What is Influencer Marketing

by
What is Influencer Marketing

What is Influencer Marketing?

Influencer marketing is a form of marketing where you work with someone who has influence over your target market to help promote your brand or product to their audience.

Or, according to Huffington Post… “Influencer marketing is simply the action of promoting and selling products or services through people (influencers) who have the capacity to have an effect on the character of a brand.”

It can come in many different forms. Some of the more popular ways are Instagram posts, blog posts, YouTube videos, live events, product reviews, brand ambassador programs, the types of ways to collaborate with an influencer is practically endless.

According to MediaKix, there was a 90x increase in Google searches for the term “influencer marketing” from 2013 to 2016, but interest around the topic has doubled in the first nine months of 2017. During the same time, searches for “Instagram influencer” have more than tripled. The reasons for the growing interest are many, but a key principle underlies all: Influencer marketing is working for all types of brands.

Why Should I Use Influencer Marketing?

As more of today’s audiences become “cord-cutters,” declining TV viewership is quickly being replaced with mobile screen time. From 2011 to 2015, traditional TV viewership has dropped by 35% for viewers 18-24 years old (Neilsen). In place of TV, younger demographics are spending increasingly more time online and especially in front of their mobile phones. As reported in Mary Meeker’s mid-year Internet Trend report, time spent on mobile media is demonstrating significant growth representing roughly a $25 billion dollar opportunity in the U.S. alone.

BUT, influencer marketing can also be much less costly than traditional print advertising or pay per click ads on Google or Facebook, when done right.

Can I Use It for My Small Business?

Yes!

You don’t need to have a massive marketing budget to work with bloggers or influencers, in fact, it can be a significantly less expensive form of marketing than traditional advertising or online ad budget.

  • You could throw an event and invite local bloggers.
  • You could reach out to 50 micro-influencers and ask them if they would include your product in a flatlay.
  • You could reach out to several bloggers to see if they would review your product or service on their blog.
  • You could pitch a youtube vlogger to include your product or service in a video.

So, this month we’re going to focus on helping you learn about Influencer Marketing. Whether you’re a maker, and Etsy seller, an online or in-store shop and even services, we’re going to talk about it here on the blog. I’m also going to host a live online workshop on April 4th, so stay tuned and subscribe to stay in the loop!

Some definitions for you:

BLOGGER

Someone who has a website where regular content is created. A Blogger will also have social channels they use to engage on and promote their content.

INSTAGRAM INFLUENCER

A large account on Instagram. They will often post photos for brands, and/or affiliate links. They may or may not charge a dollar amount per post or have an agent. They may or may not have a blog, some just focus entirely on Instagram.

MICRO-INFLUENCER

A micro-influencer is someone who may be a smaller following on a social platform or blog, but is considered, generally to have high engagement. (less than 10,000 followers as a generalization)

COLLABORATION

Anything that works for both brand and influencer and is agreed upon. It generally means an exchange of product for a post.

FLATLAY

A type of photo on Instagram where several products or items are laid out on a floor or backdrop in an aesthetically pleasing way.

Like this:

ROI

A marketing acronym which stands for Return On Investment. Your goal should be to receive a return on investment in any marketing methods you use.

KPI

Key Performance Indicator. A number or specific outcome to determine if something is meeting your objective. Example: A key performance indicator on this campaign will be the number of followers we gain on our account as a result.

Next week’s post will cover more details on how to determine where you want to find influencers to work with for your business, specifically.

So, stay tuned and SUBSCRIBE, right here!

LIVE CLASS on April 4, 2019

Find us on Instagram, and Facebook!