Influencer marketing as a channel has come of growth.

McKinsey estimates around 35% of all ad spend by 2019 will be in influencer marketing and brands like Qantas is redirecting half of their advertising spend to new mediums such as social influencers.

This is terrific news for small businesses who are often locked out of advertising options that get to big audiences, however, it is not as simple as hooking up your cart to someone with a smartphone, a bunch of followers and a creative streak.

Influencer marketing has come under increased scrutiny in 2017 and is becoming a more legitimate and predictable marketing channel.

Up until very recently, many Influencers were getting away with hiding the fact they were paid for content or recommendations and that practice must stop.   Celebrities like Matt Moran and Zoe Foster Blake have come under interest for failure to disclose and the AANA (Australian Association of National Advertisers) has now included a clause to ensure that Influencers cannot “camouflage” paid content as advertising.

At Ruby Cha Cha we are having a greater number of conversations with clients who are planning to launch an influencer marketing campaign and we have even run a few influencer focus groups to understand the basics of social proof strategy.

This blog should help you consider a few important points when considering experimenting with influencer marketing.

6 tips for engaging an influencer for your brand

1. Influencer marketing is great for driving brand awareness but you have to put in the effort to ensure you have a strong campaign brief and you understand the rational and emotional properties of your brand or product that you are trying to drive and the assets of the influencer who can become an extension of your brand.
2. Certain brands are better suited to influencer marketing than others. Food, beverage, fashion and beauty are natural fits.  Services such as travel and accommodation, lifestyle, health and wellbeing also tend to find natural fits.  Other industries and brands may not suit or will need to find a suitable niche influencer… for instance mining, waste services or insurance.
3. Even with a strong fit between your brand, industry and influencer marketing you still need to find the right person to represent you. This is the hardest part and new businesses like Hypebrands, Zoomph and Tribe have emerged to help you do just that.  A clear campaign brief will guide you but you also need to do your research to check compatibility, influencer engagement (not just number of followers) and authenticity – this is critical for consumer engagement.  This means you need to check for previous non-disclosure or negative comment on your brand or industry and the pros and cons of this.
4. Relevancy over reach is the formula. The influencer needs to be the right person, saying the right things, in the right place at the right time for your brand. Easier said than done.  Some influencers will be on the rise so might not yet have the following, and others might not be as popular as they once were, but this doesn’t mean that they might not be right for you.  Make sure you get clarity on how your influencer is relevant to your market and proof of relevance.
5. Importantly influencers get to where they are because they are meant to be authentic, their ‘own person’ and by breaking or disrupting the rules of marketing. You need to let them have creative freedom so they can engage your brand with their audience
6. Finally, as with any campaign, you need to measure and track success. Analytics these days are easy to get and often free. Check and adjust accordingly during the campaign. If you want something more bespoke, then talk to an agency like Ruby Cha Cha who can help you with more comprehensive tracking needs.

Good luck with your influencer strategy.  It’s a great channel, in growth and critical if your target audience is Millennials or Gen Z.

And please don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team or market research experts here at Ruby Cha Cha.