Understanding 'influencer marketing'

Ready for a different kind of marketing? One that harnesses the power of recommendation and social sharing and lets you reach your target audience in ways you haven't been able to before? It's time to start exploring the world of 'influencer marketing'.

What is influencer marketing?

Most simply, influencer marketing switches the focus from reaching out to your audience directly to reaching out to key figures to have influence over your target market. Not only does this help you avoid cold calling customers, influencer marketing campaigns can drive 16 times more engagement than paid or owned media, according to SocialChorus.

Think about the adverts you see on TV and in magazines. How many of them have celebrity endorsements? These star appearances are there to inspire the buyer, but in the digital age there are new influencers to consider.

Finding your influencers

To create a successful influencer marketing program, you first need to identify the key influencers in your industry. You're probably already aware of a few of them. They're the kind of people who have a strong following on social sites and are always sharing new pieces of content and statistics.

There are also a few tools – such as Klout and PeerIndex – that can help you measure the social influence of individuals. These can be helpful in identifying potential experts, but they aren't perfect. You'll be the best judge of how useful a contact can be.

Creating the right content

Influencer marketing only works if you're able to give your influencers the kind of content they want to share and the deals they'll be happy to promote.

At the smaller end of the scale, this means you need to come up with angles your competitors are missing. On the larger end, you could work closely with your influencers to come up with unique campaigns that are directly linked to their interests. For a little inspiration from the big guys, have a look at the best influencer campaigns as chosen by The Huffington Post.

For more help boosting your marketing strategy, make an appointment with your Bloomtools consultant and start investigating your options.