You might think that influencer marketing is fairly new, and came about due to modern day social media platforms. However, influencer marketing has been around for quite some time. From the early blog posts to the variety of content and platforms we see today. The power of influencer marketing has stood the test of time. Therefore, today we will be talking about 4 reasons to tap into influencer marketing.
Social media marketing 2021 #1. Influencer marketing is on the rise
In case you have missed it, influencer marketing has been widely used by marketers throughout the globe. For the past few years, the industry has been rapidly expanding. This coming year is no exception, as the industry is expected to be worth $13.8 billion by the end of 2021.
In a world struck by Covid 19, many industries are reeling from the financial impact of the pandemic. Some industries are contracting while others are plateauing. However, the influencer marketing industry has taken many by surprise, and continues to see huge growth in numbers. After all, with consumers cooped at home, what better way to engage than through the means of social media?
Take the travel industry as an example. The halt in travel plans seemed highly ominous for the industry. However, the rise of domestic tourism was seen in several countries that have managed to control the spread of the pandemic. Hotels, which often advertise to attract foreign tourists are now targeting their online advertisements to the domestic market.
Tapping into influencer marketing to engage is a great way. In this period, social media has been our only source of entertainment. Looking at influencers enjoying their staycations has influenced many of us to plan our own. After all, the idea of a staycation is the ideal holiday amidst the travel restrictions. From the fully booked hotels, we certainly see how there remains demand with services provided by the travel industry, and social media is a great way to reach out to these consumers.
Social media marketing 2021 #2. Most brands have carved out a budget specifically for content marketing
As the saying goes, content is king. There are many different types of content. From the short but catchy Tiktok videos to fun gifs, content reinforces brand image, allowing consumers to associate your brand with the content it creates.
This is no wonder why a majority (59%) of brands have dedicated a budget to content marketing. After all, there are many ways to reach out to consumers through content marketing. It is no surprise that marketers are attracted to content marketing, given the numerous platforms and the wide variety of content one could create.
However, the variety of content might pose a dilemma. What kind of content should my brand focus on and how should I go about creating content? Well, influencer marketing could be the answer. Influencers are also known as content creators, as they are experienced at creating content that their followers enjoy. Influencers have managed to amass a following due to their expertise at content creation. From the correct tone to the creation and curation of images that are eventually shared, influencers are well experienced in the art of engaging over social media.
Therefore, influencers could act as content creators for a brand. Brands often collaborate with influencers so that branded content can be uploaded onto the influencer’s social media account. However, uploading the content created by these influencers onto your brand’s account can be a great way to attract traffic. At the same time, followers of your brand’s social media accounts are able to associate a specific persona to your brand, strengthening brand recognition.
Social media marketing 2021 #3. Long term relationships with influencers
According to influencer marketing hub, 56% of brands are using the same influencers across their different campaigns.
This might seem counter intuitive. After all, it is not preferable to switch up the influencers we work with to ensure that the different groups of followers are exposed to our branded content? Well, while constantly changing the group of influencers you work with can be a great way to extend your brand’s reach, it is always ideal to have long term collaborations with some influencers.
This is because long term collaborations can help to reinforce brand image. For instance, if a brand works closely with a particular influencer, the characteristics of this influencer would be associated with the brand. Long term collaborations do not necessarily mean working on multiple campaigns, but it can also mean getting the influencer to be involved in a new range of products. This is often seen in the beauty and fashion industry, where limited edition collections that are launched in collaboration with influencers are commonplace.
Social media marketing 2021 #4. The returns of influencer marketing
There are many benefits to the use of influencer marketing. On one hand, we have the measurable ROIs (Return on Investments), which include the reach (number of people who have seen your content), the engagement rate (which measures the level of interest) and the conversion rate (increase in sales). These indicators are tangible and easy to measure. For instance, the number of purchases that were linked from an influencer’s post can be a great way to measure the conversion rate of an influencer marketing campaign.
However, there are many intangible benefits of influencer marketing. One of the main benefits being branding. As you might have noticed, not every influencer marketing campaign contains a link to the webpage for the customer to purchase the item. In fact, the caption or content might not even include a call to action to purchase. However, the beauty of influencer marketing is that it works in inconspicuous ways. For instance, you might be craving sushi due to the post of fresh sashimi you saw on social media a few hours ago. We might not realise this, but what we see and hear on social media has a great impact on our day-to-day decision making.
Conclusion
In a nutshell, there are many benefits to tapping into influencer marketing. This perhaps explains why the influencer marketing industry is always expanding. There is endless potential in the realm of influencer marketing. After all, social media is constantly evolving. From new social media applications to different forms of engaging content, consumers never get bored of social media and its endless offers. Therefore, what better way to attract your consumer’s attention than through the use of social media and its content creators?
Source
Influencermarketinghub,influencer-marketing-statistics/#:~:text=From%20%241.7%20billion%20in%202016,reach%20%2413.8%20billion%20in%202021.
