3 Strategies For Creating Long-Term Relationships with Influencers

Getting impressive results with digital marketing isn’t as easy as it used to be. The ever-changing dynamics of the digital sphere makes it difficult for marketers to achieve the desired impact from their digital marketing campaigns. Marketers face many challenges such as:

• Less organic reach on popular social networks like Facebook and Instagram.
• Difficulty tagging content when there is a lot of equally good content from competitors.
• Less reach of image ads due to increased use of ad blockers.

Today, with consumers being turned off by an overabundance of digital advertising, creative campaigns with social media influencers can create stronger connections. Influential people can add genuine and human impact to their recommendations. 

It gives them a much greater opportunity to convince people of the value of the product without being too promotional. How to attract this type of influencers? It is not enough to simply send out invitation templates, it is necessary to develop a strategy. This article will point out specific points to pay attention to.

Who are Influencers?

Social media influencers are people who enjoy a high following on social media. They are not always celebrities in the traditional way, but they are more like regular people, with very dedicated followers and loyal to social media. These influencers often use their wide audience to promote products/services. They partner with brands to generate effective and actionable recommendations and are highly regarded by today’s marketers.

Long Term Partnerships 

Contrary to popular belief, influencer marketing isn’t just the random promotion of influencer products on social media. It works better when you take the time to build strong, lasting, and transparent relationships with influencers whose audiences include your target audience. According to Mobile Marketer, 86% of marketers have stopped using exclusive leveraged campaigns on platforms like Snapchat and maintain long-term partnerships. 

For reference, 51% of marketers have been working with influencers for at least six months or more. If you want to build strong, long-term, and mutually beneficial relationships with social media influencers, follow the next strategies.

1. Find Influencers Who Resonate with Your Products/Services

Influential people have worked hard to attract loyal followers in their chosen niches. They have the authority and knowledge associated with their fields and prefer to work with brands that resonate with their audience. Working with an influencer who has used your product organically feels more natural and authentic. 

This kind of partnership increases your chances of protecting your product. It also ensures that the marketing efforts reach the right audience, not just casual viewers.

If you’re wondering how you can find the best influencers in your niche, check out influencer communities like Influence.co. The community has over 100,000 influencers and 25,000 companies. You can filter influencers by their budget and niche, and even see the brands they’ve worked with. 

Another good influencer tool you can use is BuzzSumo. In addition to helping you find key influencers in the niche, BuzzSumo also helps you identify important terms/phrases that work well in the niche.

2. Be Sincere and Straightforward

Being a social media influencer is real work. Some influential people do this full-time and have a full team to help them. Just as companies expect professionalism from influencers, they also expect professionalism in dealing with companies. From how you approach them, to how the contract is drawn up, everything should be transparent and professional. 

Distinguished influencers receive many proposals from the alliance. And to make your offer stand out, you must write a personal message. The brand’s purpose should be clear from the start, and they should clearly state their expectations for the influencer. In influencer marketing, there are no set rules for tracking ROI. Consequently, having measurable expectations makes life easier.

3. Offer Them Fair Compensation

There is no fixed influence fee. While some influencers are happy to accept free products as compensation, many prefer monetary compensation for the work they do. When determining payments, the number of subscribers can be a good starting point. Add to that the expected participation fee and the requested supplies, and you should create a realistic number.

However, if the influencer is particularly busy or represents a premium domain, it may be necessary to increase their offering. Remember, when you offer the right payment from the start, the influencer will give more to your campaign. Alternatively, you can also explore different influencer platforms to get an idea of ​​typical influencer metrics to get you started right.

Summary

In addition to creating a successful influencer marketing strategy, it is equally important to invest in successful relationships with influencers. Unlike many other digital marketing tools, influencer marketing is about working with real people. And building strong, long-term relationships with influential people takes time and effort. Use the tips above and be open-minded to ensure the success of your campaign and influence relationships.