Grow Your Brand Using Social Media Influencers

Imagine this: you want to learn more about a product, see what other people think about it and get a bigger picture of the brand itself. Where do you turn? If you’re between the ages of 18-34, you’re likely to go online. In fact, users are increasingly turning to social media to find product reviews, testimonials and discover new brands of products.

On Instagram specifically, people are more likely to follow a brand than on any other social media channel. According to Hootsuite, a social media managing tool, top brands on Instagram have an engagement rate 58x higher than Facebook. Instagram users love to follow influencers. Pixlee, a software to optimize content curation and analysis, defines an influencer as “a user on social media who has established credibility in a specific industry.”

Influencers are categorized by two sizes: micro and macro. Micro-influencers have a following of 10,000 to 90,000 users, and macro-influencers have a following of 100,000 or more. Micro-influencers typically cost less, cater to a smaller audience and can seem more genuine to users. Macro-influencer partnerships tend to cost more and may risk appearing disingenuous if the influencer oversaturates their audience with sponsored posts.

Similar to word-of-mouth marketing, Instagram users tend to trust influencers to provide them with helpful, quality information. When users see their favorite influencers posting about a product they trust what the influencer is telling them and are more likely to buy the endorsed product. Therefore, placing your brand into the right influencer’s hands is key.

Influencer marketing can be extremely lucrative for your business, but if done incorrectly it can be destructive. This is why it’s important to create a marketing strategy before getting started.

When creating an influencer marketing strategy, you first need to assess your target audience and community. What social network are they using most frequently? What brands, influencers, or trends do they follow and care about the most?

Next, identify what measurable tactics you will have in place for your return on investment (ROI) of your campaign. Will the influencer be giving away a promo code for consumers to purchase your product online? Or, are they simply talking about your product for brand awareness?

With a cohesive goal and strategy, your approach to influencer marketing will be off to a great start. If you have questions, contact 2060 Digital today!