How to find influencers for entrepreneurs and small-scale businesses |
Influencer marketing can be a very effective instrument for small-scale businesses as well as independent creators. Find influential people to advertise your company's brand and product.
TL;DR
Utilizing influencer marketing and outreach in your business
If you're a small-scale company owner or an individual maker, influencer marketing could become a potent tool that can increase brand recognition, expand your audience, and drive sales.
Find influential people who are perfect for you.
- Determine the kind of influencer you're seeking.
- Make use of hashtags to research social media platforms such as Instagram and TikTok
- Keywords for niches on Google for bloggers
- Leverage your existing creator network
- Go to YouTube to discover video makers in your industry
- Look for influencers through professional social networks, such as LinkedIn
- Utilize influencer marketing tools and tools to look up profiles and organize your advertising
- Make a great first impression with a solid outreach email
If you've watched an influencer on social media talking about the latest item, you've certainly been through the market of marketing via influencers.
I'd like to think I'm fairly adept in avoiding traditional advertisements, but I've happily purchased quirky food items, birthday gifts, and the most blogging-related software anyone will ever need due to endorsements sponsored by my favourite creators.
That's influencer marketing at work It can prove super lucrative for big companies and small creators alike. Finding the ideal influencers for your brand to market your products could be a challenge.
How to identify influencers: 9 ways
Influencer marketing refers to a marketing approach where companies collaborate with those who enjoy a large and engaged audience.
Influencers are often considered experts within their field. They've gained the trust of their following Their vote of trust can be a huge opportunity.
90 90% of marketers believe that influencer marketing is successful, and, on an average it's ROI (ROI) of influencer marketing is $5.20 per dollar. .
It's no wonder the influencer marketing industry is expected to reach 13.8 billion in 2021. .
If you're eager to get your slice of the pie here are nine surefire ways to get the best influencers each time.
First, be clear about the person you're searching for.
Before you start the search process, you'll have be able to identify which kind of influencer is right for your online marketing efforts.
Influencers are ordinary people just similar to us. They are not all serious. Some have a sense of humor, some are stylish, some are athletic, and none is exactly the same. Anyone you collaborate with will have the same enthusiasm, outlook, and tone that your company's brand.
The most important thing is that they also be part of a reputable fan base that is comprised of members of the target group.
Influencers tend to be categorized according to the number of followers they have .
Nano influencer: 10,000 followers or smaller
Micro influencer: 10,000-100,000 followers
Macro influencer: 100,000-1 million followers
Mega influencer: +1 million followers
There are pros and cons on every stage:
Smaller influencers typically have ultra-niche audiences and higher engagement on their content. (Engagement means likes, comments, shares as well as other forms of engagement.) They're less well-known, but the people who do view their work are more likely to be interested in the content they produce.
The influencers who are larger are excellent to use in brand awareness campaigns. They are more popular However, they typically do not have the highest engagement. Additionally, because their reach is larger, you may pay more for fewer targeted views.
There is a good chance that micro-influencers are thought to be the most efficient for small businesses. They have a decent number of followers but not enough that the accounts seem unrepresentative.
They also have a a close connection with their audience and a higher engagement rate than macro and mega influencers.
It is important to remember the fact that followers with large numbers of followers are not the most important thing in identifying influencers to promote your product. In order to make your influencer marketing efficient, it is important to get your work in front of the right individuals, first and foremost.
Below are some additional aspects to take into consideration when selecting an influencer:
Does their target audience match your target audience?
What platforms on social media are they using?
What sort of interaction do they have on their posts?
With your ideal brand influencer set in your mind, now is the time to go out and locate them.
#2 How do you locate influential people on Instagram
For a chance to be part of the action, start with a hashtag search on your particular area of expertise.
Next, browse through the accounts that perform well for specific hashtags in your field. When you find the influencers you're looking for take note of how frequently they post and what kind of engagement they get.
It's also possible to examine your own followers and the followers of your competitors in order to discover Instagram influential people. If you spot someone with an active following that is relevant to the field you're in, it could be worth trying to contact these individuals.
Pro Tip: Keep an eye out for accounts that already run some promotional campaigns for their products. It could be an indicator that they're open to deals with sponsored content and also indicates that they've had some prior experience.
You will be able to determine if an advertisement is sponsored since it will say "ad", "partner", or "sponsored" in the caption. It will include "paid advertisement" in the headline of the advertisement.
To view examples of content that is sponsored, check out this travel-related reel created by Jeff Jenkins from Chubby Diaries . In the post Jeff Jenkins does a great job showcasing Princess Cruises. He also employs the hashtag #PrincessPartner reveal his sponsor.
As you research, try many hashtags relevant to your field to find the latest influencers.
Don't get caught up in the numbers. The majority of times smaller accounts that reaches your ideal public is better in comparison to a broad account.
#3 Finding influencers on TikTok
Although TikTok is relatively new on the influencer stage A study showed that 45percent of participants had used TikTok as part of an influencer-related campaign prior to 2021.
Similar to Instagram, TikTok has a search bar that lets you look for topics related to your field of expertise. You can search for your target keywords to find people who are already talking about the topics you are interested in.
We'll go back to our handwriting course illustration. I went to TikTok and searched for "handwriting". Several accounts about improving handwriting appeared within the results. The accounts were created by influential influencers that might have the potential to endorse my class.
The TikTok influencer already does promotional content for brands of other kinds which is why they could be a good candidate to talk to about sponsored projects.
Given the viral nature of TikTok, it may also be a good way to host giveaways for products and build brand awareness fast.
#4 Google search using keywords
Bloggers are also a great resource for promoting your services and products.
For bloggers who are influential, head to Google and look up specific keywords, as well as words like "best", "review", or "roundup".
If I was looking for "best handwriting training" such as I came across this article with resources to improve writing. The author mentions several tools including apps, videos, and other tools that will help you improve your handwriting.
The article might be a natural fit for my handwriting course, so you should contact the blog owner.
By the way, if you're interested in starting an affiliate program to promote your business, we make it easy. Use our integrated affiliate marketing tools and tools through our 14-day free trial.
#5 Leverage your current network
The creator of the universe is not an island And you may have some top influencers in your existing social network.
This is an excellent place to begin using influencer marketing.
It began with brainstorming similar niche bloggers that I'd collaborated with before. I thought about people I'd met in communities online along with connections I'd made on Instagram. From there, I wrote guest blog posts and set up affiliate partnerships as my strategy for marketing.
I enjoyed this approach because it felt like a win for everyone My connections received more blog content and an affiliate link to earn commissions, and I got an increase in time spent with my targeted viewers.
#6 Keyword research using YouTube
For starters, go to YouTube and search for relevant keywords and the phrase "review". It will allow you to find those who are already familiar in the kinds of products that you sell.
For example, if you're selling Instagram presets, for instance, you can search "Instagram presets review" to find influencers who have reviewed the product previously.
It is also possible to type in questions that your target audience might also be looking for.
If you are aware of what YouTubers influencers in your sector, reach out to these YouTubers and ask them to present your ideas for influencer marketing campaigns.
#7 Discovering influential people on LinkedIn
Additionally, you can use LinkedIn to discover influencers you can cooperate with. A word of caution: influencers may not identify them as influencers in LinkedIn. Look up terms such as content creator, YouTuber, or blogger, for more results.
LinkedIn can be particularly useful when you want to filter influential people by their location. If you are selling a local product or service, you can discover people in particular areas that might meet the criteria.
If you discover a potential influencer via LinkedIn, the next stage is to look into their works. Check out their YouTube channel, blog and other social networks to decide whether they're the right fit.
#8 Marketing tools for Influencers
It is also possible to use premium influencer marketing platforms for connecting with influencers of all size. They offer a comprehensive solution that allows you to discover influencers, create campaigns and even issue payment.
Here are some of the most choices to get to get started:
upfluence Upfluence is a complete influencer marketing platform, where users can interact with influencers make pitches, post reviews and monitor outcomes.
Influence Co: Here, you will find analytics as well as demographics for the influential social media users. It is also possible to create campaigns that influencers can be part of and keep track of your performance all in one place.
Post For Rent: The platform comes with tools for searching, allowing you to make a list with influencers that you are interested in, and then analyze their profile. Advanced filtering is available and fraud detection to protect all parties.
IZEA: Utilize this application to locate influential people, find out more about them and run social media marketing campaigns all in one dashboard.
BuzzSumo This platform shows the latest trends in social networks. It can also be used as a source of information to find influential people on Twitter as well as Facebook with respect to keywords, and retweets.
Wherever you locate your influencers, this step is perhaps the most important one.
#9 Seal the deal with an outstanding first impression
Influencer accounts with big names are bombarded with messages from spammy DMs every day, so it's essential for you to get your message out.
When contacting influencers, send a personalized and professional message to their email addresses. Provide specific reasons for what you are looking for in them and what you hope to achieve from your campaign. The more details you can give prior to the campaign more you can provide, the more accurate.
Here are some suggestions to include in your influencer outreach email:
Make contact with the person directly, and give them specifics about their work. Tell them the reasons why you believe they're the best influencer for your brand. This shows that you've done research and aren't emailing out bulk messages to all the people who are interested.
Provide information on your company and its products. This can help them find out if the products you offer will appeal to the people they are targeting.
Discuss the types of campaigns you are interested in. Include if you're offering products for free, an affiliate agreement, or other perks.
When you've reached an agreement, it's a good idea to make a contract to keep everyone on the same page. The contract can state what the deliverables will be and include other specifics like the timeline, pricing, and payment terms.
In addition, they must disclose their partnership in the event of a paid content. Offers that are promotional in nature typically are identified by the hashtag #sponsored, #gifted, or even #ad.
(The specific rules vary by platform. Here are the disclosure guidelines applicable to Instagram and YouTube as an example.) You can see an example of this below. .
This requirement ensures transparency and helps build trust with viewers. In the end, this trust is the main motive behind influencer marketing.
The bottom line is:
Your efforts deserve to be recognized. If you can find the perfect influencers for your campaigns and promotions, you help your dream clients to find you. It's a win-win-win to everyone. Have a great time!