Influencers as the name suggests, are people with the ability to have an effect on another’s behavior. Basically the ability to influence another. Think about it, have you ever recommended a certain dish/restaurant to your friends? When said friend(s) dines at the restaurant and orders the specific dish, that itself is an act of influence. And that makes you, the person reading this, an influencer as well. Influencers vary in terms of the content they specialize in (e.g. sports, beauty), as well as their follower count and reach. These individuals are knowledgeable about specific topics, they actively communicate with their followers and they have a certain level of authority. In other words, people look up to them for information and are interested in understanding their thoughts on a certain subject matter.
As such, brands enjoy leveraging influencers - particularly those with large followings - to reach out to the mass audience. In fact, results from a survey conducted in 2019 revealed that 80% of marketers find influencer marketing effective and close to two-thirds intend to increase their expenditure.
The million dollar question is: How do influencers play a part in your marketing campaign?
Increase brand awareness
They are essentially the bridge between companies and potential leads. Influencers have a loyal pool of followers on hand, ever-ready to take in any information which comes their way. With the help of social media, engaging with their followers and sharing content has become much easier. Naturally, influencer marketing seems like the way to go. Be it one influencer with a higher follower count or a crowd of influencers with lower follower count, they each have their own way of connecting with their followers. Click here to learn more about the strengths and weaknesses of each tier.
According to GlobalWebIndex, close to half (47%) of internet users globally use an adblocker in 2019! This explains why your advertisements may not be performing as well. Advertisements by influencers have a higher consumption rate as their followers find the ads highly relevant. Influencer marketing can help brands maximize their brand awareness within the online sphere which is also the first phase of the AIDA model, Attention.
Personalized content
An influencer’s advertisements are generally more appealing than that of brands simply because he/she delivers personalized content in a style unique to them. This could be their way of introducing a product, or a creative video edit which increases their likeability and generates interest. With personalized content, influencers are able to produce posts that are relevant to what their followers like and therefore, are able to help drive interests for products/services - the second stage of the AIDA model, Interest.
Trustworthy
With the increase in celebrity endorsements comes the question of whether they truly use that product. After all, celebrities receive large amounts of money in exchange for putting their name behind a product/service. A good example would be Khloe Kardashian’s endorsement for Sugar Bear Hair vitamins - is her hair on fleek because of the vitamins or her ever-ready team of hairstylists? We’ll never know.
On the other hand, influencers are known to be more frank with their followers because 1) they understand the importance of sharing their honest thoughts on a product/service, and 2) it’s a source of income for them; they wouldn’t want to jeopardize their career. After all, they are nothing without the trust of their followers.
Another plus point that contributes to their trustability is the fact that influencers specialize in a specific subject matter. For instance, local influencer Mong Chin’s content is mainly beauty-focused. Hence, it’s no surprise that the majority of her followers consists of makeup and skincare lovers.
Gaining consumers’ trust enables them to fulfill the third and last stage of the AIDA model - Desire and Action - as they will be more convincing when sharing about a product they genuinely like.
Social media won’t be going out of style anytime soon, which is why if you’re considering riding on the trend of influencer marketing, the time is now. However, a lot of work goes into selecting an influencer who would be the best fit for your brand and product. On the bright side, we’re here to help you out!
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