What Is Influencer Marketing?

If you’ve ever wondered ‘what is influencer marketing’ then this is your guide! Influencer marketing (IM) is a form of marketing in which brands collaborate with individuals who have a significant online following, known as influencers, to promote their products or services. The influencer may create sponsored content, such as a post or video featuring the brand’s product, or they may participate in a brand campaign. The goal of IM is to reach the influencer’s audience and drive sales or awareness for the brand. It’s becoming more popular as people are trusting the recommendations and reviews of people they follow on social media.

What Is Influencer Marketing And How Does It Work?

It’s a type of marketing in which brands work with individuals, known as influencers, who have a large online following to promote their products or services. Influencers use their platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, or Twitter to reach a large audience with a message that aligns with the brand’s. The influencer may create sponsored content, such as a post or video featuring the brand’s product, or they may participate in a brand campaign.

The process of IM typically involves the following steps:

Identifying the right influencer

Brands need to find an influencer who aligns with their target audience and has a following that is relevant to the brand’s products or services.

Negotiating a partnership

Once the right influencer is identified, the brand and influencer need to negotiate the terms of their partnership. This could include the compensation and goals of the campaign.

Creating content

The influencer will create content that aligns with the brand’s message and goals. This could be a sponsored post, video, or other types of content.

Promotion

The influencer will then promote the content to their audience through their social media channels.

Measuring the results

The brand and influencer will measure the results of the campaign, such as engagement, reach, and conversions.

Influencer marketing is a hybrid of old and new marketing tools, and it’s becoming more popular as consumers are trusting more in the recommendations and reviews of people they follow on social media.

It combines the traditional concept of celebrity endorsement with modern-day content-driven marketing campaigns. Unlike traditional celebrity endorsements, IM focuses on individuals who have built a significant online following in a specific niche. These influencers have the ability to impact the purchasing decisions of their followers through their authority, knowledge, position, or relationship with their audience.

Also, it’s important to note that IM is not limited to celebrities and that most influencers have built their following through consistent engagement with their audience.

Influencer marketing isn’t just catered to promoting products to consumers. You can use IM to promote products to other businesses. This type of marketing is called B2B influencer marketing.

What Is B2B Influencer Marketing?

B2B (business-to-business) influencer marketing is a type of IM that focuses on promoting products or services to other businesses, rather than to consumers. This can include promoting software, technology, or other business services.

The process of B2B IM is similar to traditional IM, but it may involve different types of influencers and channels. For example, B2B influencers may be industry experts or thought leaders, rather than celebrities or social media personalities. They may have a following on professional networking sites such as LinkedIn, rather than on consumer-focused platforms like Instagram.

B2B influencer marketing can be beneficial for businesses because it allows them to reach a specific and highly targeted audience. Industry experts and thought leaders have a level of credibility and authority that can lend credibility to the brand and its products or services. Additionally, B2B influencer marketing can help to establish a brand as a leader in its industry, by positioning it alongside respected experts.

B2B influencer marketing campaigns can include a variety of tactics such as webinars, blog post, white papers, case studies, text message marketing, and more. The influencer can also be a speaker at a conference or an expert on a podcast.

What Are The Benefits of Influencer Marketing?

IM can provide a number of valuable benefits for brands, including:

Increased reach and engagement

Influencers have a large and engaged following, which can help to increase a brand’s reach and engagement on social media. This can lead to more brand awareness and potential sales.

Targeted audience

By working with influencers in a specific niche, brands can reach a highly targeted audience that is more likely to be interested in their products or services.

Credibility and trust

Influencers have built a relationship of trust with their followers, and their endorsement of a brand can lend credibility and trust to the brand in the eyes of their followers.

Cost-effective

Compared to traditional forms of advertising, influencer marketing can be a cost-effective way to reach a large audience and drive sales.

Better ROI

By choosing the right influencer who aligns with the brand, it’s more likely to get a better return on investment as the influencer’s audience is more likely to convert into customers.

Creativity

Influencer marketing allows brands to be more creative in the way they promote their products or services, as influencers can come up with unique and engaging content that aligns with their own style and interests.

Long-term relationships

Influencer marketing can lead to long-term relationships with influencers, which can help to maintain a consistent presence on social media and develop a stronger brand identity over time.

Influencer marketing can provide social proof to potential customers, as influencers’ followers trust their recommendations.

Authentic content

Influencer marketing allows brands to showcase their products in a more authentic and relatable way, as influencers are seen as real people rather than just a brand.

A better understanding of the audience

By working with influencers, brands can better understand the audience, their behavior, and their needs, which can help to create a sustainable and effective strategy.

Influencer Marketing Statistics

Aside from the aforementioned benefits, you need to know how effective influencer marketing is. Therefore, here are some statistics that highlight the effectiveness:

92% of consumers trust recommendations from individuals over brands. (Nielsen)
Influencer marketing campaigns have an average ROI of $6.50 for every $1 spent. (Tomoson)
70% of teenagers trust influencers more than traditional celebrities. (Business Insider)
The influencer marketing industry is projected to be worth $15 billion by 2022. (Business Insider)
Instagram is the most popular platform for influencer marketing, with 71% of marketers using it for campaigns. (Hootsuite)
Influencer marketing is considered the fastest-growing online customer acquisition method, growing at a rate of more than 16% per year. (Forbes)
59% of consumers have purchased a product they saw an influencer use on social media. (Mediakix)
Brands that partner with micro-influencers (those with a following of between 1,000 and 100,000) see a higher ROI than those who partner with macro-influencers (those with a following of over 100,000). (Linqia)
61% of consumers say they have been influenced to make a purchase by an influencer’s post. (Klear)
Influencer marketing can lead to an 11X higher ROI than traditional forms of digital marketing. (TapInfluence)

It’s important to mention that these statistics can change depending on the industry, the type of influencer, the platform, and the type of campaign. We advise you to keep track of the current trends and analyze the results of the campaigns to get a better understanding of the effectiveness of influencer marketing for a specific brand.

How To Create An Influencer Marketing Strategy?

Now that we’ve covered the benefits and effectiveness, it’s crucial that you learn how to create an influencer marketing strategy. Creating an influencer marketing strategy involves several key steps:

Define your goals

Determine what you want to achieve with your influencer marketing campaign, such as increasing brand awareness, driving sales, or building relationships.

Identify your target audience

Understand the demographics, interests, and pain points of your target audience. This will help you to identify the right influencers to reach them.

Research influencers

Look for influencers that align with your target audience and have a relevant following. Consider factors such as the size of their following, engagement rate, and the type of content they create.

Maintain the relationships

Keep in touch with the influencers, maintain the relationship and plan future collaborations.

It’s also important to keep in mind that influencer marketing is not a one-time campaign, it’s a long-term strategy.

Influencer Marketing What Is It: Conclusion

Next time you want to promote a product via influencer marketing, remember that building relationships is key. We think this is the main takeaway. So what is influencers marketing? Ultimately, it’s about trust and a reciprocal relationship. These are the foundations you need to build to have the credibility to successfully promote a brand or a product.

References

[1] What Is IM? – The Ultimate Guide for 2023” InfluencerMarketingHub, November, 2022.

[2] What Is IM: How To Develop a Strategy. “How to develop your strategy” SproutSocial, September, 2020.

[3] What Is IM: Guide. Intuit Mailchimp, 2022.

[4] What Is IM: Definition. A Definition and Guide to Successful Influencer Collaborations” Neal Schaffer, December, 2022.

[5] IM Guide: Working With Influencers. “Influencer Marketing Guide: How to Work With Influencers” Hootsuite, September, 2022.

What Is Influencer Marketing?