Influencers & Content Marketing
Hello creatives!
Today, we’re talking about influencers & content marketing. These concepts have taken the world by storm in recent years and it’s a legitimate career aspiration for many. To become an influencer is somewhat vague. Why? Well let’s break it down.
What is an influencer?
Looking up the dictionary definition for what an influencer is, it seems rather broad.
influencer
/ˈinflo͝oənsər/
noun
a person or thing that influences another.
"he was a champion of the arts and a huge influencer of taste"
MARKETING
a person with the ability to influence potential buyers of a product or service by promoting or recommending the items on social media.
"influencers can add serious credibility to your brand"
From this vary basic definition, one could argue that everyone is an influencer because you could put up a review of a product online and that could influence someone’s purchasing decision somewhere, maybe? But to be given influencer status, there are industry guidelines –although, these are loose and vary depending on which marketing communications professional you ask.
A general rule of thumb is that influencers have a niche following and have a large amount of followers for that niche. So, if you are a mainstream makeup brand and you are looking for an influencer to partner with, a large influencer could easily have a million followers. Meanwhile, if your niche is organic cotton infant diapers, then any influencer in that niche who could be considered “big” may only need a few thousand to be considered a solid influencer to partner with.
In short, being an influencer is relative to the industry, topic, etc that the influencer creates content around. Which is another key aspect of influencer marketing: do they make content that is compatible with your content marketing strategy?
What is content marketing?
Again, the generic definition doesn’t account for the nuances within the actual application of content marketing.
con·tent mar·ket·ing
noun
a type of marketing that involves the creation and sharing of online material (such as videos, blogs, and social media posts) that does not explicitly promote a brand but is intended to stimulate interest in its products or services.
"social media is an integral part of content marketing"
Content marketing is an art form. It’s subtly hinting at the brand or product while also trying to be genuinely helpful for any potential customer. Yes, blogs are involved in this. Plenty of brands have blogs that speak to their audiences, but chances are, people aren’t going to necessarily trust the clearly biased blog posts or vlogs or whatever other content that a brand may have in their organic social media strategy.
This is where influencers are vital for brands to reach new clients who might not have otherwise heard about them or maybe have been on the fence about the brand’s product or services. Many influencers will only sign contracts for branded content if it aligns with their values or they actually use it in their day-to-day lives, making influencers a trusted source of information for many, even if they have to reveal they are getting paid to say good things about a brand.
How branded content works
A brand researches their customers and discovers that many of them gravitate toward a certain set of influencers on a certain social media network. Alternatively, the brand may realize that certain influencers are trusted sources of information for people living the lifestyle commonly found within their ideal customer.
Then, the brand reaches out with an offer to collaborate. If the influencer is established, they may have branded content packages. Sometimes the brand has distinct expectations for what the branded content will be. Tread carefully if you find yourself being recruited by a brand that is very stiff with branded content. Taking on this type of work may hurt the relationship you’ve built with your followers who are used to a certain feel, aesthetic, etc of the content you create.
Influencers may get paid in a handful of ways:
per post or video
per 1,000 impressions
per 1,000 engagements
per conversion
These varying types of payments should be carefully considered. Know the stats on your social media profiles, blog, YouTube channel or email newsletter before setting the price on anything to ensure you get paid adequately for the work because it takes a lot of time to create content and if the pay out isn’t worth the time, then don’t do it.
Stats/Trends
According to some numbers by SproutSocial, influencer marketing has the following stats:
11 times higher ROI than other types of digital advertising
brands earn about $2 for every $1 spent on influencer marketing
the average cost per post is
A Business Insider post shared some highlights on influencer marketing that were rather eye-popping:
influencer marketing will be a $15 billions industry by 2022
nearly 4 in five brands have partnered with influencers on Instagram in 2019
It’s clear that influencer marketing is here to stay. If you are aspiring to be an influencer or are one and have experience with branded content, share your goals and stories in the comments below!
Until Next Time,
Rochele