Influencer marketing seems to have a 50:50 split between those in marketing of whether it’s a trusted marketing method or not. I feel with enough research and the knowledge to avoid the risks, it can be a fantastic way to promote a brand.

But first, what is Influencer marketing?

Simply speaking, influencer marketing is a modern form of social media marketing that uses endorsements and product mentions from influencers–individuals who have a particular and dedicated social following. It’s believed that influencer marketing works because of the trust that influencers have built up with their following, and recommendations comes across as a form of trusted proof to your brand’s potential customers.

Generally speaking, influencers are divided into these categories:

• Mega: 1 million-plus

• Macro: 200,000 to 900,000 followers

• Midi: 50,000 to 200,000 followers

• Micro: 10,000 to 50,000 followers

• Nano: 800 to 10,000 followers

Challenges faced with Influencer Marketing

Today, if you read marketing trade publications, you could be excused for believing that influencer marketing is an incredibly dubious marketing method. Consider:

• Brands only want to pay for "verifiable impressions" while social networks keep changing the rules for influencers.

• A recent study, which revealed brands with paid influencers who have the most fake followers, showed that as much as 78% of the Ritz-Carlton's influencers' followers were reportedly fake.

• One company is investing at least $6 million to build computer-generated influencers powered by artificial intelligence.

• Various reports are suggesting that mega-influencers have less value to brands than before.

• Some well-intentioned compensation models, including "pay for engagement," end up incentivizing influencers to buy fake engagements. (There are even sketchy services offering fake likes on posts for as little as $10.)

Why should Influencer Marketing be considered trusted?

It’s a fact that people​ ​have​ ​a​ ​low​ ​trust​ ​in​ ​ads.​ ​Did you know​ ​almost​ ​70​ ​million​ ​people​ ​in​ ​the​ ​USA use​ ​ad​ ​block​ ​software​.? ​Instead, people ​would rather be turned to the​ ​opinions​ ​of​ ​influencers​ ​over​ ​impersonal​ ​ads.

So​ ​why can influencer​ ​marketing​ ​work​ ​better ​than​ ​other​ ​forms of​ ​non-ad​ ​marketing?

Simply put,​ ​targeting. Are​ ​you​ ​familiar​ ​with​ ​the​ ​​80/20​ ​principle​? Around ​80%​ ​of​ ​your​ ​results​ ​will​ ​come​ ​from​ ​20%​ ​of​ ​causes. In​ ​theory,​ ​20%​ ​of​ ​people​ ​create​ ​80%​ ​of​ ​the​ ​content online.​ ​Of​ ​the ​20%​ ​of​ ​content creators,​ ​only​ ​4%​ ​(or​ ​20%​ ​of​ ​20%) are​ ​creating​ ​the​ ​most​ ​effective​ ​content.

By targeting the ​4%​ of people (that is, the ​influencers​), you can reach the rest of your target audience at a fraction of the cost.

But is​ ​influencer​ ​marketing​ ​worth​ ​all​ ​the​ ​hype?

I’ll let the numbers do the talking.

• It’s said,​ ​for​ ​every​ ​$1​ ​invested​ ​in​ ​influencer​ ​marketing,​ ​businesses receive​ ​$6.50​ ​in​ ​return. ​(source)

• 70%​ ​of​ ​businesses​ can ​earn​ ​$2+​ ​for​ ​every​ ​$1​ ​invested. The​ ​top​ ​13%​ ​earn​ ​$20​ ​or​ ​more. (source)

• Twitter​ has ​reported​ ​a​ ​5.2x​ ​increase​ ​in​ ​purchase​ ​intent​ ​when​ ​people​ ​were exposed​ ​to​ ​content​ ​from​ ​a​ ​company​ ​and​ ​an​ ​influencer. (source)

• And​ ​49%​ ​of Twitter​ ​users​ ​say​ ​they​ ​rely​ ​on​ ​recommendations​ ​from​ ​Twitter​ ​influencers when​ ​making​ ​a​ ​buying​ ​decision. (source)

So, is it a trusted marketing method?

With the correct research and knowledge to spot authentic influencers over ones who purchase followers, definitely. Anyone reaching out to an influencer for a potential collaboration should request their social media analytics, this will give you the crucial information required to know if they’re authentic and targeting the audience you need.

I hear clients wanting the influencers with the biggest following but I’m confident an influencer with 1.2 million followers isn’t always a better option than someone with 15,000. An example, let’s say you’re a local coffee shop. You want a mega influencer to post about you and promote it, fantastic until you think about it. Would an influencer with over a million followers have all of those followers in your local area? Not a chance. You would be far better off (money wise also) to reach out to a nano or micro influencer who blogs or posts about food/coffee/diets in and around your area. This way it’s a much more directed audience who would be far more likely to be interested in this promo, again always ask for the analytics.

How do you feel about influencer marketing? Has it worked for you?

Written by Co-Founder L