We talk a lot about why influencer marketing is so important in the current digital marketing landscape, but it’s not often we talk about how to implement an influencer marketing strategy. We want to share some campaign ideas with you so you can test them out and execute different types of influencer collaboration campaigns.
Regardless of whether you have a limited budget or want to go big and concentrate on reach, there is a collaborative opportunity that is perfect for you, your brand, and your industry.
To get you inspired and motivated to start working with influencers,
Here are 13 different ways your brand can use influencers to communicate your message, increase awareness and exposure, support your content marketing activities, drive traffic to your site and ultimately, generate more leads.
1. Discount Codes and Affiliate Marketing
If your goal is specifically to drive sales via influencer marketing, your campaign needs to be structured with an incentive for both the consumer and the influencer.
Encourage consumers to purchase with an effective call to action accompanied by an exclusive discount code (or gift voucher coupon) that is too good to refuse.
In addition, provide the influencer with an affiliate link to get them behind your product and/or service.
Unsure what we mean by an affiliate link?
No problem!
An Affiliate link is a specific URL that includes the affiliate’s (the blogger or influencer) ID or username so brands and advertisers can attribute sales directly to their campaign and pass on any commissions earned from sales they converted, as per their affiliate agreement.
As influencers love passive income and affiliate links can be quite lucrative when used properly, it’s a win-win for both the brand and influencer when it comes to finding a mutually beneficial arrangement.
Keep in mind though that affiliate marketing only works if the influencer and their audience are a good fit with your brand, and there is a lot of engagement on their platforms.
On a side note, discount codes and affiliate marketing will also help you track and report on the success of each campaign and attribute the sales that were generated from the engagement, giving you a better understanding of the Return on Investment (ROI).
2. Competitions and Giveaways
So you want to increase brand awareness and exposure among your target market?
Collaborating with an influencer to host a competition or giveaway is a great way to expose your brand to new followers and potential customers.
Competitions and giveaways also get everyone involved and engaged with the brand and product (and when people don’t win the prize, they often feel inclined to make a purchase anyway for fear of missing out).
Warning: before hosting a competition or giveaway with an influencer, be sure to check the local and national laws and regulations on the subject and also abide by the competition guidelines set by each social network.
3. Long-term Ambassador Roles
Much like celebrity endorsements, long-term ambassador roles with influencers have the potential to lift a brand from drab to fab quite rapidly.
If you’ve dabbled in influencer marketing and discovered one particular influencer who resonates with your brand and target customers, why not engage them in a long-term campaign and see the momentum build on from your original engagement.
Long-term ambassador roles are great because they ensure the influencer does not promote any competing brands during the collaboration period, and it also appears more authentic and genuine when an influencer supports a brand that they genuinely love over a long time rather than the week (or day) of the one-off campaign.
4. Sponsored Blog Post
Even though social media influencers and video content are becoming increasingly popular, blogs still have a place on the internet.
Blog posts are great for several different reasons, but the biggest benefit is more technical than any other reason.
Blogs are indexed on search engines. Unlike social media mentions, blogs can be searched and consumed for months, and sometimes even years, after the original publishing date.
Blog posts also support an SEO strategy and backlink profile, as they’re likely to include links that point back to your website, which will drive traffic, increase sales, and improve your search engine rank.
Influencers who turn their brands into businesses often charge sponsorships as compensation for their time, so be prepared and accept a fee if you want them to collaborate with you.
5. PRO(public relation)Stunt
A PR stunt can be a risk because there is no guarantee of success. There may not be any coverage at all, or the coverage could be negative. Or the coverage could be positive but the desired results aren’t achieved.
It’s risky business, but it can reap some big rewards if executed by the right team and at the perfect time.
Before you go ahead, research the audience and curate a list of target influencers who are a perfect fit with your brand and message so you can include them in the PR activation and maximize your reach.
Some public relations professionals will argue that traditional outlets are the most effective way to get publicity, but if your target market is millennial consumers, then influencers are more effective.
6. Social Media Mention
Influencers are becoming increasingly savvy with their social media accounts, and only mention brands and products they genuinely love or ones they have a working relationship or partnership with.
To be featured on an influencer’s social media platforms, it is best if you engage them first (via email is best) to introduce your brand and talk about how a collaboration might look. If you’re not sure where to start, follow the template below and customize the fields in red.
| Hi (Influencers real name),
I wanted to reach out and introduce you to (Your brand/business) as we would love to collaborate with you. We are a (1 x sentence about your brand and what makes you special) and would love to (Send you a product/invite you to an event/facilitate a relationship etc) as we think you will love our (Product or service that fits their style and aesthetic). Of course, we would be thrilled to be featured on your (Platform – Instagram, Youtube, Blog) if you think it’s a good fit. I’d love to hear your thoughts on (your brand/business) and look forward to chatting with you further. Hope to hear from you soon! Kind regards, (Your name, email signature, title, contact details, and website/social media platforms). |
Be open to gifting complimentary products and experiences in exchange for the mention (more info below on gifting and contra strategies) and give them everything they need to fall in love with your brand.
Influencers take content creation very seriously, so don’t rush into posting a photo without giving them enough time and resources to create the best image that combines your brand with theirs.
We’ve found that a social media shoutout is most effective when paired with full collaboration and/or a long-term relationship. If you don’t use an image, your brand mention will be lost in the crowd after just a few hours.
7. Event Activation
An event activation is an excellent way to engage a whole bunch of influencers and media simultaneously, so it’s a great opportunity to boost your coverage and brand exposure for your event.
The most important thing when planning an event is to have a guest list full of people who can help spread the word about your business, both during the event itself and in the weeks after.
To get a large number of relevant influencers to attend your event, you should create an invitation and send it to your guest list several weeks before the event.
Make sure to include the date and time, location, dress, and RSVP details for the event, as well as an outline of what to expect. It’s a good idea to extend an influencer’s invitation to invite a guest because guests are more likely to attend when they can bring a friend or colleague.
To distribute the invitations, reach out to the influencers (or their talent managers) via email rather than social media comments or private messages, as it is more professional and you can attach the invite so they check their schedule, and reply with their RSVP and archive the invitation information.
Influencers need good imagery for their platforms, so if you want them to share their experience ensure your event has good lighting, fun decor, and lots of photo opportunities.
If the influencers can take great pics at your event, they’re much more likely to share them on their social media platforms.
After all, it’s all about the picture on most social media networks and a good picture sells your brand much better than a bad one.
8. Onsite Guest Blogging
If you’re working with a limited budget, you can start by opening up your site to guest posts from influencers in your industry.
It’s an awesome win-win type of collaborative effort because you get some new and exciting content for the blog and the opportunity to collaborate with relevant influencers and get featured across their platforms.
You get exposure to your audience and an amazing backlink to your website.
9. Influencer Takeover
Create a stronger connection with key influencers in your industry and have him or them take over one or all of your social media platforms for some time.
It could be 24 hours, a couple of days, or even an entire week, whatever fits best for your brand, audience, and influencer.
Why does it work?
An influencer generally promotes collaborations and takeovers on their social media platforms, which drive traffic and new followers to land pages.
It’s great for content creation and to attach your brand or product to a public figure for some time, much like a brand endorsement.
10. Contra Strategies and Gifting
Influencers receive a large number of requests for their mailing addresses each week, leading to a bounty of gifts on their doors. Most of these gifts come with a subtle string attached.
Marketing and PR pros are getting sneaky with their tricks, offering to give influencers products or experiences in the hopes they’ll be featured and promoted across their social media channels.
Controversy stunts, gifting, and contra strategies are risky businesses because there’s not any guarantee that the brand will get featured.
It’s a good way to introduce influencers to your brand and generate some attention without having to spend any money on sponsored or paid collaborations.
Before approaching a contra or gifting strategy, it’s best to make contact with the influencer first to see if they are interested, and include an idea of your expectations/outcomes without putting pressure on the relationship.
Be guided by the influencer’s response and treat each collaborative opportunity on a case-by-case basis.
11. The “Creative Director” Role
Collaboration of this kind is quite creative and works best when done on a large scale, which means it should be reserved for situations where you work with big names to drive results.
Make an influencer your creative director for a project. For example, if you’re working on a capsule fashion collection, make an influencer your creative designer. Or if you’re working on creating a bespoke range of healthy food products, make an influencer the head chef.
There are countless ways to approach a creative direction role but think of some ways you can get an influencer to join your team and create something new and exclusive for your customers.
Not only will your customers love it, but the influencer will too as it helps to build their portfolio and establish their skillset in the public eye.
12. The PR Approach
It’s never a bad idea to reach out to an influencer to introduce yourself and/or your brand so they can remember you in case any editorial opportunities come up.
It’s a good time to ask what they are doing and pitch some ideas that could be a part of their project.
- Could they interview you for a profile piece?
- Can they feature your product in a seasonal round-up?
- Is your product a good fit for their upcoming home renovation or tropical island holiday?
To get influencers to talk about your brand, take on a PR approach. Foster a relationship with them so you can have an “open conversation” about what they’ve been doing and how your brand could be naturally incorporated into their content.
13. Banner Ads
As web consumers become savvier, banner ads and blatant advertising are losing their appeal among online influencers, especially bloggers.
For both influencers and brands, banner ads are an essential revenue channel that cannot be overlooked. Banner ads work best if they’re aligned with the brand and the influencers’ message. They should be accompanied by other types of digital advertising to ensure maximum exposure and engagement.
There are many different options when it comes to working with influencers in your industry. Not all of them will be the right fit.
To ensure you achieve your KPIs (key performance indicators), the collaboration must benefit both parties equally and neither party can take advantage of the other at any point during the project.
We hope that this list will inspire your next strategy meeting and spark some ideas for exciting influencer collaborations now, and in the future.
Have you used any one of these campaign types in your influencer marketing strategy?
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