Partnerships with influencers offer brands credible, natural-feeling ways to connect with new audiences. Instead of the typical company-sells-to-consumer dynamic, influencers present brands more engagingly.
This boosts brand awareness and enhances audience perceptions. According to Sprout Social, influencer marketing is the most cost-effective and fastest-growing way to acquire new customers. However, with so many options, finding the right influencer can be a challenge.
Here are some qualities to look for to ensure the influencer you pick will be a good fit.
Authenticity
Enlisting an influencer who genuinely believes in your brand or uses your products or services will usually result in more engaging posts. Also, find someone who has the right type of followers for your brand.
For example, if you are selling women’s skincare, find a beauty or lifestyle blogger. The goal is to select an influencer who is respected within the brand’s industry. An article in Entrepreneur says, “It doesn’t matter if an influencer has 3 million followers – if there isn’t a similarity between the influencer and the product or service you are selling, there’s going to be very little to no interest from his or her social following.”
Engaging
Great influencers don’t just post a picture and log off; they interact with their followers and build relationships with them. The number of followers does not exactly correlate to the degree of influence.
An article in Entrepreneur points out that “while a global superstar with millions of followers looks appealing, oftentimes you will see more success with a more targeted influencer who has a smaller, but highly engaged, following.”
Experience
Choosing someone who has experience working with brands can be helpful because they will have a better understanding of the brand’s expectations. They realize it is a business transaction and understand that you will expect high-quality posts.
Establishing a partnership with an influencer with no experience can be time-consuming and may result in posts that do not meet the brand’s goals. Also, followers are accustomed to seeing influencer posts. An article in Mention says, “this also helps ensure that their audience won’t get turned off by a brand collaboration, unintentionally damaging your brand’s reputation.”
Established public relations agencies have the contacts and experience needed to select appropriate influencers for their clients. These firms can be a valuable asset in choosing a collaborator who can make an influencer-marketing campaign a success. Great PR agencies also build and maintain influencer relationships so that future collaborations are always a possibility.
Team Player
The best brand influencers have broad knowledge when it comes to online concepts, but typically specializes in one particular area. If you specialize in this area you are going to need a team to help you maximize your campaigns.
A brand influencer will be there to help you out in times of crisis as well. Mosaico PR states, “a crisis could destroy your brand or your organization’s good name. In less dire forms, a crisis could still badly damage your company and, at the very least, cause misunderstanding, lost revenues and customers.” A brand influencer will help balance out problems along the way.
No brand influencer tends to work alone; they may need advice from a SEO specialist on how to rank higher. However, the SEO specialist may need help from a project manager about specialty content and they all interact. This shows that a brand influencer likes working with other people and is a team player.
Final Thoughts
The right brand influencer can do wonders for your company, but you have to do your due diligence to find that these people have what it takes to take your company to new levels. By following the above four qualities, you will be well on your way to achieving not just more brand recognition, but higher revenues as well.
