4 Things to Consider before Starting an Influencer Marketing Campaign

Garrett Heath is asocial media and content marketing consultant and founder of MarketingBytes.io.

A twist on the traditional celebrity endorsement, influencermarketing is one digital marketing tactic that agencies and marketers shouldconsider. But creating an influencer strategy is easier said than done—a lot ofeffort should go into identifying, contacting and selecting influencers thatare most appropriate for your brand. Below are four considerations you shouldkeep in mind when you approach social media influencers.

1. Don't Overlook Influencers with Smaller Reach

The first thing that comes to mind when you say the word“influencer” is a social media star with millions of followers. And while itmight be nice to find a way to reach that large an audience, partnering withsomeone of that caliber could cost quite a bit. But that doesn't mean that youhave to shelve your influencer marketing plan.

Partnering with micro-influencers (social media accounts with less than 100,000 followers) and nano-influencers (less than 10,000 followers) is one way to do influencer marketing on a budget. Typically the rates for working with these social media influencers tend to be quite affordable (more on this later) and the authenticity that brands can derive from these smaller influencers can make them attractive.

As Sapna Maheshwari reports for The New York Times reportsin her piece AreYou Ready for the Nanoinfluencers?, “Theirlack of fame is one of the qualities that make them approachable. When theyrecommend a shampoo or a lotion or a furniture brand on Instagram, their wordseems as genuine as advice from a friend.”

Obviously, there's a lot more elbow grease to source,content and coordinate with a multitude of lower-tier influencers. However,this hard work could pay dividends in not only being able to connect with veryniche markets or specific geographies, but also keeping you from staking yourentire influencer strategy on a single person.

2. Most Influencers Have Rate Sheets

While influencers may have promoted products for free in thepast, today we're facing a different world. Most marketers expect influencerswith 100,000 or more followers to charge a fee. However, influencers with asfew as 10,000 often seek payment for promoting a brand.

To avoid looking uncouth, you should always ask a socialmedia influencer for a rate sheet if they have at least a five-figure followercount. Doing this will help your brand in two key ways.

First, it will minimize your email exchanges, saving youtime and effort and preventing you from damaging a potential relationship. Italso gives the influencer the opportunity to inform you of their prices insteadof you having to guess what they are.

“Companies shouldn't offer an influencer with 50,000 followersand one with 5,000 followers the same amount,” offers Amanda Spencer known as @s.a.foodie on Instagram andan influencer who has worked with a number of national brands. “Companiesshould see the value in each individual social media influencer and the abilityto connect to their network.” 

Additionally, asking for the rate sheet proves to the socialmedia influencer that you value the work they do. These men and women areconstantly approached by brands looking to get free promotion and simplyinquiring about the prices is going to bump you up to the top of the list.

While the fees can vary in amount, they are often quiteaffordable for many brands. This is especially true when considering that notonly are you tapping into the influencers reach, but also getting unique brandassets created by a person who knows what works on social media.

“What I do actually takes a lot of time,” Spencer says. “Iwork with restaurants and national brands, take pictures and shoot video. ThenI have to go home and edit the content. This takes hours of time to get to thehigh-quality work that I produce. On top of that, you get your branded contentsent out to my 98,000 Instagram followers and 18,000 Facebook followers.”

One final tip: if the influencer lists an email address ontheir social profile or blog for brands to contact them for collaborations,that person most likely charges a fee for promotional posts. Requesting a ratesheet right off the bat in this situation demonstrates that you're ready to dobusiness with them.

3. If You Ask for Free Promotion, Make Sure There Are No StringsAttached

Yes, it is true that there are plenty of influencers who are interested in helping promote your brand for free. Most of the time this will be the nano-influencers, social accounts with less than 10,000 followers. And whether they have a small or large network, if you're asking someone to attend your event or review your product, there's one golden rule to follow: make sure there are no strings attached.

This may sound counterintuitive to a marketer or agency—afterall, if you're giving something away to an influencer, shouldn't you have theright to mandate they post to their social media accounts? The short answer is no.

These people are constantly approached to use products orattend an event. Requiring a set number of social media posts is not onlybush-league but also risky, in that you may turn your would-be influencer intoa detractor.

Instead, focus on creating an amazing experience for theinfluencer, such that there is absolutely no way that they can avoid postingabout it. When sending a product, package it so that it invites the influencerto share an “unboxing” video to their platforms. Assemble it in a photo-readypackage, share a story about your product and include relevant hashtags thatthey can use.

If you're inviting them to an event, make sure that yourinfluencers get the primo treatment. This could include things like valetparking, a way to quickly get into the event, a special section, theopportunity to meet a bona fide celebrity and of course amazing food anddrinks.

As a somewhat niche nano-influencer myself here in San Antonio, there are just some events that go over the top, and I can't help but post about—even if it is for free. Two that come to mind are the popular River Walk parade, when I was seated in a special section and served potent drinks courtesy of the Hyatt Regency, and an event recently where one of my writers got to drink Código tequila with famed musician George Strait.

4. Put a Paid Media Budget Behind Your Influencer Marketing

As I've detailed before in a post that busts the topsocial media myths, the reach of organic social media posts (updateswithout any dollars paid to boost them) is declining dramatically. Granted, thedecline is seen more with brands, but social media influencers are also seeinga decline in organic reach—with the exception of Instagram, where they arestill getting a decent number of organic impressions.

Furthermore, FTC guidelines requires social mediainfluencers to disclose any work with a brand when the influencer is paid.These posts are often accompanied with the hashtags of #ad or #sponsored,tipping off a social platform's algorithm that a brand is behind the post.

Consequently, brands should strongly consider putting somedollars behind these influencers' posts. Doing so will ensure that those postshave a greater reach—a boon not only to your brand but also to the influencer.By putting paid promotion behind their posts, you will most likely drive newfollowers to their account.

No One Way to Approach Social Media Influencers

One thing should be mentioned in closing—these are allguideposts and best practices. There's no “one right way” to approach socialmedia influencers. Create relationships withindividuals who seem like the right fit for your business; as you work withthem, you'll come to learn their preferences and quirks. These fourguidelines, though, should help you get your social influencer program off to agood start.