The truth about influencer marketing
Okay I’m going to get reaaallll controversial for a moment. I’m not a big fan of influencer marketing. At least in the way that it’s been done probably 99% of the time. Don’t get me wrong, I love our industry but I hate the way it has a tendency to push perfectionism and perpetuate beauty standards.
I’ll admit, we’ve seen more diversity over the past couple of years and thank god, for one it was horrifically exclusive and secondly, just plain boring. Let’s make this the first point to note. Be authentic, inclusive and diverse. I remember when the “influencer” became a thing, I’m sure many of us do. At the time I was working in an extremely successful and high-end salon and the brand was HUGELY into influencer marketing. I remember thinking that it could be a business model that would be short lived.
In saying all this, it’s near on impossible to attract big name influencers anyway - the market is saturated and most are snapped up but let me tell you that this is a blessing in disguise. When I started M.A.H in 2017 I reached out to locals that I knew of who I considered to be my “ideal client”. For me, that was movers and shakers, creatives, business owners whose brands I aspired to be like and local cool kids. It worked a treat.
I think sometimes the tried and tested, old school ways work best. I’m talking word of mouth, referral programs, client spend rewards, articles in publications you love and even cute little flyers popped in shops you love.
Start by really nutting out what your brand is, how it feels and who it’s for. Struggle with this? Use our brand template as a guide to smash your brand vision. Collaborate with like-minded brands and individuals - run seasonal campaigns, enter awards, get your community shouting out your name for all to hear.
Working with influencers can of course pay off BUT YOU NEED TO CHOOSE RIGHT. What does a particular influencer have in common with you and your brand? How likely is it that the investment is going to pay off? What do they do that makes them genuine and worth following? Are they influencing the right people, for the right reasons? Be savvy, smart and not swayed by the big numbers following. Dig deep.
It’s also SO important to calculate how much influencers are costing you per quarter PLUS, understanding how much you’re giving away in value. Are you seeing a return? For example, my team and I sat down and made a list of our influencers, we realised that in just three months we were giving away the same amount of value that an article in VOGUE costs. VOGUE!
As we’re all so aware, instagram is an ever changing platform. Influencer marketing MUST more than ever, be strategic and well planned out. Are there other ways that you could market your business and see a higher ROI?