
As the world continues on into this pandemic, so does your brand. It’s tough to maximise your marketing dollars when budgets are minimized and results can make or break. That’s why it’s important now more than ever to get the most out of your digital marketing budget by using smarter techniques, rather than spreading yourself thin.
You need to know your campaign objective.
Influencer marketing has taken a turn in the recent crisis. Now more than ever, influencer marketing is proving to be a reliable way for brands to authentically reach dedicated consumers. Their niche market, promise of brand recognition and other perks make working with influencers feel like a gold mine to brands; but how does a brand know what kind of influencer to work with?
Sometimes having more followers can be to the detriment of the campaign objectives.
The secret is knowing your campaign objective. A macro influencer can be great for a brand awareness campaign, while a nano influencer is perfect for driving conversion and user generated content. More isn’t always better and as you’ll see. Sometimes having more followers can be to the detriment of the campaign objectives. For a brand the message is clear; know what you want from your influencer.
The categories of influencers
The first thing to know about getting started with influencer marketing is that influencers fall into four main categories, and each type of influencer will garner different results. It’s important to see which type of influencer will be best for your brand and its campaign objective.
The Mega Influencer
The celebrity figure with all eyes on them.
A mega influencer is like a celebrity in their own right. Their social platform grosses about 1M followers and has the most reach of all the influencers. They can be an existing celebrity, or they have built their celebrity status from producing content.
Ideal campaign
Due to their large audience, the mega influencer’s ideal campaign is anything that brings general brand awareness. The larger an audience is, typically the lower the overall engagement is due to the algorithms of many social media platforms. Therefore the main purpose of using this influencer shouldn’t be traceable conversions into sales but rather, positive brand awareness and brand image. This influencer can get your brand notoriety and a cult following.
Consider that…
Keep in mind that working with mega influencers means it can be expensive for the brand. It’s also worth noting that there is a lot of diversity within an audience that grosses 1M followers. It might not suit your brand to work with a mega influencer if you want a more targeted approach.
Book a mega influencer for:
Brand awareness.
The Macro Influencer
The beacon that can spread your brand message.
A macro influencer has an audience of 50K – 1M and are well known within their niches. In every niche on social media, whether it’s fitness, beauty, sustainability or photography, there are a handful of macro influencers who sit at the top. They’re the ones everyone turns to for inspiration and cues on what’s happening within the community.
Ideal campaign
Their audience is large, but not overwhelming. The macro influencer does best when the campaign objective is broad brand awareness or user generated content. The great thing about a macro influencer is that they have really mastered their online presence, niche and digital skills. Meaning that they can give you high quality content that will have extensive reach within the niche community. For example, one post from a macro influencer with your product in it will circulate around their community like wildfire, appearing in most of their community accounts and may even result in smaller brand influencers purchasing your product simply to talk about it.
Consider that…
The larger a following is, the less engagement they have. While their community looks to them for advice and guidance, the algorithm on social media platforms means larger accounts receive less engagement than smaller accounts. Due to their large following, they are more expensive to work with.
Book a macro influencer for:
User generated content and brand awareness.
Want to learn more about influencer marketing?
The Micro Influencer
The credible figure that engages.
A micro influencer has an audience of 10K – 50K and has their own cult following. They’ve cultivated their niche and post content that hits the mark with their audience, while also appearing more down-to-earth and relatable.
Ideal campaign
The engagement that a micro influencer gets is undoubtedly higher. They receive 85% more engagement than larger accounts due to the way many social algorithms operate. This means their audience is seeing their content more often, and also highly engaged with the content. Micro influencers are also more affordable and can also receive product compensation in lieu of traditional payment. Their communities are also very invested in the influencer, so any product they promote is almost guaranteed to result in a return of some kind.
Consider that…
The majority of influencers fall into this category, so it can make it difficult to discern which influencers will get your brand the best results. A lot of research is needed to ensure the trustworthiness of the influencer and whether they will communicate your brand message effectively. For this reason, they can be more labor intensive and take more time to cultivate a relationship with.
Book a micro influencer for:
Engagement, conversion and user generated content.
The Nano Influencer
The ultra-niche figure with a local community.
A nano influencer has less than 10K followers and are influencers with advocacy! They’re usually already fans of your brand and have their own niche, highly engaged community. This means they’re even closer to their following and can help your brand reap a large reward.
Ideal campaign
Nano influencers have the highest engagement in the influencer community because of their small audience size. 84% of customers say they trust recommendations from peers over ads, so this is a great way to tap into a dedicated community that will help your brand reap more loyal followers and convert into sales. Since nano influencers are so cost effective too, they work best for campaigns where the objective is user generated content, sales conversions and engagement.
Consider that…
Evaluating the trustworthiness of nano influencers can be tricky. Many of them rarely work with brands or may be unsure how best to communicate the brand message while remaining authentic to their community. It’s advisable to work with nano influencers when you’re sure about why you’re enlisting one in the first place. Be very specific in your campaign goals otherwise the ROI won’t be as much as you think.
Book a micro influencer for:
Conversions, engagement and user generated content.
Each type of influencer can generate certain types of return for your brand’s next campaign. It all depends on your campaign goals, the type of product you want to sell, and the niche that your brand fits into. If you’ve done your research then you’ll see just how well influencer marketing works. It pays to do your research and as a result, can be bewildering for brands to undertake this journey alone.
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