Want a successful influencer marketing strategy? Follow these three steps

Influencer marketing has taken the world by storm. More brands than ever are utilising authentic, “everyday people” to showcase their products and services with incredible results. Influencer marketing, as an industry grew from $1.7 billion in 2016 to $13.8 billion in 2021. This year it is projected to reach a whopping $16.4 billion.

With the overwhelming amount of product options and brands available for purchase, consumers are looking for ways to make confident purchase decisions. We want to feel like the people we relate to and trust are backing our choices and we want to feel like we belong to a tribe of people who use the same products and services as we do. 

However, planning and executing your influencer campaign isn’t always easy, but it can grow your business exponentially when done correctly. If you’re currently using influencer marketing, you should be getting results.

If you’re not, you really need to sit down, understand what is going wrong, and change your strategy. 

Three steps to success

1. Do your research

   If you have an influencer in mind, do a thorough check of their account. Read the comments on their posts and check who has engaged with their content. If an influencer is pushing a new product or service on a daily basis, their audience may be confused or feel saturated. As a result, their audience is less likely to interact with your brand.

   Influencers with 10,000 followers or less, also known as “Nano” influencers, usually don’t advertise products every day. Nano influencers generally have more engaged audiences and people are more likely to perceive the ads on the account as more authentic. 

   When researching influencers, it’s also essential to think about your target market and brand personality. You want to make sure the influencer’s audience will align with your products. Take the following into consideration when selecting who you want to work with:

   • The age of their followers; 
   • The interests that their followers have; and 
   • Their geographic location.

   These should correspond with the target market of your product. There’s no point in engaging a 19-year-old girl to showcase your luxury jewellery if the majority of their followers are university age students with little cash to spare. 

2. Ensure you have a collaboration guideline in place

   Most complaints from business owners are based around the influencer not meeting their expectations. My next question is always, did you send them a guideline to follow which includes your expectations? The answer is almost always no! There is no way to meet or measure your goals without a comprehensive guideline in place. 

   Your collaboration guideline should include the following: 

   • How much content you require from the influencer as part of the agreement, e.g. the number of Instagram feed posts you require as well as the number of story posts you require; 
   • A timeline of posting events, that is, when is the influencer expected to post;
   • Educational material about your products and services to ensure they use the correct copy/brand voice. Alternatively, give them the copy that they are required to use or ask to approve their post before it goes live; and
   • A mood board and content examples of what you would like them to post. 

3. It’s all about the audience’s experience

   If you’re sending a product to an influencer, ensure the experience of unboxing your product is unique. Many influencers film themselves unboxing products, and packaging nowadays says a lot about the brand and the product. Ensure that your product is beautifully presented and includes key messaging and educational points. For example, if you are sending an item from your Christmas line, you could include star-shaped decoration and metallic colouring for your wrapping and card. 

   When you invite an influencer to experience your services, you need to ensure a seamless experience that showcases how you want your brand or business to be perceived. Focus on the smaller details in your space and be aware of all the exciting Instagrammable moments you can create or point out to the influencer.