Most businesses understand the necessity of communicating their brand through more traditional marketing channels such as print and TV advertising, but since the indisputable rise of the social media juggernauts Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, a new marketing tool has emerged and its power cannot be ignored.
What is an Influencer?
It’s a relatively new term for a relatively new phenomenon, but influencers are a proven marketing tool when targeted correctly.
An influencer is someone who is very active on social media and blogs. They will likely have a substantial number of followers who will engage with their content on a regular basis. These influencers will host and contribute to important conversations about brands and services and have a valuable connection with their audience. Targeting the right influencer for your business is a great way to target key consumers of a brand or service and shape conversations that will encourage positive buyer action.
Does my business need Influencers?
In a word: YES.
If you carefully consider just how many people subscribe to a Facebook fan page or read a restaurant review on a blog before that first date, you’ll appreciate the sheer scale of what an influencer can achieve within a certain demographic. If time is taken to first identify and then build good relationships with influencers, you can leverage them to build your credibility and in turn drive buyers towards purchase.
Word of mouth recommendations and criticisms spread through social media faster than ever before, and now fans, brand advocates and niche promoters have the platform once only occupied by the media and communications elite.
Who are my Influencers?
Consumers have become increasingly media savvy and tend to trust recommendations from a third party more often than a brand itself.
One way to find the influencers with the greatest reach is to use Klout, a website that uses social media analytics to rank its users according to online social influence via the ‘Klout Score’, a numerical value between 1 and 100. By determining the user score, Klout measures the size of a user’s social media network and correlates the content created to measure how and to what extent other users interact with that content.
A noteworthy influencer in marketing circles, and an example of an appropriate influencer of Infodec Communications’ target consumer, is Jeff Bullas who is a respected commentator and successful blogger. When the correct influencer is aligned with your brand, they bring with it repetitive exposure and lasting conversations with not only their audience, but their audience’s audience as well.
Remember, the key to successfully employing market influencers to influence your consumers’ buying patterns is to target the influencers that best fit your brand. The professionals at Infodec Communications can build the right marketing strategy for your business, engage with your market’s influencers, and deliver greater social-based exposure.
Talk to us today to discuss what can be done for your business.