The use of social media is increasing every day and so is the number of users on these platforms. According to Oberlo, in 2020,  90.4% of Millennials, 77.5% of Generation X, and 48.2% of Baby Boomers are active social media users. Among these, 49% of consumers depend on influencer recommendations and around 40% people reportedly purchased a product after seeing it being used by an influencer online. Although businesses have integrated influencer marketing in their overall strategy, they are unaware of the effective use of influencer marketing.

If this sounds like you, then here’s a quick guide that discusses the 7 steps to an effective influencer marketing strategy.

• ESTABLISH YOUR CAMPAIGN GOAL:

Any campaign without a goal is doomed to fail so before you start working on the strategy, you need to figure out what are you trying to achieve through the campaign. Is it sales, leads or simply brand awareness? Having a set goal in mind will help you to then map out the rest of the campaign according to the end goal, binding it all together ensuring desired results.

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• IDENTIFY YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE:

Knowing who you are marketing to before you build a strategy is crucial for creating an effective influencer marketing strategy. Are you targeting males or females? Where do they live? What are their interests? Having data about your target audience will help you use influencer marketing to your benefit and get the desired results.

•  SET A BUDGET:

Now that you have your campaign goal established and target audience identified, you need to set a budget to achieve those goals. Setting a cap is essential so you can efficiently allocate the funds you have and do not end up paying unnecessarily.

• EVALUATE YOUR INFLUENCERS:

Researching the right influencers is as important as identifying your target audience. Each influencer has a different type of content and different people following them, consider all of these before you approach them for a collaboration. Make sure your brand image and goals align while using influencers for marketing.

• PERSONALIZE YOUR OUTREACH APPROACH:

When reaching out to influencers, have a warm outreach approach. This will help increase your chances of getting a positive response from them. Show that you have done your research and genuinely enjoy their content. Instead of sending the same template to every influencer in your list, take some time to personalize the email.

•  BE CLEAR ABOUT YOUR GOALS:

Once the influencers have shown interest in your campaign, you can then start talking to them about the specifics. Make sure you tell them about their goals, it’ll help them understand what they need to deliver and how they can do it. Communicating about your goals clearly will also ensure there are no hiccups later during the campaign.

•  MONITOR YOUR CAMPAIGN:

Measure, analyze and refine your strategy. Optimizing the strategy at regular intervals will help you determine if a campaign is working or not. Depending on the campaign, some parameters may be more important than the others. However, in the end, the goal is to achieve the objectives and see the numbers increase.

To craft an effective influencer marketing strategy, you need to know which influencers to approach, who to target, what do you want to achieve and how are you going to achieve it. You need to focus on quality and not just quantity to ensure your campaign is successful. If you’re planning your first influencer marketing campaign and need assistance, feel free to reach out to us at business@sociomark.in or DM us on our socials! Our team will find the right influencers and help you craft an effective strategy tailored to your goals.

Author : Heta Desai (Managing Director)