From celebrities and models to vloggers and bloggers, social media influencers make up a large portion of modern social media. And while it’s true that influencers play an important part in social media marketing, what works for one brand may not work for another. This is definitely the case when it comes to choosing the right social media influencer for your brand. In this article we’ll show how to select the right candidates for your brand and how to find them. Let’s get started!
Step 1: Outline Your Objectives
Before you start selecting social media influencers, define what your brand or campaign goals are. Doing so will help you zero in on the types of influencers that will fast track you toward those goals. Are you trying to reach a specific niche or blast your message to a broader audience? Is your campaign about general awareness or driving sales? Once your objectives are set, it’s time to think about the “Three R’s” we talked about in the first installment in this series. Remember that though reach is important, it is not the only piece of the puzzle. Make sure that the content you create is always relevant and on-brand so it resonates correctly with your desired target audience.
Step 2: Set Social Media Influencer Criteria
Since most influencers usually focus on a specific category, having relevant content is key to building a successful social media influencer campaign. For instance, let’s say you’re a DJ controller company who is looking to reach a younger demographic and educate them on how to start DJing. You could benefit from reaching out to popular bloggers & vloggers in that niche and have them create content for your brand. That way you’d be putting out content that is relevant to your target audience and that aligns with your brand objectives. Whatever the category you choose, be sure to know exactly what you’re looking for in order to save time in the selection process.
Step 3: How To Find Your Social Media Influencers
So you’ve defined what your goals are and set your criteria. Now, it’s time to find your social media influencers! Our favorite places to look? Instagram and YouTube. Start off by researching industry-relevant hashtags to find which accounts are trending. To illustrate, let’s stay with the DJ brand example we mentioned above. Since the brand is looking to reach beginner DJs, it makes sense to look for accounts who are posting content about learning to DJ, using hashtags such as #beginnerdj on Instagram and keyword phrases, ‘beginner DJ tips’ on YouTube.
A simple search on Instagram shows us that over 1,400 accounts have used this hashtag. In order to save time, start looking through Top Posts. This will allow you to hone in on accounts that have posted the most engaging content.
The first post that comes up has almost 50k views and was published by a brand relevant account who reposted content from @djjoeysantos. From here, it would be smart to research both of these accounts to see how each could align with your brand’s objectives and goals. Then, repeat the process as the search continues trying different relevant hashtags and keywords. If you’re not having much luck in the “Top Posts” field, dive deeper! Don’t be afraid to venture outside of Top Posts—you may find potential candidates creating strong UGC that don’t have as large a following as other accounts.
YouTube
Now, let’s take a look at searching for content on YouTube using the keyword phrase, ‘beginner DJ tips.’ For relevancy, we’ve filtered out to show content posted in the last year.
This keyword phrase provided excellent results. You could now start researching any of these accounts to see which align with your set influencer goals. Plus, this will give a deeper insight into what competitors are doing. From there, you could try different keyword phrases to extend the search further.
As you search for potential social media influencers, don’t just look at their content, but research them as a personal brand too. Make sure that their goals are aligned with how you want your brand to be seen. If not, it’s probably not the best choice to have them represent you as a brand.
How To Make Contact?
So, you’ve identified who you’re potential social media influencers will be and now it’s time to reach out… or is it? You actually don’t want to reach out right away. Instead, about a week or two before you plan to contact, start engaging with their brand-relevant posts. Like, comment, share, etc. This will show the potential influencers that you have a genuine interest in the content they create, plus it will help spread overall brand awareness. That way, when you finally do reach out, they are more likely to be familiar with your brand. Once you finally make contact, be sure to send as much information to the influencer as you can outlining your program/campaign and why they’d be a good fit.
Conclusion
Here at Amplify, we know that one size does not fit all. When selecting your potential candidates, choose social media influencers that fit your budget and test results until you hone in on what works best for your brand. If you run into any questions along the way, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We’re happy to help your brand reach new heights through influencer marketing and many other creative services!
Check out the next article in this series, where we take a look at the brands that are doing influencer marketing right!
