5 steps to making influencer marketing work for you
Let’s set one thing straight: Even though influencer marketing has proven to be a challenge and has somewhat decreased in popularity, it is far from dead…
First and foremost, influencer marketing is an investment. Like any marketing strategy, it requires time and money to get it right. In fact, a successful influencer marketing strategy can generate up to eight times the ROI.
Here are some tips on how to craft the best influencer marketing strategy:
1. Determine campaign goals.
You can’t craft any strategy without first mapping out goals. Think about what you are trying to achieve with influencers. Is it more brand awareness or brand loyalty? More leads and sales?
You can use the tried and true SMART goals formula to help you determine goals. Then, you will want to communicate those to the rest of your marketing team and your network of influencers once you reach that step.
2. Find influencers.
The next step is to find the right influencers to promote your product, service or brand. You can do this by searching Google, social media, and/or blogs you may already read or follow.
Remember, influencers within your niche who have successful blogs are likely already ranking for your target keywords and phrases. Therefore, you will want to search for influencers who fit the same profile as your target audience. Using industry-related search terms to find influencers is a great place to start.
3. Set a budget.
There are different types of influencers, ranging from “micro-influencers” to Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs).
Micro-influencers are typically successful bloggers or YouTubers with a modest following on their blogs and/or social media, reaching up to tens of thousands of fans and followers. Most micro-influencers are paid between $80 and up to $500 per piece of content created and shared within their networks.
KOLs are often high-level experts on a particular topic or nice. KOLs can include highly-successful thought leaders, political figures, authors, and celebrities. Most KOLs are often paid between $500 and $5,000 per content created and shared.
Of course, there are other types of mid-level influencers, and pricing can often be negotiated with them. Some businesses pay influencers based on performance. For example, the higher the engagement, the higher the incentive.
All in all, when crafting your influencer marketing strategy, be sure to determine a budget for content creation and also include what and how you will compensate influencers for their content and promotion.
4. Finalize your strategy.
Once you have determined goals, your budget, and your network of influencers is ready to go, it’s time to finalize your strategy. Be sure to clearly communicate campaign goals, brand guidelines, and expectations with your influencers. In our experience, this step is often overlooked, and it is often where an influencer strategy fails.
Whether your network is made up of three influencers or 30, taking the time to clearly communicate goals, objectives, guidelines, and expectations will set everyone up for success.
5. Measure performance.
Before you can effectively and accurately measure the performance of your influencers and your campaign as a whole, you need to ensure that you have the proper access to the right metrics and be able to answer questions regarding performance at any point during the campaign.
After all, influencer marketing is a strategic, data-driven technique that requires capturing and analyzing data to make more informed decisions about current and future campaigns.
