So you recognized that in order for your brand to become successful and well known, thus generating conversation, engagement and profit, you might need to work with a social influencer, now what?
Using social influencers can be a powerful way to market your brand to consumers, however, like any marketing strategy you walk a fine line between producing quality content and saturating the market with essentially social media garbage.
The first mistake that any brand (or influencer) can make is assuming that the relationship is strictly a one-way street. The influencer should choose the brand or product just as much as we as marketers try and choose a specific influencer that aligns with us.
According to TapInfluence, after a recent survey conducted among 5,000 content creators and social media influencers these are the top five concerns that influencers have when determining whether to partner with a brand.
- Poor Organization
This one seems self explanatory however the truth remains behind any campaign that communication is key. It is not unlikely that brands will choose to work with multiple influencers at the same time marketing the same product. Marketers must have their strategies clearly outlined for each influencer, explaining exactly what is expected from both parties, when it is expected to happen and what platform will be used. Most influencers want to create successful post that increases both their interaction and interaction with the brand. It is up to both parties to ensure that the goals and objectives of each campaign and each post are outlined from the beginning to help ensure that success.
2. Product Fit
One of the top reasons that brands work with influencers to to get their new or existing products in the hands of new customers. As influence marketing is rapidly increasing, influencers find themselves over saturated withbrands wanting to work with them and must often make choices based on what they see best fits with their personal brand. If an influencer were to turn down your product, however, this isn’t time to turn your back on that relationship meaning more than likely there will be a better chance for you to work with that influencer on another product that better aligns further down the line.
Erika Sevigny from AllThingseBlog said is best stating, “Don’t pitch me if I’ve never written about anything even close to being in your product’s category.”
3. Compensation
No one is going to do anything for free, period. Although social influencers have become a powerful part of the paid media economy, the gap between what brands can offer them and the amount they believe they are worth continues to widen. Social influencers can earn anywhere from $50 to thousands of dollars based on how many followers and the engagement they have. Brands can avoid the awkward “money talk” by researching what similar brands offered for their campaigns and financially modeling off them.
4. Amount of Work
The top reason for negative business between influencers and marketers is poorly planned programs. Influencers often feel as if what is expected of them is unfair meaning unclear deadlines, extra requests outside the contract and unresponsive brand representatives as reasons campaigns required more attention than expected. As mentioned above, keep organized and outline everything that you need done early and clearly.
5. Audience Feedback
Despite careful planning and organization behind a campaign, sometimes a campaign doesn’t quiet reach the audience and ultimately fails, leaving both the brand and the influencer in the wake of its dust. The best way for brands to avoid a failed campaign is to listen and know their influencer and what exactly their personal branded voice is.
Alexandra Azara from NoshOn. It speaks from an influencer perspective saying, “Let influencers promote your brand in the way that works best for them and their audience rather than trying to enforce specific statements (in a blog post, for example). I think sponsored content is most successful when it doesn’t come across as sounding sponsored.”
What does this all mean?
At the end of the day a social media influencer is an individual whose career is their personal image. They do not have to partner with you as a brand so if you want to work with them, sometimes putting yourself in their shoes really is the best option.
LUC Marketing 399 