TL;DR: How do brand run effective influencer marketing campaigns? The key is finding the right content creators based on the market or niche and making them a part of the process.
The pandemic has been a harbinger of many unexpected events, but who knew that an increase in retail sales would be one of them? And it ran parallel to the boom of influencer marketing, with brands, big and small, turning to creators to promote their products.
All because the time spent by audiences on social media skyrocketed. Moreover, the unparalleled expertise of creators in their field and the personal connection with their loyal audience base prove to be a boon for brands.
There are no ifs in the statement except for one.
Influencer marketing campaigns work if brands partner with creators whose creatives and vision align with your mission and value proposition.
The creator you choose to work with should have the power to resonate with your target audience. They should be a perfect fit in the marketing puzzle you are trying to solve. They should be advocates whose content screams honesty and authenticity.
With that as the backdrop, we give you two insights on how to run effective influencer marketing campaigns or collaborations.
1. Make creators a part of the creative process, particularly for viral trends.
Unarguably, there is no one better than the creator to decide what content works. Hence, it is best to make them a part of the creative process, especially for viral trends.
Let’s understand why.
Trends are undoubtedly the most effective way to generate engagement for a brand. The only catch is to align the content with what’s trending in the social media landscape and your brand values.
That means the campaign has to be highly creative. Else, there is a risk of the brand losing its essence to the mere popularity of the trend. Content creators have the ability and creativity to amalgamate the commendation of your brand with trends effortlessly.
And they do so with your brand messaging intact because they have a finger on the pulse of their followers.
2. Capitalise on creator diversity to reach different niches and markets.
We’ve spoken about how creators help brands crack new markets and elaborate it further here. Regional content creators are the next big wave, and they excel at dismantling cultural and linguistic barriers.
Therefore, it only makes sense for brands to leverage them to enhance the resonance of influencer marketing campaigns. With vernacular content creators, you have the best chance to strike a chord with the audience through culture and/or language-specific content.
When discovering regional creators, put your focus on micro-influencers who enjoy popularity in a very specific region. These creators have a huge sway over and solid rapport with their local audience. For brands, they can prove to be an asset in activating any campaign.
For this reason, collaborating with micro-influencers can sometimes prove to be even more powerful and beneficial than collaborating with mega-influencers.
