Anyone can become an influencer – ask your coworker or neighbor if they know an influencer. Some time ago, only celebrities or famous bloggers could be influencers. Influencers are used to drive endorsements and product mentions to their specific niches. Influencers aren’t meant to attract more followers. They’re used to solidify trust in their current following and create a personalized connection. This can drive consumer engagement and personalized content. Influencer marketing is another tool that you can implement in digital marketing.
How to Identify Different Influencers
There are four types of influencers that you can use for your campaign. It’s best to define your audience and the audience that you’re trying to reach. Not all influencer types will benefit your campaign.
- Mega influencers – 1M+ followers
- Macro-influencers – 100k-1M followers
- Micro-influencers – 10K-100K followers
- Nano-influencers – <10K followers
Larger influencers attract a wide variety of followers. If you need to reach a wide audience, this is the route to go. In order to draw these influencers, you need a large advertising budget and plenty of resources. They may get dozens of endorsements offers and you need to personally craft your offer in order to draw their attention. Their large audience following may result in varying reactions to your campaign. There is greater chance of negative or uninterested responses.
Smaller influencers may not have enough followers to make your campaign worthwhile. Smaller followings are more close knit and negative reactions can quickly spread. If your goal is to reach a broader audience, smaller influencers may not be the correct choice. The best way to start is by defining your audiences and goals.
How to Implement Influencer Marketing
Increasing brand awareness and sales are the main reasons for implementing influencer marketing. Despite this focus, you need to specifically identify what you want the influencer to accomplish. Perhaps your product needs to appeal towards a younger demographic or more broad audience. Before approaching any influencer, research their past work and the campaign results.
In today’s world, anyone can be considered an influencer. Influencers increase consumer engagement and personalized connection with your brand. Like any other marketing strategy, there are downsides to using influencer marketing if it doesn’t align with your brand. With careful planning and execution, you can use influencer marketing to your advantage in today’s world of digital marketing.