Influencers tend to bring to my attention a new product but do not motivate me to buy. I am at the upper end of the millennial generation and while Influencer marketing is very apparent to me in my social media presence I often pass by it with little regard to what there promoting. I am a researcher by nature so bringing something to my attention is probably about as good as it’s going to get.
But let me tell you about a 9 year old girl (my daughter) who is highly impacted by Influencers. She follows a few teenagers/tweens on YouTube (with our careful supervision of course). She follows them for crafty hacks, style, and hair ideas. Her favorite Youtube influencer to watch is AzzyLand she has a high tone of humor and upbeat personality. She get’s up to 34 million views on her videos and has 10.3 million subscribers. I don’t see her being utilized in the way she could be to impact a huge demographic. But I know my daughter and her friends always want to buy things she’s displaying to use for a crafty hack or hair styles.
I may be one of the few that is not highly effected by Influencer marketing. But as a marketer myself I fully believe in the value and the statistics that prove that Influencer marketing works!
Strategies of Influencers.
The strategies that so many Influencers that I have seen that are targeting the younger demographics is humor. The way to do it right is not to oversell what you are promoting. Use your qualities, excitement around the product is enough to influence your followers. Influencers need to pick a brands that align with there personal brand otherwise they will lose credibility if they just keep pushing whatever gives them a paycheck. Like the 60 minutes video pointed out that Kim Kardashian has learned how to monetize just living. But you wouldn’t see her just market any product. Kim chooses what coordinates directly to her personal brand.
Role of an Influencer
The role of an Influencer is to propel brand awareness through social media. The digital presence and impact of social platforms has transformed the way companies approach marketing. Social media allows for a two way dialogue. Influencers have incredible sway when it comes to familiarizing their audience with your brand identity. Their storytelling and presentation skills are the perfect vehicles for everything from initial product introduction to in-depth tutorials that help consumers understand complicated features and benefits.
Relationship: Company-Influencer-Consumer
While Influencers are becoming a much bigger component in today’s marketing. It is imperative that companies do their research on an Influencer before utilizing their reach. Making sure that the companies values align with that of the Influencer. Ensuring that the message carried to consumers in respect to the company through the Influencer is maintained. A misstep from an Influencer not being fully aware of legal and ethical considerations in marketing can lead to detrimental backfire on the company. For example Kendall Jenner and Pepsi Controversy.
It’s true that Influencer campaign sales are more organic and thus can be more difficult to track, but a campaign can include creative calls to actions like sharing a coupon or a discount to wavering consumers. (Tip: Unique promo codes not only feel personal but also help post-campaign tracking.) A good note to consider from Forbes. Adding this component could probably change my mind from just becoming aware and actually taking the step to purchase or try a product.
Influencer marketing is the way of the future but don’t ever forget to do your market research. Market research is the function that links you to your customer through information, but the real goal is to use this information to gain insight into what motivates your customer. Market research will take the guessing out of it!
“People do not buy goods and services. They buy relations, stories and magic”-Seth Godin (American Author and Former Dot Com Executive)
