results.
Followers are highly likely to check out any links or references and this will be demonstrated by a direct increase to your website.
New visitors will be picked up in your website analytics. If you have taken advantage of coding options, such as a Facebook pixel you will be able to use this data to remarket to visitors of your company page.
What should you consider when potentially partnering with a social media influencer?
You must protect your brand.
Influencers are often very niche in the marketing and audience they operate in.
You should not be seduced by the follower numbers.
Ensuring that any potential collaboration is with an influencer whose values, ethos, audience and posts sit alongside those of your business.
Tik Tok, one of the newest social media platforms is slowly gaining interest from major brands.
Although lockdown has seen a rise in older users: according to Omnicore over 40% of users are aged between 16 – 24 and more than 50% male.
You are unlikely to find a Tik Tok influencer who would then be a good fit if your business was looking to promote makeup to the over 50s.
Now is the time to start looking at which influencers may be right for your business.
You might think that your business is not large enough or you can not afford to work with influencers on marketing your products.
However, often there will be good but less established influencers happy to build relationships with brands.
Send them some products for free and allow them to try them out to get a mention.
All in all partnering with social media influencers can take your business and brand awareness to the next level.
But you need to put the work in.
Engage with them, build relationships that will last and just see what happens next …