MARKETING
Influencer marketing keeps breaching new highs and is growing rapidly as people tend to overlook what the advertisers say and believe what the influencer they follow is saying. It was believed that the bigger the influencer is, the better. But after many hits and misses marketers are getting a hang of this medium and have started to shift goalposts. Micro-influencers with a ridiculously small following compared to macro-influencers are turning out to be more reliable, cost-effective and valuable. Marketers are finding out that micro-influencers have many advantages that make them invaluable assets to the brand. Detailed below are some of the main reasons why brands should never overlook micro-influencers.
Dedicated Followers: Social media has given a platform to many individuals to showcase their wisdom, knowledge and talent thereby creating a set base of followers for them. These individuals have ridiculously small following compared to celebrities, but all their followers are knowledgeable and are gained through deep dedication and tremendous hard work in creating quality content. If a person has great knowledge of music systems and has a set base of followers, then a related brand would know that its message will reach the core group who understand the product and there would be no media wastage. A celebrity never makes any effort to get followers. Their celebrity status gives them followers. But a micro-influencer must work hard to increase the number of followers and all his followers would be authentic and interested in whatever content is posted.
Easy to Work With: Those who work hard to gain something are found to be very humble and accommodating. Micro-influencers are often down to earth, available anytime and the marketers can talk directly to them to arrive at a great deal. They even go the extra mile to make the marketer feel comfortable as they feel it is a recognition of their hard work and would want the brand to have a good result out of the deal. Whereas the macro-influencers are not available easily, they have exorbitant non-negotiable pricing and do not bother about the brand.
Cost Effective: Collaborating with micro-influencers turns out to be budget friendly for the brands. They can even agree to work as brand representatives to promote the brand every now and then and all the marketer needs to give them is some sample products. This strengthens the brand message which is not possible in a one-time post in the case of macro-influencers. With micro-influencers marketers achieve their goals at a pittance of a cost compared to macro-influencers. By opting for micro-influencers amount spent would shrink drastically, and the remaining part of the budget can be used for other branding activities. Some brands go a step ahead and take risks by doing experimentation with multiple messages as the cost is lower. This helps them get valuable feedback and they can choose the most effective one.
Trust: Marketers always look out for occasions where they can make use of Trust Marketing as it is the best and most effective tool. There is absolute trust between the micro-influencers and their followers. This trust develops into a strong bond over time. The influencer gives out great quality content that is well-researched and enhances the knowledge of his followers. This leads to appreciation and admiration apart from trust in the minds of the followers. The micro-influencer is aware that he must stay within the gamut of his expertise and would only agree to influence brands that co-relate to his content. It also suits the followers as they receive a clear message about a great brand from a trusted source.
Local Thrust: If a brand is finding it difficult to penetrate a particular market, then it is wise to rope in micro-influencers who have a good following in those areas. Here again, the brand needs to make a slight tweak in its strategy. The influencer may or may not be an expert in the field to which the brand belongs but is a popular person in that region and has a good following. It is called creating localised impact and can be highly advantageous as it achieves what traditional media and macro-influencers fail to. With effective messaging through these local influencers, brands can build traffic to their stores and engage directly with customers.
Micro-influencers are making a mark in delivering brand messages directly to where they are intended to, the core customers. Opting for such sources which nail the target than opting for one source which has more misses than hits, is the route the brands are taking these days. This target marketing looks like is here to stay for some time.