Influencer marketing is a type of business marketing that has taken off all over the world and it’s for a good reason. Social media influencers have the power to sell products by already being an established authority figure in their industry creating trust with their audience, who then become loyal followers and fans of that influencer which means they are more likely to follow the advice of that influencer.

Influencer marketing also allows companies to reach a vast audience of their target market with the help of influencers. Influencers may work on paid contracts, for free or through a combination of both, with businesses creating promotional content such as; product placement, adverts, banner ads and sponsorship deals. The more high profile that influencer is, the more they can charge for a single promotional post/story, which is why we often see some of the worlds most famous celebrities marketing products on their social media.

Sometimes these influencers are paid to promote brands that they actually do believe in and sometimes they are paid to promote products that don’t quite fit with their personal brand values.

There are many reasons why brands invest time and money into influencers;

The internet has changed how consumers spend their time by allowing people to connect with each other all over the world. Social influencers break through this and provide a way for brands to connect with consumers on a personal level which is why influencer marketing has become such a powerful tool in the marketer’s arsenal.

It can be difficult to measure the impact that ads have within social media because of ad blockers however; Influencers create organic content that can’t be stopped by ad blockers since they are regular users. This means the content influencers produce is not only seen but is seen as trustful and reliable because it isn’t paid for advertising.

Influencer marketing has an edge over other types of digital marketing because 78% of consumers trust influencers more than celebrities, experts or critics.

The social media platform can be seen by all users without restrictions meaning brands have a much better chance to reach consumers with ads than other platforms.

Influencer marketing costs less than traditional forms of digital marketing such as print adverts and banner ads.

Influencers are more likely to be seen as trustworthy because they are not paid actors or celebrities, rather just everyday people who enjoy sharing their personal experiences with brands.

It may seem like it’s impossible for the average person to become a social influencer however; there are several ways to become an influencer:

• Use your social media profiles as a way to express yourself and share personal brand experiences. This builds trust with your audience which will eventually lead to opportunities within the industry you’re interested in eg fashion, beauty, sport, fitness etc.
• Participate in conversations about brands that you like and share your opinions with the world. If you love a product or brand, it’s likely that other people will feel the same way as you do if they see how passionate you are about them.
• Interact with influencers within your industry and build relationships this way.
• Comment on organic posts created by top brands within your industry. When you comment on their posts, they are likely to see your profile and this may lead to future opportunities within the industry.
• Set yourself goals eg if you have 100 followers by the end of this month, work towards achieving that goal using creative content ideas

An influencer takes part in activities that relate to the industry they are interested in eg sport, beauty, fashion etc. However; many social media influencers also work within their own individualized brand meaning they can take on other roles such as blogger, designer or entrepreneur.

Take a picture of your breakfast. Put on that cool new dress you bought. Attend the latest fashion event. Post it on social media, tag it with some hashtags, and wait for the likes to roll in!

Okay, so maybe becoming a social media influencer isn’t quite as easy as suggested above. But while attaining such a position may be difficult, it is far from impossible. You can get there by following these steps:

While a social media influencer’s job is to promote things (eg, products and services), you don’t want to come across as “selling” too much. If the audience feels like you’re doing too much marketing, they will tune out.

Your brand is all about who you are and what your account is about. It is the tone you convey in your posts, which can vary depending on whether they are about work or life events. It is also tied to the hashtags you use.

For example, Nike uses #justdoit to promote its activewear and sneakers. But if another brand like American Eagle were to use the same hashtag, it would come across as selling and wouldn’t work well.

One way to build your brand is to stick to a color palette when creating your posts. This makes it easy for the audience to recognize your brand (and come back!) without feeling like they are getting sold all the time.

Working with other social media influencers is a great way to help grow your own audience.

Switching up the platforms you use will also expand your reach and introduce your brand to new potential fans. If you’re primarily active on Instagram, try your hand at YouTube or Facebook too.

You can even collaborate across different apps by using cross-platform hashtags or taking part in a Twitter chat.

The key to being successful on social media is to be present without being overwhelming. Posting once every few days will keep you top of mind, yet it won’t annoy your social media followers with constant updates. And remember that less can also mean more. If your social media presence is sparse, it’s more likely to catch people’s eyes when they do see it.

A lot of brands and social media influencers post about similar things: their latest purchase, a shoot they’re working on, an event they attended — or even photos of their pets!

Remember that you’re not just representing yourself, but your brand too. If the content doesn’t fit with your brand or is just plain boring, it’s probably best to delete it.

It takes more than sticking a couple of hashtags on an image to make them work. The secret is knowing which hashtags to use.

For example, using a hashtag like #wanderlust on an image of your new coffee mug won’t do anything for you because it’s too generic. On the other hand, posting a photo from your trip with a corresponding hashtag will work because it fits with your brand and is likely something people are searching for.

When you have a great handle and bio, there’s no reason why someone can’t find you on social media! But if nobody knows your account exists or how to reach out to you, it won’t be very useful.

– Make sure to include your website, blog or podcast URL on your bio so that people can easily find you.

– Add links back to your profile from all of your profiles where possible, eg, LinkedIn and Twitter bios.

– Include keywords in the name of each of your profiles, eg, @lenscription(brand name) and @beckyphil (the topic of the blog).

– Add links back to your profile from all of your profiles where possible, including email signatures.

– Be consistent across all social media so that people can easily find you. This includes using the same handle, bio and profile photo on each platform.

Once your content is created, it’s time to promote it through your social media channels! But you need a goal in mind:

Do you want people to comment or share the post? or Would you prefer people visit your site or join an email list?

Social media is a great tool for building brand awareness. But you can’t track how well it’s working unless you have analytics set up.

– See who is engaging with your posts by setting up Google Analytics to track the traffic coming from social media sites. This will help show which posts are getting clicked on the most so that you can create more of what people want.

Find out how many people are sharing your posts by setting up a Buffer account to automatically share your new tweets on other social sites like Facebook and LinkedIn.

– Track engagement through Conversions for Instagram, which will give you Instagram analytics right inside Google Analytics.

The easier it is for people to share your posts, the more likely they are to do it. But don’t make them work too hard!

– Use clickable images in your tweets, which will make it easy for people to easily click on an image without having to manually type out a link. — Place social media buttons right next to your important content on your site to make it easy for people to share.

If you’re sharing a personal post about the first day of school, but all of your other posts are about something entirely different (say, travel), then your social media followers will be confused.

– Make sure that each piece of content you share on social media is in line with your brand.

– If you’re sharing personal posts, make sure to mention this in the description of the post so that people know they don’t need to expect business content from you on that channel.

– If you’re sharing personal posts, make sure to mention this in the description of the post so that people know they don’t need to expect business content from you on that channel.

If you’re sharing content on another site, make sure to say where it came from and give credit where it’s due.

Social media is a place for having fun and showing your brand personality.

Here are some ideas:

• Use GIFs (Graphic Interchange Format) in your posts.
• Use images to get people’s attention.
• Ask questions in your posts!

The above tips are just the beginning of how you can use social media for marketing, but they’ll give you a solid foundation so that you can explore and go even further with it! And if all else fails, remember: make sure to be human! People like dealing with other people, not robots.

Remember: there’s no such thing as doing social media wrong… as long as you’re consistent and authentic!