As more and more brands turn to digital creators, social influencers and rising internet stars as a trusted source of advertising we’re starting to see some great lessons flooding the internet. As with any new(ish) trend, the brave brands venture out and help the rest of the industry define the rules and best practices for the future. Over the last year I’ve watched hundreds of brands be brave, and reap the great rewards as a result.
One lesson stands out: influencer marketing campaigns get the best results when the brand and the influencer are a good match.
Take a look at the Australian launch of Netflix in 2015, where influencer Troye Sivan live-tweeted his way through a couple of episodes of The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt – it was a sublime pairing of brand and influencer, and his tweets reached over 90 million people in one hour.
How does a brand find its influencer soul mate? It´s a bit like dating, actually. There is more than one way to find your perfect match – over the last year i’ve managed narrow down three ways to deliver that perfect match.
Option one:
You go out and find The One! Back in the day this meant standing at the bar, spotting someone you think you´ll get along with and offering to buy them a drink. These days, it´s a lot simpler. I´m talking apps like Tinder. Matchmaking made easy in the technological age. Likewise with finding the right influencer for your campaign. Where once you had interns scouring the web, cataloging blogs, stats and contact details, platforms like Webfluential have made finding influencers a snap, you just register as a marketer and use the Search function to filter through our 10,000-strong database of accredited influencers.
Option two:
You could also find your perfect match The Bachelor style. Let the influencers pitch their best ideas to you based on a brief, and pick the one that really gets you. This option works best for marketers who know they need to get some traction in the market, but maybe don’t have the perfect picture on how to do that. Smart marketers are simply asking the most influential people in their target market for help!
Option three:
But what if you´re not looking for a ´swipe right´ kind of relationship? You want something deeper, you want to know that you are both into Star Wars and cat memes? In the past, a safe bet would be to ask your mates to introduce you to someone they know you have something in common with. Brands, now you can do this too: approach influencers you know are already talking and tweeting about your brand because they are fans. Or, they are talking to an audience you have your eye on. Tools like Discovered by Webfluential allow you to listen in to the conversations, and then invite these influencers to work with you.
Example: Justin Bieber and Calvin Klein. Whether Justin is on stage, or on social, or on a sponsored photoshoot he has an affinity for the brand. I would bet on the fact that he’d outsell any online store in no time if he Tweeted a link to purchase product – it would be poetry in motion.
As an industry, let’s make a stand to be better. However you find your perfect match, remember, you can’t fake a relationship between a brand and an influencer – their audience can always tell. Long-term brand-influencer partnerships work the best, so if you like it, put a ring on it and be exclusive.
This month we’re showcasing influencers whose personalities really shine through in their Webfluential media kits.
I AM ELLA
24-year-old Ella shares snippets of her busy life, living and working in London and travelling around the world. Her love for fashion resonates throughout her blog, where readers get a glimpse into her very bright and fashion-forward wardrobe. Ella and her unique style has represented top brands such as Converse, Manhattans Cosmetics and Pepsi. Click here to see Ella’s media kit.
Mark Jackson
Mark is a talented photographer who shares his work on Instagram, showcasing breathtaking images of his travels, wildlife encounters and beautiful landscapes. As Mark explores the world, he shares images of his journey with his audience. His creativity and hunger for adventure show in every moment he captures. Click here to have a look at Mark’s media kit.
Marie Sheffield
Marie Sheffield is a London-based writer, marketer and food and travel blogger. Being a foodie, Marie naturally writes about restaurants she has been to while travelling, as well as sharing her own culinary tips and tricks with her audience. So if you are travelling and want to know which restaurant is worth visiting, or just want to spice up your dinner menu visit Marie Sheffield – The Food and Travel Blogger. See Marie’s media kit here.
The concept of “the pitch” is not a new one. Advertising agencies the all over the world have been perfecting the pitch since the 1950s. But what does a winning influencer marketing pitch look like?
As a content creator you know your audience and you know what content resonates with them. Here is an example of a great influencer marketing pitch:
Give a short introduction of who you are and what you do.
My name is Gary. I currently have a blog and YouTube channel which focus on comic book art. I’m a huge fan of this artistic style and use my YouTube channel to interview up and coming artists. On my blog I feature established comic book artists and review their work. I share this content across Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Outline your current audience.
For a break down of my following and their engagement with my platforms you can view my Webfluential media kit:
Paint the picture and explain the great idea.
Your store has some great comic book inspired kitchen appliances. I especially enjoyed your Batman mask ice trays. There is a lot of synergy between your store’s products and my audience. While your current online marketing is targeted at mothers looking for fun products to brighten up their kitchen and entertain their kids, I think my geek community would find the items appealing as well and definitely purchase them.
I’d like to propose that I do a blog post highlighting 3 geek items in your store and linking them back to the legendary artists who worked on the original comics that inspired the work.
I’ll then share this content across my social platforms and include an Instagram post each day featuring the original artwork in a flat lay with the product.
Utilising 1 blog post, 1 Facebook post, 2 tweets and 5 Instagram posts there is the potential for x amount of people to see the content and share it with their own audiences. I also believe that by including direct links to the items there is a possibility to see an increase in sales on your online store.
One month ago I worked with brand y and did a similar campaign (without Instagram) to promote their Geek Culture Expo. In the blog post I linked directly to the online ticketing portal and tracked the clicks. In the space of 1 week 565 people clicked to the ticketing site from my blog post.
I know my audience and believe many would purchase the items you offer for sale.
Close it off with pricing, time frames & sweeten the deal
As per my Webfluential application the following work will cost a total of $xyz. However, you’ll note I’ve only charged for 2 Instagram posts. I’m willing to include the other 3 posts at no additional costs as a value add.
Should you be happy with the above pitch I’d need two weeks to finalise the content before going live. The content would run for one week and remain on my blog and social profiles on completion of the campaign.
