Did you know 92% of consumers trust an influencer more than an advertisement or even a traditional celebrity endorsement?
In this decade, there’s been a lot of discussions about influencer marketing. Is it all it’s cracked up to be?
In short, the answer is yes. Influencers have a simple job, to influence the purchase decisions of UK consumers.
In fact, in 2023, a third of UK companies were going to increase their influencer marketing budgets whilst 45% planned to keep their influencer spending the same. These figures mean influencer marketing must be providing a strong return on investment.
Between the years of 2019 and 2023, influencer ad expenditure more than tripled, reaching a massive £791 million. To put this into context, that is more than what is spent on cinema, radio, or magazine advertising in the UK!
So, let’s dive into why influencer marketing has made such a big impact on the marketing industry and how you can use it most effectively.
Different types of social media influencers
Influencers come with different strengths and weaknesses. When selecting an influencer, brands need to understand the choices available so they can choose the most available.
Nano-influencers have a small but highly engaged following, typically ranging from 1,000 to 10,000 followers. The benefits of choosing these influences are that their followers are responsive and interactive. They have an authentic connection with the influencer.
Micro-influencers typically range from 10,000 to 100,000 followers. They often specialise in specific niches and are known for their authentic, relatable content and strong connections with their audience.
Macro-influencers have a substantial follower base, typically ranging from 100,000 to 1 million followers. They have built a significant platform for themselves with high engagement. Ideal for campaigns that are looking for broad visibility.
Mega influencers have a massive follower base which typically exceeds 1 million followers. These influencers are often celebrities, well-known public figures, or highly influential individuals in their respective fields. Their large reach allows them to impact a wide audience across various demographics and geographic locations.
Selecting the right type of influencer
For a brand to choose someone to represent them, it needs to be done with care.
Considerations include:
- Personal lifestyle and interests
- Age
- Gender
- The brands they already use (if they compete with yours)
If an influencer starts promoting an item that doesn’t align with their personal brand it can fall very flat, and sometimes even pick up negative comments or press.
For example, you wouldn’t choose an overweight person who has no interest in exercise to promote your new range of protein shakes – the values don’t make sense and your products won’t sell.
You should consider if the followers of this influencer are in your target demographic too, otherwise you could be wasting valuable marketing budget.
If selected correctly, influencers create a great opportunity to build trust and authenticity.
How to measure success
With modern tracking analytics, and reporting, you can see which of your influencers are getting the most reach and engagement, and in turn making you the most money.
UTM parameters are a great way to track visitor activity – each influencer should have a unique link, and you can gain visibility for click links through this.
You’ll often see influencers share unique promo codes for money off, this is much easier for the influencer to claim payment from their sales, whilst offering something to their following too, and further building loyalty.
For businesses, this allows them to gain data-driven insights and real visibility into their consumer’s behaviour and their preferences.
People resonate with people
One of the first brands to focus their main marketing strategies around influencer marketing was Gymshark, a company now valued at $1.45 billion.
They pulled together some of the biggest names in the fitness industry and utilised the platforms these people already had for their own product reach.
Once a product or collection was being launched the influencers spoke to their audiences in their own unique tone of voice. They shared their opinion on new ranges, gave try-on hauls so people could see the product in real-time, and answer questions.
It creates a community atmosphere, and that’s where the return on investment is made for big brands in influencer marketing.
How much does influencer marketing cost?
There’s no fixed cost for this type of marketing. It depends on which type of influencer you decide to go with, their following and engagement, as well as the type of promotion you want from them.
For a certain rate (often in the thousands), brands will agree with an influencer the outcomes they want e.g one story, one post etc. The cost can vary depending on which platforms are used and how many.
It’s always important to have agreed terms before activating a collaboration, so everyone is on the same page in terms of expectations.
Are you considering adding influencer marketing into your marketing mix?
If influencer marketing sounds like it could be perfect for your next campaign, get in touch with us and let’s see if we can bring your brand to life with the perfect collaboration.
Let’s work on getting your brand in front of your target market!