Influencers are taking over our social media feeds with their styling tips, lavish holidays and recipe shares. They have a huge influence over their followers so it’s no wonder that businesses are jumping at the chance to work with them to drive conversions. Before you dive in to the deep end you need to ensure you find the right influencer for your brand, otherwise the campaign could be a flop.

Need a refresher on what influencer marketing is and why it’s beneficial before you start reading? Check out our blog on just that. 

DEFINE YOUR GOALS

Influencers are not always an easy win solution to drive conversions. However, when used correctly, they can drive $6.50 profit per $1 invested according to Influencer Marketing Hub.

Think about why you want to work with an influencer. Is it to drive sales, increase brand awareness or even reach a new audience? We’ve defined the key goals that could mean an influencer is right for you and your business:

DEFINE YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE

Who is your target audience? If you are targeting over 55’s for a cruise holiday, then an Instagram influencer will not be the right avenue to market your product. But head over to Facebook where the over 55’s are the second biggest demographic of users on the social channel and you will likely see strong results.

Define your current purchasing or converting audience. Use social analytics as well as Google Analytics to pinpoint who your current audience is and use this insight to define a set persona for your brand. Is your ideal customer a 20-30 year old female who is a working professional with an interest in cycling? Or a 50-70 year-old male retiree with an interest in golf?

From there, seek out influencers who have a following that matches your target audience and you’re one step closer to gaining ROI on your campaign.

FIND THE RIGHT INFLUENCER

Find out where your audience resides and look for relevant influencers in that area i.e. if your data in Google Analytics is showing a large proportion of referrals from Instagram, then try an Instagram influencer. If you have seen a lot of YouTube content specific to your product e.g. date night recipes, then you’re likely to reach your goals with a YouTube cooking influencer.

Don’t be distracted by influencers with a huge number of followers or website traffic. The larger the audience, the more likely it is that a large percentage are not relevant to you. The more niche you can get with your product and your influencer, the more relevant your audience and clicks will be.

TYPES OF INFLUENCERS

There are three main types of influencer:

Celebrity Influencer

These are superstars; think actors, sports stars and performers. Their follower numbers are in the millions and that huge reach comes with a hefty price tag for a paid-for post. But don’t be distracted by the numbers. If you’re looking to target 18-24 year old girls in Liverpool then working with Kim Kardashian will give you very little return for such a big investment.

If you’re a global brand looking for global reach, then a celebrity influencer could be a good option. Airbnb utilised the exposure of Coachella and its artists by paying some of the headline performers to stay in beautiful homes they list during the festival. DJ Martin Garrix had over a 10% engagement rate on his sponsored post which thanked Airbnb for putting him up.

Working with this type of influencer is a heavy investment, so make sure you do your research first. However, if this is your first influencer camapign we’d recommend starting with a micro or macro influencer to see how that campaign goes.

Macro Influencer

These are stars within their field and usually have around 100,000 to 1 million followers on social media. If you’re a tourist board looking to advertise your destination, going with a travel influencer could be a good option.

Benidorm is often thought of as a place for pensioners or stag parties, so Visit Benidorm and Ice Lolly partnered to give the destination an image overhaul. They sent influencers over to enjoy an action-packed break wandering the quaint and pretty Old Town, enjoying water sports and eating at pretty restaurants, which was all documented on their Instagram feeds, showing potential travellers a different side to this Spanish town.

Although not as expensive as celebrity influencers, macro influencers are celebrities in their own field, so can be quite costly.

Micro Influencer

Micro influencers generally have 1,000-100,000 followers on social channels and have a very specific and niche following.  Skincare retailer Glossier uses micro influencers, as their focus is on engagement, rather than the number of followers an individual may have. Launching back in 2014 and having not used traditional marketing, they’ve quickly hit $100m in sales and acquired a cool 1.2m followers on Instagram, showing that working with big influencers isn’t actually necessary to drive sales.

With a much lower price tag, and a very high engagement rate, these influencers are more likely to show a good ROI.

However, the Advertising Standards Association (ASA) has been cracking down on social influencers who are not marking sponsored content as an advert, which is of course, misleading to their followers. The ASA recently announced they’ll be treating influencers with 30,000+ followers as a ‘celebrity’ in order to enforce stricter advertising regulations. Make sure any influencer posts are clearly marked and don’t worry, as long as you find an influencer who is the right fit for your brand, having the word ad/spon/gifted after their post will not negatively impact your campaign. For more information on how to make sponsored posts clear see here.

HOW TO FIND INFLUENCERS 

Finding relevant influencers can be tricky and take a lot of time. There are tools that allow you to search for influencers by category, as well as platforms where you can post opportunities for influencers to “apply” to. These both cost money and can leave you with an influencer who might not be best suited for your brand and goals.

The best way to find an influencer is through organic search and networking. Generally, influencers will have search-friendly text within their bio which will make finding them easier.

If you’re looking for a nationwide influencer, try doing a Google Search to find blogs and their corresponding social accounts. If you’re looking for regional influencers, search via localised hashtags. One other trick is to look to see what accounts other brands in your niche are following. You should follow these too, as you’ll then be served similar accounts to connect with and can see what posts from other influencers and brands work well.

CHOOSING THE RIGHT INFLUENCER FOR YOUR BUSINESS

To make sure you are selecting the right influencer for your business, ensure they tick all of the below:

1. Do they have an account that is relevant to your product/business?
2. Do they post content you like and would be happy to have associated with your brand?
3. Do they have good engagement on their posts? (You can check this here)
4. Do they have the right followers in terms of demographics like age and location? (You can check this here)
5. Do they have consistent follower growth month on month? (You can check this here)

If you answered ‘no’ to any of the questions above, this influencer may not be the right choice.

Still unsure about how to make an influencer campaign work? Request our influencer marketing guide.

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