It’s no secret that traditional advertising is losing its reach. Television ads are now fast-forwarded; pop-up ads can be disabled. Along with that, celebrities are not the endorsers they once were. They can build brand awareness, but not necessarily sales. Social influencers have eclipsed celebrities in consumer trust. In fact, 92% of consumers trust word-of-mouth and recommendations from friends, family, and social influencers above all other forms of advertising, including celebrity endorsements.

The power of these social influencers isn’t based on their follower count but on their ability to influence through authenticity and curation. Following are some key influencer marketing insights:

1. Why marketers love influencer marketing.

An authentic recommendation by a trusted influencer is effective for several reasons. First, influencers know what kind of content their followers want to see. The influencer’s interpretation of how to showcase content may not always be exactly the way you’d like, but when given the freedom to create, they produce what most resonates with their audience.

Influencers are also a more affordable choice than traditional celebrity endorsements. That equals more content, greater reach, more reliable advocacy, and ultimately, more engagement with your brand.

2. How to find the right influencers for your brand. 

Influencer marketing isn’t new; the only thing that’s changed is the status of the influencer. Realistically, most of us aren’t influenced by what Emily Ratajkowski is tweeting. We’re much more likely to be influenced by friends, family, and the people we’re following on Instagram, Twitter, or our favorite blogs.

There are great tools available to help find your best influencers, including BuzzSumo, or Moz’s Followerwonk. Sometimes it’s as easy as examining your brand’s current fans on social media feeds. You may have already caught the attention of influencers who love your products and services.

3. How to work with influencers for the best outcome.  

It’s important to note that not all influencers are right for your brand, so before jumping on board with someone merely because they have the most followers, take the time to make sure you’ve chosen the perfect advocate for your products.

You should be comfortable with the influencer’s style, and how it will mesh with your brand vision. Don’t try to control the relationship; for the best results you need to trust the influencer to weave your brand messaging into their narrative in an authentic way. They’ve invested time building their audience relationships based on their own unique voice, perspective, and storytelling style, and they need to maintain their credibility to be effective. Though they should have control of how they talk about your brand, certainly be clear about what you’re trying to achieve. Authenticity and transparency are essential in a successful relationship, so make it as easy as possible for them to understand your vision, and then step back and let them do their thing.

4. Influencer marketing gone wrong.

Sometimes influencer campaigns can go horribly wrong. The blame may rest on the influencer, on the brand that doesn’t deliver on its promise, or both.

Consider the Fyre Festival, forced to close on opening day due to poor planning and execution. The marketing plan for this disaster was missing a key component of any good influencer campaign: transparency. The organizers contracted 400+ celebrity influencers, including Kendall Jenner and Bella Hadid, who pretended to have an interest in the festival and promoted it through their social media channels, encouraging fans to buy tickets. Rather than the transparency and honesty required for a successful partnership, these young celebrity influencers didn’t disclose that they were paid to promote the festival, per FTC rules. Ultimately, the organizers spent so much money on influencers that they didn’t have enough money to execute the actual event.

Each influencer and brand have their own stories, and when working together, they can reflect poorly on each other. In Pepsi’s recent “Live for Now Moments” ad featuring Kendall Jenner, the objective was a message of unification and diversity. The campaign, however, was wrong for both the influencer and the brand, and the result was a complete backlash by the public. A smart approach would have been to test the concept before investing in the campaign to gauge public reaction.

5. Benefits of micro-influencers.

Influencers with large followings may not be the best choice for your brand. Micro-influencers with fewer followers often have more quality influence and deeper engagement with a more tailored audience. That engagement leads to trust, which leads to more response.

The benefits of micro-influencers are many: they are typically more affordable, their audiences more targeted, and they produce quality content in a genuine way that can ultimately result in a higher response rate.

Influencer marketing shows no signs of slowing down in the immediate future. As it continues to grow, brands need to search for those influencers who align with their marketing objectives to generate impactful campaigns that are believable, transparent and honest. If not, the trust you’ve spent years building for your brand can be gone in an instant.

If you’re planning to work with influencers this year and would like some guidance, give us a call. We’re always here to help.

Most experts agree: 2017 is the year for influencer marketing. In fact, 87% of marketers plan to launch at least one influencer marketing campaign in 2017. The reasons that this particular marketing strategy is surging right now are many. The first, and probably the largest reason is social proof.

According to research firm Yankelovich, Americans are exposed to 5,000 advertisements a day. Overwhelmed consumers are now experiencing “banner blindness” as they mentally tune these ads out. With 47% of consumers using ad blockers, more and more brands are moving away from targeted ads and moving toward paying these influencers to represent their brands.

Though now is a great time to experiment with influencer marketing, it’s important to consider the following to make sure you maximize the return on your marketing dollars.

1. Consider Your Brand

Before you seek out influencers, you should first consider your brand. Many industries have influencers that are easier to identify than others. Fashion and beauty brands are already using influencer marketing, with 60% having a strategy in place and 21% planning to create campaigns in the next 12 months. Other brands that work well with influencer marketing include food and beverage, consumer technology, and health and wellness.

2. Find the Right Influencers

The hardest part of influencer marketing is finding the right people for the job. In fact, 73% say finding the right influencers is the hardest part of influencer marketing. Once you’ve tapped someone to share your products, that person becomes an extension of your brand.

So, do your due diligence. Investigate an influencer’s previous posts to determine that they’ll be a good reflection of your brand’s mission and vision. While you can afford to work with influencers that don’t have large followings, you may never recover from a social media faux pas.

3. Don’t Sweat Small Follower Counts

While a social media celebrity might be the ideal influencer on paper, look beyond the A-list. Remember that 72% say relevancy is more important than reach. If your influencers are reaching the target market for your brand, then you’ve hit the jackpot, no matter how large or small their audience may be.

4. Allow Creative Freedom

Your chosen influencers resonate with their audience for a reason. Once you’ve determined that your chosen advocate matches your brand standards and speaks to your brand’s mission, let that influencer fly free. If you try to impose rules and regulations, the relationship may break down. Worse, you might dampen the spirit of that influencer’s posts, which means their followers won’t engage anymore.

5. Track your Metrics

The only way to know if your campaign is working is to track its success. You can’t make changes if you don’t know what’s working and what isn’t, right? Google Analytics and other automated software show you exactly where your traffic is coming from. If one of your influencers isn’t producing results, you’ll know early enough to make necessary adjustments to your campaigns.

Influencer marketing campaigns can be a great tool for driving brand awareness, but only if you’re willing to put forth the effort. If you’d like more thoughts on developing successful influencer campaigns and engaging new audiences, give us a call.