Influencer marketing really is my favourite type of marketing. Nothing gets me going more than seeing someone I admire flaunting a product that I’ve been thinking about purchasing. It’s an awesome way to both build brand awareness and tip customers over the edge, encouraging them to make that final decision and head to the checkout to click BUY NOW.

Engaging an influencer really is the ultimate ‘vouch’ for your business. With markets being as saturated as they are these days, why not utilise every possible pathway to ensure that your product is really standing out from the rest of the crowd? 

According to BrightLocal, 92% of consumers now read online reviews, up from 88% in 2014, and nearly 90% of customers trust online reviews by strangers as much as they would recommendations from friends. It’s all about trust, and people love knowing that the products they’re purchasing have been recommended by someone they look up to or see as an authority figure in the field. 

There’s been a shift recently away from the ‘celebrity influencer’ and more towards the ‘micro-influencer’. These smaller-audience Instagram bloggers have typically less than 200,000 followers, however they preferably have high engagement followings. This adds authenticity and reliability to the content, taking away that ‘being sold to’ feeling and instead utilising the trust within that consumer-influencer interaction. 

If you can engage the right influencers for your industry, you could hit the nail on the head with building the authority of your business and majorly boosting sales. I’ve put together four simple tips for getting a start on influencer marketing for your business. Take a look!

1. Think carefully about your brand

Consider the feel and vibe of your brand. Your influencer (as well as the way they visually present their social media channels) should fit with your brand. It doesn’t necessarily need to be a PERFECT fit, as this will actually potentially expose you to a wider audience… but the partnership should still make sense!

2. Choose the right influencer

It’s important to remember here that relevancy is always more important than reach. As I’ve said above, don’t shy away from influencers who have smaller followings, as this could in fact just mean that you’re targeting a better niche! Do some proper research into your influencer and look through their previous posts to make sure they’re a good fit for your brand and influencer marketing goals. 

3. Don’t micromanage – let your influencer use their creativity!

Although you might think you know best, it’s so important to let your influencer take over the majority of the creative process when it comes to creating the posts they’re doing for you. Remember that they know their audience much better than you do, and if you’ve chosen correctly, they’ll be able to present your product in an appealing way that you might never have thought of!

4. Always track your success

There’s no way for you to know how your influencer marketing campaign is going if you don’t track what’s going on. Keep a record of your data and metrics surrounding the influencer campaign and compare it to previous sales or other conversion data. A good way to track which leads or sales are coming from influencer reach is to give them a specific code or word for customers to quote when they’ve seen the post, offering them a discount. If the partnership is working well for you, keep going!

This is only a tiny taster of the strategies that can be implemented when developing a digital marketing success, but I hope it’s set you off on the right foot. I’ll be delving more into each of these strategies in future blog posts. In the meantime, if you’re interested in seeing what the amazing world of digital marketing could do for your business, contact me – I would love to have a coffee with you!