Influencer Marketing 101: Collaborating for Success

The world of social media looks very different today than it did just a few years ago but what does this have to do with marketing? Well, everything. 

Social media has given way to a whole new meaning of the word celebrity and that means a whole new world for brand partnerships and endorsements. We’re talking about the all-powerful influencer. 

Influencer marketing is just the celebrity endorsement of today. Remember the Jamie Lee Curtis Activia commercials or the Jennifer Anniston Aveno ads? Influencer marketing is just like that but is in the modern-day content creation world of social media. It is a marketing campaign built on the collaboration and relationship between brands and influencers.

Importance of influencer marketing for small businesses

A big difference between celebrity endorsements and influencer marketing though is that while a small business may not have the ability to access an A-list actor, influencers can be anyone. Influencers can be your neighbor, your nurse, your barista-really anyone. However, these folks have a very special asset. A massive following on social media. So, as influencers can exist anywhere, within any industry, there are likely influencers out there who are already interested in what you are selling, have a dedicated audience interested in the same thing, and are approachable and likely willing to partner with you.

By partnering with an influencer, you gain key assets that can be difficult to acquire on your own. Influencer marketing can give your business:

Targeted Reach: As we mentioned earlier, influencers already have a niche audience that is attracted to the content/interests that they are creating. If the influencer you partner with is already creating content aligned with your business, the audience they reach will be far more likely to be interested in your business than the general population.

Content Creation: We have talked about the importance of content creation in other posts but it is worth reiterating that consistent high-quality content creation is key to improving brand awareness. Influencers are masters at content creation and can be a huge asset to creating engaging content for your brand.

Improved SEO: When influencers mention your brand, post links, post reviews, etc., they are inherently boosting your brand’s visibility and online presence therefore improving your SEO.

Authenticity and Trust: The way that these influencers have amassed such a large audience is by building relationships with their followers based on trust and credibility. Therefore, when they decide to endorse your business, their audience already is more likely to trust that your product or service is of high quality and are more likely to want to engage with your brand.

Nerd Alert!

Let's take a moment to talk more about the authenticity and trust aspect a bit more. A fun fact about me (the author of this post) is that before my Space Bison days, I spent nearly 10 years of my life studying psychology. So, allow me to nerd out a bit with you. There is a phenomenon in psychology termed the Halo Effect and it plays a huge role in partnerships like influencer marketing. The Halo Effect is a cognitive bias that causes people to make positive assumptions about something based on one positive attribute. In the context of influencer marketing, the Halo Effect means that if someone loves the influencer that endorses your brand, they will transfer the positive attributes of that influencer to your brand. However (and this is a big however) it can also work in the opposite direction. This means that if the influencer you partner with all of a sudden has a fall from grace, the negative attributions the audience has made about that influencer will transfer to you and your brand. Now, this doesn’t happen all that often so it shouldn’t scare you away from influencer marketing relationships but you should proceed with caution and be very specific about the influencers you choose to work with.

Price Tag

You may be wondering at this point what a magical partnership like this costs. Unfortunately, there is no one answer. The influencer industry is still quite new so there aren’t really any set standard prices for what these partnerships cost. However, many marketers have gone with about $250-$450 per 10k followers. This can vary though based on their typical engagement, the content type they will be creating (videos vs static posts, etc.), how long the partnership will last, and usage rights. 

This may still be a steep price, especially for small businesses. If so, don’t count yourself out. There are some ways that you can make influencer marketing more cost-effective.

Focus more on influencers with higher engagement vs a larger audience - Having a lot of followers is great and that is what most prices are based on; however, engagement means more practically than the amount of followers you reach. If the influencer has typically low engagement even with a large audience, your brand partnership is not going to be as impactful.

Think of ways you can offer value to the influencer beyond price - For example, if you offer a product that you think the influencer would be interested in, you could offer them free products in exchange for their endorsement

Maintain an ongoing, two-way relationship with the influencer - You can offer things to the influencer that their audience may enjoy which would increase their following. This could include things like coupon codes, free shipping, priority service, etc. 

Like most things in marketing, starting an influencer marketing campaign starts with just simply putting yourself out there. Don’t be afraid, do your research, and reach out! 

As always, if you would like help with starting your influencer marketing campaign, Space Bison is here for you!

Happy marketing!