Finding the Right Influencer or Collaborator for your Brand
March 24, 2023 | SOcial Media, Marketing, Influencer, Brand
The Rise of the Influencer
Social media ushered in a new age of digital communication in the mid-2000s. At the time, little would know the impact this new application would have on branding, celebrity, marketing, and the creative community. Social media has since changed our communications landscape and brought forward dozens of unique new careers as its popularity grew. One of these careers is the “Influencer,” a profession that has become valuable for amplifying a brand’s message.
What is an Influencer?
The Influencer Marketing Hub defines an influencer as:
the power to affect the purchasing decisions of others because of his or her authority, knowledge, position, or relationship with his or her audience.
a following in a distinct niche, with whom he or she actively engages. The size of the following depends on the size of his/her topic of the niche.
With billions of people logging onto social media each day combined with the boom of online shopping, the influencer profession has become very popular with branches of different types of influencers serving different roles and niches. With such a large number of influencers, how can you choose one that’s right for you?
The Rise of the Influencer
Social media ushered in a new age of digital communication in the mid-2000s. At the time, little would know the impact this new application would have on branding, celebrity, marketing, and the creative community. Social media has since changed our communications landscape and brought forward dozens of unique new careers as its popularity grew. One of these careers is the “Influencer,” a profession that has become valuable for amplifying a brand’s message.
Define your Brand and Target Audience
A rather obvious first step is to define your brand and your target audience clearly. While this may seem straightforward, it’s an important first step in narrowing down your search for the right influencer. Take for instance Coca-Cola. Virtually everyone in the world knows this brand because almost all of us have been exposed to its marketing. You could argue that Coca-Cola has a brand with the largest ever reach because they want pretty much everyone to drink their product. On the opposite end of the spectrum, take Sled Island, a niche music and arts festival in Calgary that started in 2007. While Sled Island is quickly becoming a Calgary staple, many in the city are still learning of the festival’s presence.
So how are these very different brands defined? Who do they appeal to? Coca-Cola’s reach is global with an incredibly broad appeal. One of their goals is “Refreshing the World and Making a Difference.” Sled Island’s reach conversely is local with a more niche appeal and a goal of bringing together a community of music, comedy, and film. Now, does this mean that Coca-Cola should work with influencers with a global reach and Sled Island should work with influencers with a local/niche reach? Not necessarily. The importance of defining your brand and your audience is so that you can better understand the feeling or the tone of your message. On social media, Coca-Cola has taken a more globally-minded/environmental tone in their social posts. Sled Island is currently promoting their upcoming festival. Here, they are promoting their artists in a fun and energetic tone, creating hype around their artists.
By analyzing your brand, reach, and current messaging, you should have a general sense of the type of influencer that would be right for you. Coca-Cola could potentially benefit from an influencer centred around environmental advocacy and Sled Island could benefit from a local influencer with an energetic voice, keyed into the community culture.
Assess your Campaign and Goals
Once everything is said and done and you’ve partnered with an influencer for your campaign, it’s important to not leave communication as a one-way street. Amplify your influencer's messages where appropriate, engage with their content, and ensure that your own social channels are engaged and that your brand voice remains consistent.
Influencers can be a powerful tool to amplify your brand, but as you can see, there are many factors to take into account when choosing one. Be diligent and thorough with your research so that you can ensure the best ROI!
Make the most out of your Partnership
Once you’ve defined your brand and reach, it’s time to assess your campaign, including goals, metrics for success, and timeline. Here, it’ll be important to ask yourself how an influencer can contribute to the success of your campaign. Defining your metrics for success can further help you assess if the influencer you chose was worth the investment at the end of your campaign.
If you have your campaign and metrics for success, it’s now time to conduct a scan of influencers. Many brands discover influencers through a Google search of popular and local influencers, hashtags, and word of mouth. When creating a list of possible influencers, you should consider their reach, location, tone, engagement, output, and niche. Assess the influencer’s content quality. Does it look like they put thought and creativity into their posts? Be sure to take a look at previous brand collaborations and envision how your brand would be perceived by their followers. You should also consider what you want your influencer to do. What is the call to action? Do you want them to engage with your product or event or do you want them to just amplify/share your message? If an influencer were to share your message or engage with your event/product, would it come across as authentic? Does your brand voice align with theirs?