5 Tips For Engaging With Influencers

Influencer marketing is one of the most popular and effective forms of marketing. No wonder businesses are taking the bull by the horn and taking the bold step. Have you noticed that in comedy skits, YouTube videos, Instagram posts, etc. influencers are promoting one product/service or the other? What does this imply? It implies that it is a method that is working.

According to Sprout Social, influencer marketing is“a type of social media marketing that uses endorsements and product mentions from influencers–individuals who have a dedicated social following and are viewed as experts within their niche”. One of the reasons why this form of marketing is effective is that these influencers have secured some level of trust from their fans and followers. This means that whatever product or service they promote and encourage them to buy, it is more feasible for them to buy. They trust the influencers to an extent, so it is a relatively easy route to take.

On the flip side, content creators and influencers are making so much money from brands. They either get the products for free, become affiliates or get paid sponsorships.

Have a collaboration plan

This is something you must get settled before reaching out to influencers. It will help you in determining the kind of influencers to use and what to expect. Your collaboration plan details the commission you are willing to give the influencer, the free products and/or the payment to be made.

Research

I can argue that this is the beginning of every man’s pursuit. Before you venture into anything, you must first of all, find out about that thing, so you do not make mistakes, especially silly ones. As a business person interested in collaborating with influencers, be sure to investigate them. You should check out their social media handles to determine if they are genuine. There are several fake accounts and people, buying followers/likes and posing as influencers. You must do your due diligence to sieve them out.

Create targeted content

In your research process, you must identify influencers that have organic and real-time engagement, as they will have an audience that will most likely patronize your business. Work with the influencers to create customer-specific and targeted content. Not just anything random.

Host contests

Contests and giveaways are effective tools for driving traffic to your business. Since these influencers already have a large following, engagement and credibility, you can collaborate with them to run contests. Have a contest/giveaway plan that will push their audience to follow your business page, like, comment, tag, share posts, visit your website, sign up for your newsletter and even buy your product.

Make influencers brand ambassadors

It is not always advisable to have a one-time encounter with influencers, especially the ones that drove the best results. You might want to keep them as brand ambassadors. This means that in whatever they do; events, their content, etc., there will be a frequent promotion of your business.

With these tips, I trust you are ready to take that bold step. Do your research today and choose influencers that you can work with. Let them also align with your business values and budget.