You want to be an Influencer?

We all do know what happened with that festival in Bahamas,  Fyre Festival.

However, that fiasco is one of the few case studies wherein Influencer Marketing has reigned in as the perfect messenger tool to get the word across and it doesn’t include replicated press releases nor curated standard images. It’s done within and through the ‘influencer’s’ perspective.

With the growth and influx of social media on Influencer Marketing in 2014, this tactic became more prevalent and used by every business.  There have been incredible successes and few massive failures but it’s a tactic which includes thorough research, consideration, and strategy had to be considered.

This strategy still proves its worth as one of the  “fastest-growing online customer-acquisition method” over the organic search, email, paid search, and more. Brands and entrepreneurs are still engaging and investing in celebrities and ‘influencers’ to give their products and brands a human touch through testimonials and boost their social proof.

Question is, Is Influencer Marketing for you? Isn’t it supposed to be dead by now? Is it still effective? Will you still get a bang of your buck or get to earn through your posts?

Good question.

If you’re that someone who wants to make a career out of ‘influencing’, there are a whole lot of understanding you should know, realize and make an effort to build.

Here are a few considerations:

• Before you engage and say ‘yes’ to this path, you’ve got to understand the brand’s objectives and always keep it in mind as you oblige and create posts dedicated for the product, experience, property or whatever the brand wanted to communicate.
• The engagement speaks your truth (does it represent you?)
• You’ve tried and believe in the product or brand whole-heartedly
• Swear by its integrity
• Is it doable and fair?

As an influencer, you have to exactly know what the engagement is for and communicate the objective accordingly.

Brand Awareness

You’ll be able to introduce the brand and products to a new audience and have them as visible as possible even after all the required posts and engagements?

Educating Niches of Consumers

Get to communicate the benefits of using and having the product, how it correlates your lifestyle, why it’s one of the best in the market and why it fits you and your followers.

SEO Authority

With every post (even if it’s no longer the required engagement), you’ll be able to hyperlink and have their keywords included in your posts to boost their search ranking and to also build your brand as a leader and mover of the product.

Social Following

Your social following is your currency.  The goal is to establish the brand’s identity within your lifestyle and get to also tell your following that it may also be the right fit for them. This tactic correlates in bringing in sales.

Damage Control

Negative comments can never be avoided. However, when the going gets tough – influencers are there to stabilize the product or the brand that all is well and that with your integrity, negative comments shouldn’t be a concern.

User-Generated Content

Raising awareness by encouraging users to share your content socially and organically. These can be a form of contests, raffle or give-away.

Trust

With your influence and integrity, your engagement helps the brand gain their confidence and build authenticity. It matches and directly communicates to their target market which in result builds trust and loyalty.

You see, at the end of the day, brands and products are engaging with you to send traffic to their stores and bring in referrals, recommendations, and revenue. Just as the same, you’d want brands to trust you more and speak of you highly for also speaking their language.

Influencer Marketing is an engagement to wanting the same thing, a win-win. It’s never just about ‘posting’ in-exchange of ‘freebies’. Think like an entrepreneur, not a freeloader.

This tactic isn’t dead – not at least anytime soon. And, as an influencer, you should create an innovative on how you’ll be able to communicate brands products and services with the end goal: awareness and acquisition.