By Christina Widner

Influencers and content creators who recommend products to their communities are an integral part of today’s marketing mix. In terms of target group reach, influencers are now powerful ambassadors for many companies. The payoff can be great when businesses cleverly harness the power of influencer marketing on social media as a strong and effective strategy.

Definition: what exactly is influencer marketing?

Influencer marketing is a form of marketing in which businesses and brands use influencers to promote their products and services. Influencers generally reach a relevant target group on social media and have a loyal community and followers who trust their recommendations. Influencers are mainly differentiated according to how many followers they have.

When companies in an industry are looking for the right influencers, even a very high number of followers is usually only an incidental factor. The most important thing is whether the influencer is a good fit for the company and products.

Crunching the numbers: the different types of influencers

There are four different types of influencers:

• Mega-influencers: People with more than one million followers. These are often celebrities or prominent figures.
• Macro-influencers: People with 100,000 to one million followers. These are usually experts in particular fields or have built up a sizeable community over the years.
• Micro-influencers: People with 10,000 to 100,000 followers. These are generally content creators with engaged followers focused on niche markets.
• Nano-influencers: People with less than 10,000 followers. They have a very specific target group or are relatively new to the respective platform.

Why is influencer marketing so effective?

Many organisations have grappled with this question in recent years. Why does influencer marketing make so much more sense than other forms of marketing? 

Credibility and authenticity

Influencers generally have a very close relationship with their followers. Most influencers let it be known that they only promote products they have tested and liked for themselves. Because of this authenticity, followers trust the products and services they recommend. 

Target audience reach

Influencers often have specific target groups that can be difficult to reach by traditional marketing methods. By collaborating with influencers, brands can appeal directly to the target groups most likely to be interested in their products or services. People who love fashion often follow influencers who always highlight the latest style trends, while keen DIYers keep tabs on influencers who like to build things for themselves or take an old item and turn it into something new.

Engagement and interaction

Influencers motivate their followers to interact with the promoted content. This leads to higher engagement and can significantly increase a campaign’s reach. Businesses can also check influencers’ KPIs before deciding whether a collaboration is worthwhile.

Benefits of influencer marketing

There’s no doubt at this stage that influencer marketing works. At the end of the day, however, is it really better than other forms of marketing? Businesses can decide that for themselves based on these benefits:

• More cost-effective: Compared to traditional advertising, influencer marketing can be more cost-effective. In particular, there is often good value to be found in collaborating with micro- and nano-influencers, who tend to be very effective in niche markets.
• More creative content: Influencers are often talented content creators who can come up with imaginative and appealing content. This can strengthen a brand’s image and raise its profile with the target group. In addition to images, videos can be posted showing the influencers testing the products for themselves so that the benefits are conveyed much more quickly.
• Rapid results: Social media is a fast-moving landscape, so influencer marketing campaigns can also quickly achieve visible results. This is particularly useful for product launches and limited-time offers.

Successful influencer marketing strategies

Companies that decide to try influencer marketing are often unsure about how best to approach it. Here are some strategies that make it easier to get started.

1. Select the right influencers

This first step is crucially important to the outcome. Businesses must choose influencers that are a good fit for the brand and target group. The collaboration should feel authentic and reflect the brand values. This may even mean selecting influencers who have a smaller reach but are in the right niche.

2. Set clear goals and KPIs

Clear goals and key performance indicators (KPIs) should be defined in advance. Campaign success can then be measured and any necessary adjustments made.

3. Establish long-term partnerships

Long-term partnerships with influencers are usually more effective than one-off campaigns. These partnerships can help to build a deeper connection with the target group and strengthen brand credibility. After all, the community follows the influencers daily. Awareness of the brand will increase and trust with the audience will be strengthened if the products appear regularly in the videos and stories.

Challenges and risks

While the benefits are great, there are also a few challenges that companies should be aware of in advance.

Brands often have less control over the content that influencers create. There is a risk that the content created may not meet expectations of the brand or even cause a negative reaction.

In addition, the credibility of influencer marketing can be undermined if followers feel that the recommendations are not authentic. It is also important that influencers are transparent about their partnerships.

Influencer marketing – what to consider

Influencer marketing has established itself in recent years as a powerful and effective method for promoting products and services on social media. However, it only works if influencers are transparent with their communities about such collaborations. Otherwise there may be a backlash against the products shown. The authenticity and the trust influencers build with their followers make this form of marketing particularly valuable. These reasons alone mean it is worthwhile for companies to find the right influencers and try out this form of marketing. 

About the author

BASIC thinking is an online magazine and is one of the widest reaching tech platforms in German-speaking countries. The magazine reports about social media, marketing, and business topics daily. This article was written by Christina Widner from BASIC thinking GmbH and BASIC thinking International.