6 Steps For A Successful Influencer Marketing Strategy

Don’t underestimate the power of social media influencers! With their ability to generate leads, drive meaningful conversations, effectively engage new target audiences on your behalf, and establish a new level of trust between the customer and your brand, it's not hard to understand why countless business owners are jumping at the chance to work with a reputable social media presence.

Whether you’re working with micro influencers or the top social media influencers in your industry, here’s 6 steps to get the ball rolling with your influencer marketing strategy.

Outline Your Objectives

Before getting started with your influencer marketing strategy, take the time to establish the objectives of your campaign. Why are you running this campaign? What do you want to achieve? Do you want to increase your website traffic or grow your sales?

Regardless of whether you’re planning a product review, giveaway, competition, a sponsored post, or anything in between, having a clear idea of you’re end goal will add a sense of clarity to the entire process.

Once you have a firm grasp of what you’re setting out to achieve with influencer marketing, choosing the right influencer will be much easier.

Begin Searching For Potential Influencers

There are a variety of factors to consider when it comes to choosing the right figure for influencer marketing. The process can initially seem slightly daunting, although by breaking down these elements into bite-size pieces, you’ll be taking a lot of the pressure off.

So, what’s the first factor you should consider while searching for influencers? Relevance. Does their content align well with your brand’s message? Is your brand’s personality compatible with the influencer of interest?

Take a moment to look over their older blog entries and social media posts to gain a better understanding of their personal brand.

Evaluate Engagement And Authenticity

A handful of loyal followers is much more valuable than thousands that ignore you; before you commit to a social media influencer, be sure to take a moment and evaluate their engagement.

A profile's engagement displays how many users interact with the content. How many people are commenting and sharing the influencer's posts? Are the comments genuine or generic? Choose your influencer based on engagement as opposed to the number of followers they have.

Finally, assess how genuine the influencer’s content really is. Are they offering their followers straightforward product reviews, or are they delivering authentic, personal stories while promoting a brand or service? Viewers or readers can connect with personalised, authentic content on a deeper level compared to a standard product review, ultimately increasing the likelihood of the consumer commenting or sharing.

Just by connecting with genuine influencers, your brand can contribute to an authentic, larger conversation within the industry.

Reach Out With An Offer

Now that you’ve got your eyes on a potential social media influencer, it’s time to reach out with a proposal. Although, before doing this, take some time to layer the groundwork and establish a connection. Follow their page and engage with their content. Having a prior connection will overall increase the likelihood of collaboration.

Now, it’s time to make your initial contact. Personalise your approach by mentioning why you like their content. Let them know you’d be eager to collaborate, explain why this partnership would be mutually beneficial, and highlight what they have to gain (whether it’s a free product, a complimentary trial of your service, or payment for their time).

There are a few different ways to connect with influencers - whether it’s directly through social media or via an online influencer marketplace. Experiment with a few methods and find one that suits your schedule best.

Collaborate On The Project

When the time comes to begin working on the influencer marketing campaign, make sure you’re closely collaborating with the influencer as opposed to controlling the end product.

An influencer has a much better idea regarding the type of content that resonates with their audience. If you’re being inflexible with your vision and not taking any of their tips on board, then you’ll be wasting your own time and resources.

Be sure to listen closely to their ideas and to actively incorporate them into the final product.

Monitor The Campaign’s Progress

Although the collaboration phase of the influencer marketing strategy is finished and the campaign is in full swing, your work isn’t done yet.

Dedicate some time towards monitoring the campaign’s engagement to overall determine if the process was a success.

Did you achieve your end-goal? If not, it’s time to head back to the drawing board and make some changes for next time. Otherwise, if the campaign proves to be successful, you’ve found an influencer marketing process that works for your brand.

In Summary

We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again - never underestimate the power of social media influencers!

Influencer marketing is a worthy tool that more and more business owners are adopting for their own brands. With the ability to engage new audiences, drive sincere conversations, and create genuine leads, it’s no wonder social media influencers are becoming an asset that every brand want in their back pocket.

Although it’s not as simple as randomly selecting someone with an enormous pool of followers and asking them for a shout out. Instead, put in the time and plan a genuine influencer marketing campaign.

Reach out to an influencer in your niche with good engagement. From here, orchestrate an arrangement, begin collaborating, roll out the campaign, and monitor its success.