HOW E-COMMERCE STORES CAN WORK WITH INFLUENCERS TO BUILD BRAND AWARENESS, REACH NEW AUDIENCES, AND INCREASE SALES
Influencers have the power to convince thousands of online shoppers to support a brand or product with the click of a publish button. The popularity of influencer marketing often causes online retailers to jump in without conducting research, respectfully communicating, or following best practices. Impulsive efforts can wreak havoc on an entire campaign. It is crucial for e-commerce businesses to construct a plan and cultivate positive relationships when working with influencers.
What is Influencer Marketing
According to the Oxford Languages Dictionary, “an influencer is a person with the ability to influence potential buyers of a product or service by promoting or recommending the items on social media.”
When marketers work with influencers to convince their target audience to make a purchase, this is called influencer marketing. Although relatively new to the scene, influencer marketing is one of the most cost-effective ways for e-commerce stores to build brand awareness and gain customer trust.
What is the Difference Between Influencer Marketing and Endorsements
Some compare influencer marketing to celebrity endorsements, but the two have major differences. Influencers are heavily engaged within their community, while celebrities are one-way communicators with massive reach. As a result, audiences perceive influencer content as organic or original and assume that celebrities produce scripted sponsored content. Even with distinct discrepancies, the two may overlap with social media-born celebrities.
How Influencer Marketing Benefits E-Commerce Brands
On social media, e-commerce brands must communicate with their audience to sell a product — there is little room for connection-building posts. Influencers help a brand create content the target audience perceives as authentic and valuable. When an audience is given a coupon or exclusive discount through organic content, they are more likely to purchase. With affiliate programs, social takeovers, giveaways, and product reviews, influencers capture the attention of new audiences and ultimately improve campaign return on investment (ROI).
How E-Commerce Brands Can Build an Effective Influencer Marketing Strategy
Although influencers can be highly beneficial for most e-commerce brands, their employment alone can not guarantee a successful campaign. E-commerce brands must be meticulous when choosing who to hire, how to communicate with them, and how to track their results.
Conduct Extensive Research
Before contacting an influencer, e-commerce stores must ensure their audience, content style, and engagement rate are the right fit for the campaign. An influencer’s time is just as valuable as any e-commerce business owner’s. It is the brand’s duty to conduct proper research that provides a sturdy foundation for beneficial relationships and successful campaigns.
Various industry segment influencers include lifestyle, fashion, wellness, beauty, food, sports, travel, parenting, gaming, and entertainment. Within each sector, there are four different tiers based on the size of an influencer’s following. The tiers include:
- Micro-influencers have between 10,000 to 50,000 followers and the most specific audience base
- Mid-tier influencers have between 100,000 to 500,000 followers and more experience than micro-influencers
- Macro-influencers have between 500,000 to 1 million followers and are considered experts in the field
- Mega-influencers have over 1 million followers and typically consist of celebrities or public figures
E-commerce stores must keep their ideal budget, target audience, and content style in mind when choosing an influencer’s industry and tier. Unfortunately, the internet is full of bots and false influencers. E-commerce stores must always be wary of fake engagement and scams when employing influencer marketing.
Facilitate Clear Communication
Managing communication with influencers is vital to campaign success. Influencers need to know that the brand they are working with has specific goals that align with their brand. E-commerce stores must approach influencers with respect and clarity from the start, or they risk losing partnerships and credibility within the industry.
Brands must understand that every influencer has a unique way of creating content. Examining as much content from potential influencers as possible will prevent disappointment or confusion from the start. Brands can then trust that influencers are a good fit and will execute campaign goals. As a result, brands create space for collaborative and organic sponsored content.
Even if influencers offer sponsored content packages across many platforms, brands should only communicate through those that host their target audiences. The top-performing platforms for influencer marketing include:
- YouTube
- Website blog
Measure and Analyze Results
By measuring and analyzing campaign results, brands can determine which influencers generate conversions and if they should continue working with them. Whether the goal is to improve brand awareness or increase sales, brands should set up key performance indicators (KPIs). The following metrics will keep track of campaign efficacy:
- Reach and engagement data from sponsored posts
- Clicks on custom links or landing pages
- Uses of promotion codes
- Entries from giveaways
Call in a Professional
POLA Marketing’s data-driven methods can relieve e-commerce business owners from the time-consuming work of building an influencer marketing strategy. Our team can create an individualized approach that increases customers’ experience and online sales for the furtherance of any e-commerce store.
For more information, contact us at (https://polamarketing.com/contact/).
