Occasionally, I’ll publish blog posts from guest writers, usually young writers who want to build up their portfolio. Erica Badino is a newer writer in the marketing world, and I thought I would give her a shot. Especially after she was so patient with me getting to this in the first p
The idea behind influencer marketing is nothing new. People have always looked to trusted friends and acquaintances for recommendations. In the digital world, the concept of asking a close comrade for a suggestion has morphed into the idea of turning to a favorite blogger. However, the broad online landscape now gives you the platform to connect directly with the influential individuals who are making the recommendations. Getting these people to share and vouch for your content or product can be extremely valuable.
But the question is still the same, how do you actually do that? How do you get those influencers to pay attention to you and share your stuff? Here are six steps to get you started.
Determine your budget & KPIs
- What is your budget? There are ways to make influencer marketing work with budget size.
- What are your real target KPIs? Are you planning or aiming for brand awareness? App installs? Social conversations? While being metrics-driven is essential, remember that influencer marketing creates long-term value beyond the immediate metrics (e.g. consumer trust and viral exposure).
- What does success look like? Create a plan with 3 hypothetical outcomes: failure, success, and home run.
Craft your influencer strategy: The second step is to create a well-thought-out strategy. At first glance, influencer marketing seems very simple. Get popular posters to talk about your product and you’ll instantly gain a larger audience, right? To truly succeed, we need to approach it the right way, just like any other campaign. Ask yourself the following questions:
- Who am I trying to reach?
- What is the desired outcome?
- What services or products do I want people to learn about?
Target top influencers: A strong campaign will typically have between 5 – 20 influencers on it. To target the best influencers for your industry, we need to dive in and surf the web like the target customer would. Get to know your audience intimately. Build a detailed profile for the types of people that you want to reach based on. . .
- Where they shop
- The blogs they read
- The magazines they subscribe to
- The books they buy
- How they engage with brands and influencers (Do they comment often? Are they keen “likers?” Do they browse posts quickly?)
- They hobbies they’re interested in
- The television shows they watch
- The restaurants, bars, or entertainment venues they frequent
All these elements come together to help you define which influencer your key audience is likely to listen to. The best influencers have great engagement levels with your audience. They usually get a lot of positive comments and likes.
Make Initial Contact: Reach out and begin making contact with the top influencers on your list. Don’t start with a product pitch or a request for a guest post. Start slowly, and engage by following them, commenting on their posts, and sharing their blogs.
Keep in Touch: Keep in contact with your influencers for several weeks before approaching them with your campaign. Successful influencer recruiting is all about building professional relationships. There are many ways that you can collaborate with them. These may include guest posts on blogs, reviews from the influencers, or product giveaways featuring your goods on their site.
Explore Outsourcing: This type of marketing can introduce your brand to a broad new community of followers when it’s done right.
Like all good things, social influencer marketing will change and evolve over time as it adapts to the latest trends and technology. Make it a priority to learn emerging influencer marketing strategies so you can follow them successfully. Savvy marketers are already capitalizing on the opportunity to grow their brand with the voice of their potential customers, consumers, and fans etc.
If you recruit passionate and dedicated influencers to participate in your marketing campaigns, you will improve profits, reach new customers through your influencers’ well-established networks, and increase brand trust.
After helping launch several successful blogs, Erica Badino is on a quest to share her knowledge and experiences with bloggers both new and old. She is a regular contributor for SEO Services USA.
