Sales trainer Jeffery Gitomer famously said: “People don’t like to be sold to, but they love to buy.”

Last year, the practice of ad blocking in the US grew by 48%.  41% of the demographic between the ages of 18-29 reported using ad blockers.

People are blocking irrelevant, intrusive sales messages more than ever.  They’re annoyed by them, and they don’t trust them.

This behavior goes a long way towards explaining why influencer marketing can be so effective.

What is Influencer Marketing?

Travel back in time to your middle schools days.  The most popular kid in class decided it was cool to wear a certain style of jeans.  Within a week, a half a dozen kids are wearing the same brand of jeans.

Fast-forward to the present day.  That popular kid has nearly 3 million followers on Instagram.  She posts an image of herself wearing those jeans and the brand has a major “advertisement” exposed to their target audience.  That kid, for example, could be Kylie Jenner:

 

Influencer marketing is the practice of finding people with large, relevant social web followings and having them integrate your product into their content.  It’s kind of a cross between an endorsement, a testimonial, and a native advertisement.

Celebrities like the Kardashians are obvious influencers for fashion products.  But most influencers on social media are not mass media celebrities.  They’re bloggers or social media users who’ve developed a niche following.

When that niche following is also your target audience, you have the chance to get your product in front of them creating a kind of hero shot with someone they know and trust.

This is a kind of advertising consumers can’t block.  In fact, they won’t even want to block it because – if it’s done correctly – they won’t recognize it as an advertisement.

Finding and Contacting Influencers

There are two approaches to connecting with influencers.

The first is to search for leaders in your niche and reach out to them directly to forge a relationship.  Start with blog and social media searches on topics related to your offer.  When you find a popular blog or social channel, start following them.  Comment on and share their content.  Tag them in your own social posts.  Try to make them aware of your product.

Next, reach out to them directly to see if you can co-create content that will be mutually beneficial for both of you.  If you’ve done your targeting right, they should be receptive to mentioning your product because it has benefits their audience will appreciate.

Look for ways to provide reciprocal value that enriches the work of the influencer while featuring your product, creating a win/win.  Often, you’ll offer them a freebie or some other compensation, but this is a comparatively low-cost marketing channel

The other approach is to contract with an influencer and pay them to “promote” your product on their social channels.  If your business is gaining popularity in a particular niche, you may even get approached by an influencer offering this service.  There are also agencies who connect influencers with businesses.

It’s usually higher profile influencers with substantial followings (in the millions) who contract professionally, and while using them isn’t cheap, it’s still often lower-cost than other advertising channels. If they have a major reach with your consumer targets, this can be an effective way to grow your brand.

You want people who can influence your target audience and motivate them to use your product.  Their influence impacts buying behavior in a given context.  That context needs to match the benefits your product delivers.

Social media marketing guru Gary Vaynerchuk offers some perspective:

Influencer Marketing Example

What does influencer marketing look like?  It can be any social media, from blog articles reviewing your product to a Snapchat story where your product is featured.  Anything where your product fits into the story the influencer is telling.

For example, YouTuber Missy Lanning does this product review segment for products her audience is interested in:

Missy Lanning is popular with new and expecting mothers.  Her YouTube channel currently has about 800,000 subscribers, and many of her videos get millions of views.

This video sounds like a friendly neighbor recommending products she likes – and in many ways, that’s exactly what it is.  But because Missy is an influencer with a large YouTube following, her advice becomes valuable advertising media.  She’s compensated by each of these companies (at least by getting the product for free) in exchange for featuring them in her video.

The audience isn’t using ad blockers to avoid this content.  They actively seek it out because they like and trust Missy Lanning.  It’s a native advertisement – an ad which fits into the media channel it’s on so well, it doesn’t appear to be an ad at all.

Like David Ogilvy said, “A good advertisement is one that sells the product without drawing attention to itself.”

Influencer marketing is one of the best channels ever developed to achieve that goal.

Influencer Marketing Tips Summary

#1.  Go Beyond Demographics

When you search for the right influencers, don’t just look at demographics like their age, profession, or industry.  Get into what their interests and passions are, and how those impact their followers.

#2.  Learn About Their Community

Who is this person influencing and why?  Study the influencer’s audience and how they respond to content.  When you serve them, the influencer will be happy to work with you.   Also, note the secondary audience that will be reached when the influencer’s followers share the content.

#3.  Focus on Experiences That Provoke Reactions

Instead of trying to push your news, create experiences, take a stand, and provoke emotions people can react to.  You want to create share-worthy social content.

#4.  Tailor Your Strategy

Influencer marketing isn’t a big email blast.  Customize your approach based on the person you’re trying to connect with.  Remember you’re dealing with a person and their passions, not an advertising agency.

#5.  Build Lasting Relationships

The value of your relationship with an influencer can grow substantially over time.  Strive to earn trust, provide two-way value and to connect in fresh ways.