Source – Forbes
What You Need to Know
Jumping head first into a campaign with influencers can be difficult if you’ve never had experience with one before. On Forbes, Jimmy Rohampton, creator of howtocreateablog.org, compiled best practices on how to prepare and get the most out of your influencer marketing campaigns. Here’s our take on those tips that will help you reframe your approach and maximize opportunities for success:
The Rest
“The Who” – Influencers come in handy because they have a trusted direct line to niche audiences, who your brand needs to connect with. Understanding not only your consumer, but the influencers they follow can be helpful when finding the right fit for the campaign.
“The End” – Different types of campaigns can lead to different results, so it is important to know if you’re going after brand awareness or wanting to focus more on sales. Coming to God & Beauty with goals in mind helps us better tailor a program that will benefit your company the most.
“Perfect Fit” – For your brand it’s in your best interest to find an influencer that checks all the boxes when it comes to how they fit with your values. Just because an influencer might connect with your target market, they might connect with them for reasons that do not match with your values as a brand. Finding the perfect fit can create a lasting relationship – and isn’t that the true goal?
“Creative Control” – As we’ve discussed before, an influencer’s audience knows their voice and their aesthetic. If you insist on your imagery being used, your packaging being visible, etc. the influencer’s community will deem the relationship fake. Read more about our take on influencer creative control here.
“Don’t Go Big” – Micro-influencers have been shown to provide better results than the the 500k+ club in the influencer world. Going for the top in the influence industry may seem attractive for reach, but cause your campaign to fall onto deaf ears. Because of their ability to authentically relate and interact, Micro-influences create a more in depth connection with their audience. You can read more here about the upsides of partnering with a micro influencer.
“Tracking” – Always keep track of how your campaigns perform in order to perfect the next one. Be sure to see if you’ve met your goals that you started with and reflect about how to create a more effective campaign next time.
For your brand it’s in your best interest to find an influencer that checks all the boxes when it comes to how they fit with your values.
Photo Courtesy of Honey and Silk
Moral of the Story
Taking all these points into consideration, it is important to listen to the influencer you want to work with. Creating a good relationship between brands and the influencer is important in creating an authentic campaign. See a prime example of this in our case study of Pretty Little Fawn’s campaign with French brand Sezane. There’s a lot influencer marketing can offer to brands once you understand the steps.
Little tip from the Top
When is the wrong time to start an influencer marketing campaign? If you don’t have a goal.
If you don’t have a destination, it’s hard to pave the road to success, and lead to dissatisfaction with what otherwise could supercharge your brand and sales. Think about what you want to achieve…sales, clicks, more Instagram followers, etc., and God & Beauty help you design the program to meet your needs.