It is difficult for brands to get attention over the internet. This is because every business has opted for the online world of self-promotion. This has made consumers very selective about the brands that go along with self-promotion. The demand for new and innovative digital marketing strategies has taken a rise. The hunt for an alternative approach is giving pressure on the brands to appreciate the influencers. Influencer marketing is becoming a priority of many digital marketers and business owners. Every brand is investing time and resources for successful influencer marketing.
Let us first know more about influencers and influencer marketing:
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WHO IS AN INFLUENCER?
An influencer is an individual who has a certain number of followings. Influencers actively engage with a good number of audiences on social platforms. An influencer is looked at as a friend by followers. In terms of marketing, brands collaborate with influencers to provide mutually beneficial experiences for their followers or audiences. An influencer’s right kind of audience can help a company in many ways.
There is always a strong relationship between them and their followers, which makes them a trustworthy “friend” that the audience would listen to. Hence, if they recommend a product, their followers surely give it a try.
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WHAT IS INFLUENCER MARKETING?
The term influencer marketing is a process of finding individuals that influence a targeted audience on a specific social media platform. Rather than marketing directly to a large group of consumers, brands pay influencers to promote their product or service. This is the best way for brands to build relationships with a good number of audiences and also with their existing consumers.
There are two subcategories of influencer marketing.
- Earned influencer
- Paid influencer
Earned influencers are the unpaid influencer. In unpaid collaborations, the brand gives their products or services to the influencers, the influencer then tries to advertise the product on their social media accounts using different creative means. This is what most companies do, because of their social media budgets or to make sure that the promotion does not clearly look like an advertisement. When influencers posts content for the audience, it appears more genuine. And with paid influencer marketing, the influencer gets paid to promote specific content on their social media handles. Under a paid sponsorship, influencers follow proper rules and guidelines to promote the brand. Here, the brand tells the influencers what to post.
Now, let’s talk about why is it important for your brand to do influencer marketing.
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IMPORTANCE OF INFLUENCER MARKETING
There are many reasons why influencer marketing needs to be included in your marketing plan and budget. Reasons that make influencer marketing essential are:
1. Precise Targeting
Each plan of marketing starts from identifying the target audience. It may be a difficult task but it needs to be done. To get a hold of your audience you can choose the influencers to help you advertise your product because the influencers already have a hold on the audience. To get a proper result of influencer marketing you have to decide which niche of influencers would be relevant to promote your products or services.
2. Enhanced Brand Awareness
Influencers have the potential to expand your brand exposure and can boost the brand’s awareness because of their reach. When an influencer supports your brand their followers are likely to pay attention to your brand. The ideas of an influencer are sometimes taken as more genuine. Working with well-known influencers allows you to attract the attention of their followers. It will help you to raise your brand’s exposure and brand awareness.
3. Boost in Audience Engagement
It is difficult to get a hike in the number of likes and comments of the posts on your social media accounts. Even having tons of followers can not help you achieve anything if you don’t have a decent interaction with the audience. Influencer marketing can help you in this situation. When an influencer posts about your product or service on social media, their followers engage with it. If they enjoy your products or services, they can also tag their friends or can share them on their social media accounts, extending the reach further.
4. Increased Trust and Credibility
Influencers are powerful and because of their influencing power, their followers really believe in them. This confidence can help you gain some loyal customers. When an influencer gives a genuine review about your products or services, it helps in improving the credibility and increasing the reputation of your company. Collaborating with influencers helps you to get the audience’s trust. It also helps you to raise your brand recognition and profits.
TO WRAP IT UP
Influencer Marketing is a more organic way to raise brand awareness and engage with your audience. Make sure you follow the best practices while promoting your product using influencer marketing.
