When it comes to advertising, there is no company or brand that can get their products a large audience without outside support. This is especially the case in the recent years, where social media platforms and online methods have become more valuable than old fashion ways of advertising. This is where influencer marketers come in, seeing as they are people with online followers to whom they suggest various products.
An influencer marketer’s job is to introduce a given product or service to his or her followers, and do theirs at most to influence them to purchase it. This is of course done for a fee, whether it is a commission or an agreed upon payment. There are two different types of influencer marketers. The first one is macro-influencer and the second is micro-influencer marketers. Macro-influencer marketers are those with a larger number of online followers, such as celebrities. Micro-influencers however are those with lesser followers, from ten thousand up to approximately a hundred thousand.
In terms of effectiveness, there are various factors that count, but our surveys have shown that in many cases micro influences can be more effective. This is partly due to the fact that most macro influencers with millions of followers are not as directly connected with their audience. For instance, followers such as those of celebrities are funs of their profession, but are not ready to venture with them on other things. Also there is a question of return of investments, seeing as people with larger numbers of followers tend to charge a substantial sum for their services, which runs the risk of not paying off.
Overview of micro-influencer marketing
Surveys show that micro-influencers, even though they have smaller numbers of followers, tend to have more influence on them. For instance, bloggers, tend to know and understand their audience more, given that they engage with them more often. Therefore, a blogger is able to choose products that are more relevant to their audience, and put more effort in presenting the product as well as explaining it. The audience is also more likely to listen, due to the fact that they most likely already have similar interests with the blogger, but also have detailed information on the product at hand.
Micro influencers have more than fifty percentage rate of connecting with an audience than macro influencers. One thing that can not be ignored however, is that macro influencers can also be more effective in some cases. This is because they are more capable of giving a large chance of exposure and publicity to a company or brand, thereby reaching new and unexpected audiences. But in terms of actual sells, micro influencers are incomparable, given the authenticity between the influencer and followers.
Choice of an audience
The main reason micro influencers are very effective in selling products is simply because companies and businesses get to choose their desired audiences. This is to say, as opposed to macro influencers, micro influencers have specific audience with specific tastes. So a company can properly access the audience, and choose whether to work with them or not, and the influencers can also know for sure how valuable they would be to a brand or business, given their audience. Macro influencers are incapable of this, because there is no way to know and be familiar with their audience, seeing as they are from different demographics and have different interests.
Choosing the right influencers
To make a good choice of which influencer marketers to use, one must first know what they want for their brand or product. For instance, if it is exposure then find macro influencers and figure out your budget accordingly. However, if it’s seeking products, then use influencers that will have an effect, and who have an audience that will be interested. Choosing influencers who already follow your or your business’s social media accounts is always ideal, because they are already engaged.
Since the budget for micro influencers is exceptionally lower than that of macro influencers, smaller companies and brand are most likely to use them. However even for large companies or those with high advertising budgets, it is advisable to use micro influencers, cause then there is a chance to use multiple influencers as opposed to one or just a few. Which means a larger audience, that is especially chosen and better reached.
Evaluating results
It is important to keep track of your micro influencers, because without good data a business can not properly ascertain its ROI. To properly keep records of the results from influencers, some systems such as ‘influencer one’ can be used, so a good choice must be made. Also certain important questions must be constantly asked, such as whether or not your social media is growing, or how the engagement rates compare to before.
To finish, companies and brands need to properly look in to the use of micro influencers. They are a cheap and fast way of reaching a semi large and engaged audience, and increasing both brand followers and consumers. If done correctly the return of investments is substantial and there are no regrets. Carefully consider what kind of influencers you choose, as well as how engaged their audience is. Most importantly however, properly evaluate the influencers and see how the advertising is going.