3 Ways Brands Miss the Mark on Working with Influencers
3 Ways Brands Miss the Mark on Working with Influencers
We might not have invented influencer marketing, but we’ve been playing this game since 2009, we’ve definitely evolved right alongside the industry.
We were eager to find out how its recent and explosive growth was impacting influencers themselves – and what kind of insights they could provide on how brands can best collaborate with these content creators.
So, we surveyed 400 leading micro-influencers and Everywhere Society members on everything from outreach methods to content performance, and here’s what we think brands should know:
You Just Have to Let it Go
Creative control, that is. We know it can be hard to loosen the grip on creative control, but only 13% of influencers surveyed said that they felt brands gave them enough freedom to build totally authentic content.
Of course influencers need to be provided with clear expectations of what content should look and sound like as well as the goal of the campaign – just don’t be so prescriptive that they’re creating cookie cutter content.
The primary appeal of using influencers is to organically showcase your brand within the context of real life, so trust their judgment when it comes to telling stories that resonate with their audience.
Use it or Lose it(s Extended Value)
Less than a quarter of brands are cross-posting influencer content to their own channels. That’s like spending money on a killer outfit that you just keep tucked away in your closet for no one else to appreciate. Pretty much a total waste!
We’ve heard plenty of anecdotal evidence from clients telling us that influencer-created content gets more engagement on their social channels than what’s produced in house. A report by Shopify confirmed our suspicion, pointing out that advertising content that features UGC (user-generated content) gets up to 4x as many click-throughs.
If you’re doing it right, influencers are essentially a reflection of your ideal customer, and their UGC just happens to look prettier than your average brand advocate’s.
It’s Not About You
Most of the time, influencers gained an audience because they have a point of view or experiences that resonate with their readers and followers. What kind of influencer content gets the strongest reaction? More than half of all influencers say it’s photos that feature themselves or their family.
The lesson? You might be enlisting influencers to highlight your brand in a favorable light – and they will – but your product should fit into posts naturally, and that might mean not being the focal point. A good influencer relays your brand’s message without it clouding the ‘realness’ of their content.
For more meaty insights about how much influencers are getting paid for a typical campaign, which platform reigns supreme, and how to best get their attention, download our white paper, Major Insights from Micro-influencers here.
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