[Infographic + Video] Virtual Views: Leveling Up Your Content Strategy with Influencer Marketing

EMEA based influencer marketers bring unique perspectives on working with creators and optimizing content strategy for maximum effectiveness. Here are 6 key takeaways from our recent webinar where we discussed the ins-and-outs of working with creators and making the most out of those partnerships - from metrics and contracts to creativity and authentic advocacy.

‍

1 - Connect influencer marketing to your existing metrics

When plugged into a traditional econometric model of forecasting and measuring performance, influencer marketing outperforms 7 out of 10 traditionally used advertising and marketing channels, while coming in at a lower cost, according to Chris Davis of Gleam Futures.

No need to reinvent the wheel - to track conversion, use tried-and-true methods like clear CTAs, Instagram story swipe ups, and discount codes. Outside of conversions, engagement, reach and sentiment analysis are helpful in evaluating the effectiveness of campaigns. Monitoring comments and conversations online through social listening is still a key part of influencer marketing strategy. For these metrics, don’t dismiss YouTube and other high-performing and emerging platforms like Reels and TikTok.

2 - Influencer marketing can generate unprecedented interest in brands

In 2020, Gleam Futures ran an influencer marketing campaign with Jaguar, aimed not at conversions, but at improving the perception of the brand among younger audiences, especially women. The creative content produced by influencers and creators resulted in meaningful conversation across social media, and generated unprecedented interest in the brand from the target demographics. Brand awareness and perception campaigns can open new demographics and audiences that can later-become high-value converters.

3 - Due diligence in research and vetting phases sets up campaigns for success

The most important factor in ensuring high-performing campaigns is the due diligence before hiring a creator. The creators with the right audiences, engaged communities, and high-quality content will perform better regardless of other tactics and strategies used throughout the process. Tools like CreatorIQ allow searching and vetting at scale with advanced text and image tag filtering capabilities.

4 - To optimize performance, evaluate the effectiveness of your creators often

Create benchmarks and assess how your sponsored content performs compared to organic posts etc. If your influencer campaign isn’t performing, it’s not that influencer marketing is ineffective, it’s that the influencers you chose are not the right ones and the message is ineffective.

5 - Focus less on audience size and evaluate each creator’s value individually

Look at how engaged their audience is, the content they produce, do they have a community, brand loyalty, does their instagram page look like an ad board? Rigidly segmenting influencers by audience size doesn’t communicate the full picture of their value - create comprehensive evaluation criteria to choose the right ones for your brand. Searching for creators that fit multiple content, audience and metrics criteria is easier at scale using tools like CreatorIQ. (link)

6 - Long-term influencer relationships yield better campaign results

The more frequently audiences are shown a product before and after being presented with a CTA or an offer code, the more likely they are to swipe up and convert. More exposure, especially meaningful exposure through authentic ambassadorship creates more opportunities for conversions and meaningful traffic and brand awareness. Invest into relationships with creators and work with them repeatedly in a holistic partnership - as opposed to one-off transactions.

‍

Panel recording:

‍

‍

‍