Influencers are individuals who have significant followings on social media. Influencer marketing is a strategic way to reach new audiences and grow your brand’s social presence. This tactic is ideal for organic growth strategies, content creation, and authenticity. Consider these facts from Forbes –

• “74% of consumers turn to social networks for guidance on purchase decisions”
• “Influencer marketing content delivers 11x higher ROI than traditional forms of digital marketing”
• “49% of consumers state they rely on recommendations from influencers when making purchasing decisions”
• “Only 9 percent of buyers trust [brand] content”

Influencers Are:

Influential
Influencers are able to drive friends, family, and followers to take the desired action. People are more likely to listen and engage because they trust the influencer and find them to be authentic.

Trusted
Their opinions evoke high degrees of credibility and confidence from friends and followers. People don’t trust brands, they trust people. Consumer’s don’t want to hear what you have to say about your brand and products. They want to know what friends, family, and influencers have to say.

Brand Relevant
With so many influencers, it’s easier to find individuals with values, messaging, and content that aligns with your brand’s mission.

Affordable
They are a cost-effective way to reach new audiences. The average cost per engagement is much lower than traditional media.

Loyal
They often have existing brand relationships based on purchase history and positive brand affinity. When their values are aligned with your brand, it’s easy for them to continue to promote your products after the partnership has concluded resulting in unpaid opportunities.

Advocates
Influencer will not only recommend or publicly support brand and products, but they often become ambassadors for the brand. When negative comments crop up on social media, they can step in to act as advocates and ambassadors to speak on the brand’s behalf.

Creative
Working with influencers to create photography, recipes, how-tos, product intros, and Instagram Stories takeovers is a great way to develop brand-centric content. These assets can then be used on social media, your website, digital ads, email, landing pages, etc. It’s important to establish ownership of creative assets during the partnership agreement process. If it’s not spelled out in the terms of the agreement, you will have no rights to reuse or promote the content the influencer creates. It’s always beneficial to tag the influencer when reusing their content – even if you own it. This provides added value for both the brand and influencer.

There are tremendous opportunities when it comes influencer marketing and brands need to evaluate how to incorporate this tactic into their marketing strategy. Here are two types of sponsorships we can help with in developing your influencer program.

Paid
Sponsorships costs depend on the influencer level, management fees, partnerships stipulations, and engagement rates. Additional costs may include product cost, shipping, and any promotional offers.

Product
Influencer agrees to promote the product in exchange for product. Cost may include management, shipping, product cost, shipping and any promotional offers.

Let us know if you would like to see examples or discuss strategies: info@thezimmermangroup.com