Tapping Into Social's Sphere of Influence
Nicholson notes that some influencers are trying to support themselves through content creation and will want financial compensation; for others, being the first to try new products, services, and experiences for free might be enough of an incentive.
In either case, it is essential for the company to address the transparency of the relationship. This includes discussing how influencers will label sponsored posts and disclose the nature of their work with the company. “Influencers need to be authentic, and brands need to be honest, too. Otherwise consumers will lose trust,” Nicholson says.
Once these details have been worked out, marketers can focus on how they want to harness the influencer’s reach. According to Nicholson, the best way is to “think like an influencer yourself.”
“It’s not your products, your services, or your message that is most important to consumers. [It is] how can you tap into the challenges or things they care about?” Nicholson says. “Influencers may represent someone their followers aspire to be like, or simply someone they like to learn from. The content you create with an influencer needs to be focused on providing the value the influencer’s audience has come to expect. This is not about just hijacking someone’s social media channel to serve your own ends as a marketer. Just like brands have always pursued earned media opportunities through PR, it’s about making yourself a part of a conversation where your audience already wants to be.”
And companies are discovering new ways to use influencer content for marketing purposes “all the time,” according to Nicholson. One example might be having an influencer speak at a company event that gets covered by traditional media outlets. In this scenario, Nicholson asserts, the influencer “can carry more weight” because she can be seen as an independent expert with no direct company ties.
Some companies have also worked directly with influencers to co-develop products and services, such as recipes based on an ingredient the company produces or video content that “inspires rather than sells.”
Experts caution that companies working with influencers should not be overly involved in content creation. According to Collective Bias’s Pavlika, the key to success in working with influencers is to “allow them to remain authentic by letting them tell their stories and engage with their followers in their own way.”
“Brands should let influencers manage their own interactions and not assign expectations simply based on reach numbers,” Pavlika says. “Influencers work independently, so a brand must trust them, keep instructions simplified, bring any legal concerns to their attention at the beginning of the process, and provide plenty of time for influencers to produce content,” she continues. “Laying the groundwork for a relationship based on trust is key to long-term success.”
Pergolino agrees. “Marketers need to understand [that] they cannot directly control the narrative of the conversation when influencers are involved. This means that they have to be OK with campaigns driving an overall result, like new business, and not [expect] specific actions, like using specific phrasing in a promotion.”
Regardless of how companies choose to work with influencers, few would dispute they have become essential to today’s marketing. “The impact of influencers should not be taken lightly in today’s marketing world,” Rao says. “I absolutely love working with influencers. They are approachable, accessible, and it is truly a collaborative experience.”
Pavlika agrees and adds that influencers have a place throughout the customer journey. “All too often companies don’t take advantage of utilizing influencers and their content in different stages of the customer journey,” she says. “Content plays a role all along the decision process, from awareness to purchase, as shoppers need content to make decisions. Marketers need to add influencer content to the mix and incorporate it into all aspects of cultivating customer relationships.”
“Influencers are a major part of marketing efforts in today’s world. A new or indie brand can gain exposure and clout quickly by working with influencers within their industry,” Kerrigan says. “In a world in which Millennials believe more in Justin Bieber’s sense of fashion than a $50,000 Macy’s advertisement, brands and companies must harness the power of major influencers to spread the word of mouth.”
Assistant Editor Sam Del Rowe can be reached at sdelrowe@infotoday.com.