What is Influencer Marketing and How Does it Work?

Social media has become a go-to platform for brands to communicate with their target customers. In a digital-first time, being active on social media isn’t a choice anymore, it’s a necessity. One of the best social media strategies to use is influencer marketing. 

But what is influencer marketing, and how does it work? Let’s start with the basics. 

What is an influencer?

An influencer is an individual with a large following on social media. These people have influence over their followers, who trust and follow their recommendations or opinions. 

What are the different types of influencers?

Not only do influencers come in all follower sizes, they also come from all niches and industries. Let’s start with the different size brackets, nano, micro, macro, mega and hero. 

Nano influencers are the smallest bracket of influencers. They have between 1K and 10K followers. Nano influencers, while they don’t have the largest follower counts, tend to have incredibly high engagement rates and close relationships with their audiences, meaning they can often be the most influential. 

What is a micro influencer? Micro influencers have between 10K and 50K followers. Micro influencers have a higher reach than nano influencers, while maintaining a high level of trust with their followers. 

Macro influencers have between 50K and 100K followers. Macro influencers are often incredibly appealing to brands as they have a large reach, but are still trusted and respected within their niches. Due to their size, however, they tend to have a lower engagement rate than micro and nano influencers. 

Mega influencers have between 100K and 1M followers—a pretty large size bracket. Mega influencers have an incredible reach, meaning they are a good choice for brand awareness. However, their engagement rates are often lower and there is more of a disconnect between mega influencers and their audiences. 

Hero influencers have more than 1M followers. They have sometimes passed the threshold of influencer and entered celebrity territory. 

What is influencer marketing?

“What is influencer marketing?” is a frequently asked question within the marketing industry. Influencer marketing is a form of social media marketing that uses endorsements and product placements from influencers—people who have a large following on social media. These influencers can be celebrities, bloggers, or even Instagram users with a sizeable audience or engagement rate. 

The idea behind influencer marketing is that when an influencer promotes a brand or product, their followers will be more likely to pay attention and take action. This approach is particularly effective for brands that are newer or trying to reach a specific audience who may not have heard of the brand or its products before. 

What is an influencer marketing strategy?

When considering “what is influencer marketing?” you need to consider the different strategies. There are many different strategies and techniques used in influencer marketing, depending on the goals of the campaign and the type of influencer being used. Some common approaches include using influencers to promote specific products or services, hosting contests and giveaways that involve the influencer’s audience, or creating branded content that is shared across social media. 

Your influencer marketing strategy will vary from campaign to campaign, and from brand to brand. Working with an influencer marketing agency can ensure your strategy is optimised from start to finish. 

FAQs

What is an example of influencer marketing?

The best way to understand the answer to “what is influencer marketing?” is to see some real-life examples. 

@jenn.maxwell #ad Lovee baggy outfits @Primark #posing #posingtips #howtopose #poseideas #poseinspo #posinginspo #IWorkWithPrimark #PrimarkUSA ♬ Sunroof – Nicky Youre & dazy

The above example is influencer marketing for Primark in the US. The influencer is showing off Primark’s product offering in an engaging, creative way. Not only is the influencer showing off the products, but she is offering her audience help with poses that her audience can use when showing off their Primark purchases. 

How important is influencer marketing?

Influencer marketing is one of the most effective ways of reaching, communicating and influencing your target audience. With influencers available in all sizes and niches, influencer marketing should be a main focus for all brands. 

What makes influencer marketing successful?

Influencer marketing is successful because it uses the pre-existing relationship between an influencer and their audience. Influencers have worked hard to build trust with their audience, and understand completely what their audience enjoys and wants to see. 

What is KPI in influencer marketing?

KPIs are key performance indicators. Choosing key performance indicators that are relevant to your objectives will assist you in evaluating the success of your campaign and calculating your total return on investment. 

Our Influencer marketing agency and Social agency are located worldwide, with our agency network based in the USA, UK, UAE and China.

If you want to receive our industry insights, visit our Influencer Marketing & Social Media blog.

@ Socially Powerful

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