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Everyone knows how big of an impact influencers have had on modern digital marketing. Many market-savvy brands are now leaning into the influencer marketing trend by reaching out to social media personalities, using them to advertise products, spread brand awareness, etc.
While working with huge influencers with hundreds of thousands of followers can seem attractive, “micro-influencers” could sometimes be superior marketing partners. This guide will explore who micro-influencers are, why they’re great marketing partners, and how to find the right micro-influencers for your brand.
Who Are Micro-Influencers?
Micro-influencers are social media personalities with a smaller social following than celebrities or macro-influencers, who often also have a lot of credibility in a specific niche or industry.
When you think of an influencer, you probably think of a high-flying, highly popular social media personality with hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of followers. However, many of those influencers are generalized; they influence buying and marketing trends in big industries like fashion, tech, etc.
Micro-influencers are different. Instead of having hundreds of thousands or more followers, they usually have between a few thousand and 10,000 followers maximum. On the plus side, they are more knowledgeable about a particular industry or niche and have a higher-than-average engagement rate with their followers as they interact more with their smaller audiences.
Given these differences and the fact that 61% of consumers say their purchase decisions are driven by these smaller, more authentic influencers, many marketing brands are now looking to partner with micro-influencers for their marketing campaigns.
Like bigger influencers, micro-influencers primarily create video content on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok. They usually make guides, informational videos, or unboxing videos, depending on their preferences, interests, and their audience’s needs.
Other micro-influencers may develop blog posts and written guides to provide their followers with actionable information in addition to video content. Blogging is one of the best strategies to create a passive income stream online, which is why it is so popular with influencers of all audience sizes.
In any case, micro-influencers may produce a wide variety of content, which could be perfect for your brand and its identity. As you build up a core group of micro-influencers, those social media specialists could bring more and more customers to your brand, maximizing revenue and increasing brand loyalty.
Why Work With Micro-Influencers?
There are several big benefits to working with micro-influencers that you should consider. These advantages might make micro-influencer partnerships better for your brand and its limited marketing budget compared to working with larger influencer personalities.
It’s Cost-Effective
For starters, micro-influencers tend to be more cost-effective marketing partners than their larger, more popular counterparts because they charge less money for sponsored contracts.
Since micro-influencers have smaller audiences, they don’t charge as much for brands like yours to work with them. As a result, you could potentially partner with several smaller micro-influencers for the same price as partnering with one larger influencer with a more massive, but also more general, audience.
Maximizing your marketing budget is key to succeeding in the digital advertising sector, no matter your industry or niche. But this is a particularly important benefit when you consider that you have to try out multiple partnerships before you know whether your values and goals align.
In the earliest days of your business’s lifespan, it can be tough to know whether an influencer fits your brand, its personality, and its audience. Since micro-influencers typically charge lower rates, it’s easier to test partnerships without feeling like you’ve lost a lot of money if it doesn’t work out.
More Targeted Marketing
Micro-influencers are a little more affordable, but is that really worthwhile? It absolutely is when you consider the fact that micro-influencers have more targeted, niche audiences.
This is actually beneficial. If you have a brand in a particular niche or industry, you want to market to the people who are already primed to buy your products or services. That’s easier with specialized micro-influencers.
More precise targeting can improve your marketing effectiveness and bring more people to your retail store or e-commerce site. Plus, targeted marketing is almost always more effective than generalized marketing, particularly for digital businesses. Working with micro-influencers could give you more bang for your marketing buck, helping you get the most out of your limited advertising budget.
Gain Experience in Influencer Marketing
In addition to the above benefits, micro-influencers allow you to gain experience for future influencer marketing partnerships and initiatives. If you don’t know what it takes to work with influencers of any size, working with micro-influencers will allow you to learn the ropes.
You’ll learn how to strike up deals, negotiate prices, measure the performance of influencer marketing campaigns, etc. All of that experience will be invaluable as your business grows and scales.
How To Work With Micro-Influencers Intelligently
The advantages above are important, but you’ll only see them if you know how to use micro-influencers wisely and strategically. Here are some tips for successful influencer marketing campaigns:
- Develop and fully understand your business goals. You should have tangible business objectives and marketing metrics you want to achieve before working with any micro-influencer. That way, you’ll know what to measure, and your micro-influencer partners will know what they should focus on in their marketing and advertising efforts.
- Research potential micro-influencer partners. Conduct thorough research to ensure your potential marketing partners fit your brand’s identity, voice, and other elements. This can take a little time but don’t just partner with the first micro-influencers who fit your price points.
- Develop detailed audience personas. Audience personas or avatars will allow you and your influencer partners to target marketing materials more accurately, enabling even better performance.
- Set a budget and stick with it. The budget will prevent you from spending too much on influencer partnerships and other marketing campaigns, helping you avoid financial troubles.
Conclusion
Micro-influencers could help you maximize the effectiveness of your digital marketing campaigns, and partnering with the right micro-influencers is essential to your success. Develop a business plan and only partner with influencers who can help you fulfill your goals. Although sticking to the budget is important, so is ensuring that your chosen marketing partner appeals to your target audience and that their values in business and life align with yours.
