It is almost impossible to think of the present-day marketing world without considering influencers. A survey conducted in the third quarter of the financial year ending March 2023 showed that influencers were critical to marketers’ strategies, with over 80% of them affirming the same. However, the influencer marketing environment is constantly transforming making it necessary for brands to continually adapt and be wise in their choices. 

About a decade ago the general practice of influencer marketing was mostly limited to celebrities and a few bloggers. Nowadays we can find influencers in all social networks starting from a few thousand people and ending up with millions. Nevertheless, both these forms of influencers have a large and very engaged audience, so it only makes sense that they have a direct impact on as many people as possible and empower their audiences motivating them to trust these personalities and ultimately buy a product. 

As seen above, brands must follow a systematic process in engaging with influencers to achieve great results. Here, we have useful tips for creating your influencer marketing plan, the mistakes to avoid, and how to find the right influencer for your company. 

What is Influencer Marketing? 

Influencer marketing is the use of key opinion leaders targeting a specific audience in a particular niche they interact with frequently. These influencers help in marketing making products and services hence acting like a spokesperson to their audiences. 

This is the basis of influencer marketing since influencers have built their reputation with their followers. Word of mouth from an influencer is one of the persuasive methods that can greatly influence the value perception of the brand from the side of the potential customer. 

Types of Influencers

Here it becomes very important as to which kind of influence you are connecting with or partnering with in your campaign. Influencers can be categorized into four types based on their follower count: As the normative world could be subdivided into large, bigger, bigger, and largest, similarly social world can be segmented into mega, macro, micro, and nano influencers. 

Mega Influencers: They are usually influential people such as actors, and political or sports personalities with over one million followers. This medium can cover large audiences within a short span which makes it suitable if the campaign aims to create brand awareness among diverse people. However, their services are expensive, and their engagement levels may not be as vibrant as those of the niche influencers.  

• Suitable for: Multinationals, branded products or service Industries, and organizations that have huge amounts of money to spend to enjoy maximum visibility.  

• Macro Influencers: Unlike micro influencers who have between 1,000 to 100,000 followers macro influencers have over 100,000 and up to 1,000,000 followers and are commonly known personalities in their fields. They are more specific in their follower base as compared to the mega influencers, thus ideal for brands that wish to gain massive attention without necessarily associating with celebrities.  

• Ideal for: Most importantly student startups, nonprofit organizations, and businesses that seek a niche, yet a large market.  

• Micro-Influencers: There are many types of influencers where the micro-influencers have between 10,000 and 100,000 followers. It is used for the target audience groups as they are famous for their high involvement rates. While it is the case that micro-influencers are cheaper, they tend to deliver higher levels of engagement and can be very influential in encouraging people to make a purchase.  

• Perfect for: Youth brands that target individuals, groups, and enthusiasts with specific niche interests across social media primarily in Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube.  

• Nano Influencers: Nano influencers are characterized by having between 1000 to 10,000 followers and having a good and intimate interaction with their audiences. It is especially suitable for those brands, interested in reaching a particular community for a small amount of money, as such services offer tailored and rather immersive content. 
   
• Best for: Small business retail stores, fresh and new products, and specialty items.  

Why Invest in Influencer Marketing? 

The total advertisement industry that is making up the influence marketing is likely to reach $ 24 billion in 2024 which is enough proof that the market has a lot to offer. Brands are turning to influencers for a variety of reasons: Brands are turning to influencers for a variety of reasons: 

• Increased Brand Awareness: They create awareness of your brand in other people and gain exposure, which is vital today. 
• Precise Audience Targeting: Again, IT firms get to connect with the right influencers with audiences that are within your target market to increase the likelihood of the message getting to the right people. 
• Higher Conversions: By giving social proof, it becomes easy for influencers to sale shift those consumers that are still on the fence about the purchase. 
• Authenticity and Trust: Stories that people share with their followers are very touching, and this makes the followers trust the influencers. 

How To Create The Perfect Influencer Marketing Plan In 5 Steps 

To have a perfect influencer marketing strategy it requires serious planning and implementation. Here’s a step-by-step approach: 

• Identify Suitable Influencers: Find content creators with a similar view as your brand and your target market. These factors include engagement rate, authenticity, and partnership history. 
• Set a Budget and Management Plan: Explain how many pounds/miles/euros/etc you’ll spend and how much will be allocated to collaborations with influencers. Lease, and incorporate influencer marketing software to help in the selection and management of the influencers. 
• Define Campaign Goals and Messaging: Define your goals even if they are broad such as increasing the campaign popularity increasing sales, or simply letting your audience know more about your brand’s values. Find a language that speaks to both, the influencer’s followers and your brand/s. 
• Outreach and Onboarding: Contact the influencers with a well-articulated plan of the campaign which also includes details about the company. In the case of working with the influencer directly, it will be possible to reach him or her personally while engaging an agency, it will be possible to work with the agency that represents the influencer. 
• Review and Adjust: The performance of some of the campaigns should be checked regularly. Engagement rate, the number of people the information reached and the number of people that made a purchase or filled in a form can then be used to determine the success of the campaign and changes that may need to be made for future campaigns. 

Some of the common errors that we need to Avert When Conducting Influencer Marketing Lessons 

While influencer marketing can be highly effective, there are common pitfalls to watch out for:  

• Lack of Clear Goals: One of the biggest mistakes that you can make is run your campaign without clear aims and objectives. Introduce clear goals that will help to track the effectiveness of the chosen strategy. 
• Focusing Solely on Follower Count: It is very important to note that the number of the following does not necessarily translate to high levels of engagement. It’s better to focus on accounts that have a more active audience even if the number of followers is not as high as of other big celebrities. 
• Inadequate Research: It is recommended that one should take his or her time and conduct research on influencers properly. Make sure that their audience and publication fit into whatever demographic and content delivery you are seeking. 
• Restrictive Briefs: Of course, certain rules are to be followed; however, do not excessively control the creative actions. Provide influencers the liberty to post a message that would be genuine and would attract the community they have. 

Conclusion 

As mentioned above, this type of marketing is still quite fresh and ever developing. Thus, choosing the right influencers, defining the goal, and keeping away from pitfalls will help you deliver effective campaigns that will help your brand grow. 

To learn more about the operational aspects of influencer marketing, please read more about it in one of our other articles or download our free guide to effective social media campaigns.