3 Simple Ways to Partner with Social Media Influencers for Your Brand

Influencer marketing can be one of the simplest ways to build brand awareness and grow your audience using social media. Influencer marketing is the “new” word of mouth, and if you’re confused about what to do with your social media influencers once you have them, you’ve come to the right place. In this post I’ll share 3 really simple ways to partner with influencers (without creating any content on your own).

Before we get started I’d like to revisit some points I’ve shared in my previous influencer marketing post about why you should be interested in influencer marketing for your brand.

Benefits of influencer marketing:

• It’s like native advertising and won’t interrupt the consumer’s browsing experience. Besides, who pays attention to ads?
  
• Helps build SEO: Not only will you have people talking about your brand – they will probably use links to your website or landing page, and remember – social media posts now rank in search.
  
• Can be cost effective/Higher ROI. Emphasis on can. Depending on the influencer, their network and how much others have paid compensation may vary. A study by McKinsey found that “marketing-induced consumer-to-consumer word of mouth generates more than twice the sales of paid advertising.” This is the digital form of controlled word of mouth marketing and in the end could be more cost effective way to acquire leads and sales.
  
• Builds brand awareness: Influencers bring themselves, and their network – exposing your brand to new sets of (the right) eyes.

Now that you’re refreshed on a few influencer marketing facts let’s get to what you came here for – how to partner with your social media influencers. If you have your social media influencers ready, or are considering trying out an influencer marketing campaign but don’t really know what to do with your influencer(s) here are a few tried and tested ideas to start with:

Account Take Overs

Let your influencer use your Snapchat, Instagram or Twitter account for the day to post about what they’re up to. I’d suggest having a (brand related) direction for the day – maybe they can explore your store or destination. The idea here is that by inviting their network to yours, you open your brand to a new audience, while surprising and delighting your current network.

Product How To’s

Your influencer can record and post videos on their accounts that teach their audience how to use your product. These can be in the form of quick tips, unkown uses or tricks. Not only will you educate people on your product, you’ll be educating a new set of eyes.

Behind The Scenes

Who doesn’t love to feel special? Invite influencers to your event and give them behind the scenes access. You can even create a special event just for them. Encourage them to share the experience with their audience.

Things to keep in mind:

• Remember to be clear with instructions. For example include specific directions to add your URL to Snapchat snaps about your product, use specific hashtags on Twitter posts etc.
  
• Let the influencer put their spin on creative. Remember these people have a big, engaged followings because they know what their followers want. If you don’t trust an influencer with the direction they may take, then maybe they shouldn’t be part of your campaign or set strict guidelines.

Influencer partnerships don’t have to be complicated once you find the right influencers. The success of your partnerships will rely heavily on the caliber of the research conducted to determine if the influencer’s audience is right for your brand. You can even think of new ways to use content created by your influencers for added value – for example using influencer content to create one complete series, or even pop them on a landing page to drive more traffic and extend the life of the campaign.

Any questions about social media influencers or influencer campaigns? Direct them to me in a comment below. Thank you!

This article was originally posted here.

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