Everybody is talking about influencer marketing these days. However, the big question is how you know which influencer is right for your business.
We can say without any doubt that influencer marketing is the fastest-growing customer acquisition method. Around 40 % of marketers believe in creating a dedicated budget for influencer marketing. Influencer marketing is a billion-dollar industry and the future of advertising. If you are going down the influencer marketing route for the first time, you will encounter certain challenges starting with finding the right Instagram micro-influencer to collaborate with.
The concept of influencer marketing is not new; however, there is a new trend of hyper-targeted "micro-influencer" marketing. Micro influencer marketing allows brands to leverage the ROI power of influencer marketing. All this takes place with a small budget while targeting a more niche audience.
Micro Influencers-Who are they?
Micro-influencers are those with followers between 1,000-100,000 on their social channels and appeal to a more niche audience. The biggest benefit of micro-influencers for the brand is high affordability. 97 % of Instagram micro-influencers charge $ 500 or less per post, and 84 % charge $ 250 or less. Depending on your budget, you can collaborate with a single influencer at a low cost or multiple influencers for the price you would pay for a single "macro influencer.
Micro-influencers are those who have a direct and personal relationship with their followers. Their following is loyal and they prefer to work with brands if their values align with what the influencer is doing.
Why Should Brands Collaborate with Micro-Influencers?
Micro-Influencers Are Affordable
Unlike big businesses, small firms don't have the budget for big name celebrities. This is where micro-influencers come to their rescue. Micro-influencers provide an opportunity to promote the brand at a fraction of the cost. Micro influencer marketing takes place organically and sometimes doesn't involve any exchange of money.
They Relate To Your Brand And Audience
We asked people, especially youngsters, why they are active on social media. They said they use social media channels to keep track of their friends and what brands they are interested in. But, when you work with micro-influencers, you have to identify people who are relatable and have a relationship with their followers. To create brand awareness, you not only have to post pictures or use sponsored posts but collaborate with micro-influencers with a high engagement rate.
Impact of Micro-Influencers
According to a study conducted by Markerly, bigger is not always better. The study also found out that when the influencer's follower count increases, engagement starts to decrease. Influencers who had thousands of followers had an engagement rate of 8 percent, and those with ten thousand followers had less engagement rate. The engagement rate continued to decrease with the increase in followers. The survey was specific to Instagram but applied to all the other social media channels. The sweet spot is to have influencers with followers between one to ten thousand.
Micro-Influencers are Trustworthy
People prefer to work with influencers with a certain aesthetic to their content. They trust those influencers who connect on a more personal level and have an authentic, friendly, and engaging tone. Micro-influencers spread a message a company intends to send in a cleaner and more authentic way. Micro-influencers share personal content and show their appreciation towards the growing community more, and interact with followers by regularly responding to their comments or messages.
How to Collaborate With a Micro-Influencer Marketing Agency?
Through the podcast sponsorship, you can interact with the micro-influencer marketing agency. A Podcaster may charge between $ 15-$ 25 /CPM for every sponsored collaboration. Firms can pay for a sponsored ad on a podcast every week or every month and help listeners get familiar with the brand. Firms can also offer special promotional codes or a specific website URL for the listeners to visit so that you can track the success of the advertising.
Special Promotions of Events
Are you all set to launch a new product or service? You might need a special event to promote it. Events provide an opportunity to take photographs and record video content that you can share online afterward. After you partner with micro-influencers to promote your event, you can use them as a guest or the MC of the event. Collaborating with influencers for events can be a big commitment but helps in growing brand trust quickly.
Sponsored Posts On Instagram
If you have lots of images and videos of your product and services, it's time to post them on visual platforms like Instagram. If you offer sales via e-commerce, you can boost sales through Instagram micro-influencers. The fees for partnering with Instagram influencers will be $2 or $ 5 per 1000 impressions. Before you partner with micro-influencers, check their engagement levels. A high volume of followers does not lead to a high engagement rate.
Look For Engagement and Authenticity
Whatever trust and image micro-influencers have, it will have an impact on your brand image. The trust micro-influencers have developed time to build, and the proof of this is the strong engagement in likes, comments, and shares they receive.
In the end, we have one thing to say micro-influencers are here to stay. There is an opportunity for firms to improve their online visibility by collaborating with the Instagram micro-influencer agency. Influencer marketing will help you to grow your business revenue and develop long-term relationships with your customers. So, why wait? Grow your business with influencer marketing.