Why are companies turning to micro-influencers? (and why you should, too)
Influencer marketing is infected with skepticism these days, and as a result, it will never be the infallible, not-so-secret weapon that marketers hope for.The influencer-centric failure of the Fyre Festival, for example, showed the smokescreen nature of produced, sponsored content. Or consider the SoHo Instagram influencer penthouse, which demonstrated that large-scale influencers don’t require a character to earn a commercial deal (they just need a high follower count).The point is that influencer marketing is prevalent, yet consumers find it difficult to trust it as genuine advice. People are fed up with not being able to trust what they see and hear. However, with 40% of the world’s population using social media (approximately 3 billion people), it’s difficult to ignore the adverts and sponsored material we see as we browse. So, how are customers reacting to influencer content? Rather than relying on influencers, they’re moving to micro-influencers: smaller-scale, more genuine brand supporters who consumers can trust.
What exactly are micro-influencers, and why should you pay attention to them?
First and foremost, what exactly is a micro-influencer?
Micro-influencers are ordinary people with small social media followings of 1 to 5 thousand people. Brands are increasingly resorting to these influencer groups because they are more honest and approachable to consumers, resulting in significantly more engagement than traditional influencers with larger followings. Furthermore, because micro-influencers are up-and-coming influencers with niche audiences (rather than celebrities with unachievable lives), they have a more authentic connection with smaller but more highly engaged audiences, implying that their recommendation has greater weight with consumers.
Additionally, they are more accessible and less expensive to work with for brands. Micro-influencers, unlike classic macro-influencers, aren’t usually looking for large direct payouts from brands. Instead, individuals are frequently content with a free product sample, early access to new products, or simply the attention that a company may provide them by sharing their material. As a result, your business is assisting them in growing their followings while also assisting you in creating high-quality social proof: a win-win situation.
Authenticity has the greatest impact.
Celebrities and social influencers have a decreasing impact on people’s purchasing decisions, according to a recent Stackla study—only 9% think influencer content has a significant impact on their purchases. Customers instead look to legitimate user-generated content (UGC), such as content provided by micro-influencers and brand supporters, when making shopping decisions; 79 percent of individuals say user-generated content has a significant impact on their purchasing bodrum escorts decisions.
It’s critical to treat people who enjoy creating content about your business as content creators if you want to build strong relationships with actual brand supporters. Working with micro-influencers who have a personal connection to the sector is also a great way for brands to build community.
A partnership with a micro-influencer is a win-win situation for both the business and the micro-influencer: the brand gets more attention, and the micro-influencer gets more credibility. Micro-influencer content is 6.7 times more effective in engaging viewers than content from more prominent influencers, according to studies. Furthermore, influencers with 1,000 followers had 85 percent more engagement than those with 100,000. Engagement tends to decline as the number of followers grows. When the medium is more easily accessible, the message has a greater impact.
LUSH Cosmetics, H&M, and Glossier, for example, have a successful micro-influencer approach.
Campaigns with brand micro-influencers that have worked in the past
LUSH Cosmetics is a British cosmetics brand.
On a micro level, Lush Cosmetics collaborates with micro-influencers.
Lush cultivates an organic group of micro-influencers by treating their natural brand champions as influencers, who simultaneously promote Lush and their brands with content that connects with their audiences.
“The influencers we work with share something because they genuinely enjoy it.” Sabine Schwirtz, former Community Manager at Lush, says, “I think our audiences can see the difference.”
Getting real is an important component of the micro-influencer equation, and it also saves time and money that might otherwise be spent developing or curating less authentic content. “A micro-micro influencer may have posted one photo in a face mask,” Schwirtz explains, “so we include them in our ambassador programme, #FirstLookLushies, which offers them more information about the brand and, as a result, they create more UGC.”
Lush supports organic brand advocacy by creating relationships with #FirstLookLushies and re-publishing original material throughout the company’s channels.
H&M
H&M established Itsapark, a Q&A-type blog, to provide style advice, inspiration, and feel-good fashion support.
“Changing consumer behaviour and technological innovation will continue to affect how and when people shop,” H&M said in its annual report for 2018, after witnessing trends in the marketing landscape.
Steps to launching a successful micro-influencer campaign
Here’s how you may use examples to develop a successful micro-influencer marketing strategy for your company:
1. Determine your objectives.
Setting goals for what your team intends to get out of using micro-influencers is vital, just like setting goals for any other marketing tactic. Working with influencers should, at the end of the day, help you achieve your larger business objectives; thus, a micro-influencer marketing campaign shouldn’t exist in isolation from other marketing initiatives.
