We at Influencer Marketing Hub wrote an in-depth manual on what is influencer marketing and how you can leverage it in your marketing mix.

1. - •

2. 2
InfluencerMarketing
GettingStartedwith
Ifyouhaven’theardofinfluencermarketing,youmaythinkofitasmerelyanotherbranchofmarketing–perhaps
evenashort-termfad.Butinfluencermarketingismorethanthat.Itisbecominganessentialwaytopublicize
yourgoodsandservicesonline.Why?Becauseitisnowthemostgenuineandauthenticmethodofmarketing.

3. 3
InfluencerMarketingWhatis ?
Influencermarketingisoneofthosetermswherethenamemeans
whatitsays.Itimpliesthatbusinessesworkwithpeopleofinfluenceto
helpthemwiththeironlinemarketing.
InfluencerMarketingaimstoidentifythemainpeoplewhoactas
influencersinyournichesoyoucanapproachthemtoworkwithyou
topromoteyourbrand.
So,whatisaninfluencer?Aninfluencerissomebodywhohasthe
powertoaffectpurchasedecisionsofothers.Aninfluencercandothis
becausehehasauthority,knowledge,positionand/oraspecial
relationshipwithhisaudience.Heisusuallysomeonewhohasa
significantfollowinginaparticularniche,andheactivelyengageswith
them.
TheseinfluencershavebuiltTheseinfluencershavebuiltreputationsforbeingexpertsinparticular
niches.Theymighthaveestablishedasuccessfulblogonthesubject.
Perhapsthey’vemadevideosanduploadedthemtoarelevant
YouTubechannel.Ormoreoften,theyhaveoperatedactiveand
popularsocialmediaaccounts,wheretheygiveopinions,ideas,tips,
andadvicerelatingtotheirspecialisttopic.
IftheinfluencersunderstandhowyourpIftheinfluencersunderstandhowyourproductcouldbenefittheir
followers,thentheymaybehappytoworkwithyou.Theywillbe
preparedtolendtheirname,expertise,andauthoritytowards
promotingyourproducttotheirfollowers.

4. 4
InfluencerMarketingvs.
ContentMarketingvs.
BrandAmbassadors
01
02
03
04
ContentMarketingoccurswhenfirmscreateanddistributerelevant,
valuablecontent.Thecontentisproducedtoattractandengagean
audience.Itsultimateaim,ofcourse,istoleadthereaderintotaking
someprofitableaction,perhapsbuyingaparticularproduct.Content
marketingcoverstheentireprocessofcreating,distributingandusing
contenttomeetyourbusinessgoals.
AvariationontheAvariationontheformalinfluencermarketingprocessiswhereyour
businesscultivatesbrandambassadors.Abrandambassadoris
someonewhorepresentsandtalksaboutyourbrandwithpassion.
Thesecouldbeyourbrand’sfansandcustomeradvocates.
Aconsumerseesarecommendationaboutsome
productorserviceinasocialmediapostorstatus.Thisis
usuallymadebysomeinfluencerwhotheconsumer
admiresandfollows.Itpiqueshisattention.
Shedecidestolearnmore,sohegoestohisfavorite
blog,YouTubechannel,socialmedianetwork,orpodcast
tosearchformoreinformationabouttheproduct.She
engageswithcontent.
Sheseeksclarificationaboutfeatures,pricing,availability
andshippingdetails.Sheoftencompletesthisstageata
brandorretailer’ssite.
Ifshelikeswhatshesees,shepurchasestheproductor
service,eitheronlineorbygoingintoaphysicalstore.

5. 5
InfluencerMarketing
WhydoYouNeed
?
Whendidyoulastlookatabanneradontheinternet?Mostpeople
don’tnoticethemnow.Manyofthosewhotakenoteofthemfind
themsoannoyingtheyinstallAdBlockerstoremovethem.
Withaworldwideaverageclick-throughrateof0.19%,youcanhardly
considerdisplayadvertisingsuccessful.
AccordingtoapollfromInfolinks,halfofInternetusersneverclickon
onlineadsand35%clickonlessthanfiveadspermonth.
PerhapsyouhavetriedsocialmediamarPerhapsyouhavetriedsocialmediamarketing.Thishassome
potential.Peoplespendaconsiderabletimenowadaysbrowsing
throughtheirvarioussocialmediathreads.
Butthereisaproblem.Whoisgoingtoseeyoursocialmediastatuses?
Unlessyouhavebuiltmassiveaudiences,youareunlikelytohavemuch
reach.
Itisusuallymucheasiertofindinfluencersandworkwiththemand
theiraudiencestospreadyourmessagethanitistobuildasubstantial
engagedaudienceyourself.
InfluencermarInfluencermarketingisdifferenttotraditionaladvertising.One
significantdifferenceisthetypeofrelationshipyouneedtoestablish
withyourinfluencers.
Successfulinfluencermarketingcreatesawin/win/winsituation.You
(thebrand)wins.Theinfluencerwins.Thefollowersoftheinfluencer
win.Ifyoucanachievethistriplestrike,thenyourinfluencermarketing
campaignwillhavebeenasuccess.

6. 6
Influencers
HowCan
HelpYour
Business
Paidinfluencerswillbemoreproactiveinpromotingyourbrand.They
mightwriteorfilmpromotionalitems.Theycouldpostpictureson
InstagramorvideosonYouTubeshowingthemusingyourproduct.In
thissituation,theyarenotmerelyhelpingyououtbecausetheybuilta
relationship.Theyareearningthemoneyyoupaythem.
Ofcourse,youcaOfcourse,youcan’texpectinfluencerstoprovideyouwith
unequivocalpraise.Theyareonlyinfluencersbecauseoftheirauthentic
relationshipwiththeiraudience.Anyrealinfluencerisunlikelytowant
todealwithyouatalliftheydon'tlikeyourproduct.
Creatinganarticle/blogpost,or
videoaboutyourproductor
service
01
Sharinginformationpromoting
youontheirsocialmedia
accounts
02
Givingyouaccesstotheirsiteso
youcanwriteaguestpost
03

7. 7
InfluencerMarketing
Thefutureof
In2018thefutureofinfluencermarketinglooksrosy.Itsolvesmanyofthe
issuesfacedbytraditionalmarketing,forinstance,audiencefragmentation
onconventionalmedia,andbannerblindnesswithonlinemarketing.
Inmanyways,influencermarketingisstillrising–itisstillnewenoughto
beconsideredinnovative.Itisintherisingphaseoftheproductlifecycle
andisnotyetatitspeak.
Althoughinfluencermarketingisstillinitsearlydays,ithasreachedAlthoughinfluencermarketingisstillinitsearlydays,ithasreached
criticalmass.Asmorefirmsengageininfluencermarketing,thereis
sufficientincentiveforbusinessestocreateinfluencermarketing
infrastructure.Forinstance,thegrowthinplatformshasbeenphenomenal
inthepastfewyears.

8. 8
Howtogetstarted
Amajordecisionyouneedtomakebeforeyoustartiswhichpathyoushouldfollowtofindyourinfluencers.Therearethreeoptions:
Organic
Yousearchforandbuildrelationshipswith
influencersin-house.Thisisthecheapest,
butmosttime-consumingmethod.
Agencies
Youpayaspecialistinfluencer
marketingagencytohelpyouwith
influencerselectionandmanagement.
Platforms
Youpaytouseoneofthespecialistonline
platformstofindyourinfluencers.Manyofthe
platformsprovidesystems,whichmakeit
simplertomanageyourinfluencercampaigns.

9. 9
InfluencersFindtheRight
GoalsDefineYour and
Thegoalofanycontentmarketingcampaignistodemonstratehowyoucanprovide
valuetotheaudience.Inthecaseofinfluencermarketing,youneedtoproveyoucan
providevaluetotheaudiencesofyourinfluencers.

10. 10
DefineYourGoals
Yourgoalswillaffectthetypeofinfluenceryouchoosetoworkwith.If
youwantquickinteractionwithpeople,youarelikelytoworkwith
influencerswhoareactiveonTwitter.Ifyoudesiretoemphasizethe
lookandimageofyourproductyoucouldputanemphasisonavisual
channellikeInstagramorPinterest.Ifyouaimtoprovidein-depth
productawareness,particularlyifyouareinB-B,youmayopttoposta
technicalarticleonanindustryblog,andhavesuitableinfluencershare
linkstothealinkstothearticle.
YouneedtocreateSMARTgoals.EachhastobeSpecific,Measurable,
Achievable,RealisticandTime-based.Agoalof“increasingproduct
awareness”istoovague–youcan’tpossiblymeasureit.Ontheother
hand,“increasingoutfollowingonInstagramby20%duringMarch”is
SMART,andyoucandeterminewhetheryourinfluencersucceedornot.

11. 11
TargetAudience
DefineYour
Forinfluencermarketingtobesuccessful,youneedtowork
withinfluencerswhoinfluenceyourtargetaudience.
Forinstance,assumeyouhadacolossalmarketingbudgetForinstance,assumeyouhadacolossalmarketingbudget
andcouldaffordtoworkwithJustinBieberonaninfluencer
marketingcampaign.Ifyourproductissomethingthat
targetsteenagegirls,Justinwouldclearlydoanexcellent
jobofmarketingitforyou.HehasaKloutscoreof92and
over100millionTwitterfollowers.
ThemoreyoucannarrowyourtargetmarketdowntoaThemoreyoucannarrowyourtargetmarketdowntoa
specificniche,theeasieryouwillfindittoselecttheright
influencers.

12. 12
Influencerfor
YourBrand
Definethe
BestTypeof
TheDifferentTypesof
Influencer
Thisisthebiggestfailingofinfluencermarketing
campaigns.Toomanyfirmsfailtoputeffortinto
selectingtheperfectinfluencersfortheirbrand.
ATapinfluence/Altimeterstudyfoundthat67.6%of
marketersconsiderfindingrelevantinfluencerstheir
mostsubstantialinfluencermarketingchallenge.
ThebottomlineissimpleandcleaThebottomlineissimpleandclear.Youneedto
workwithinfluencerwhoseaudiencematchesyour
targetmarket.
Celebrityinfluenceistheoldesttypeofinfluencermarketing.Companieshavehired
celebritiestoendorsetheirproductsforyears.Someproducts,suchastheGeorge
FormanGrill,havebecomesynonymouswiththecelebritywhosharedhisname.
CelebrityInfluencers
Macro-influencersalsohavelarge-scalefollowings.Peopleconsiderthemtobethe
expertsintheirfield.Theyoftenhavemillionsoffollowersontheirvarioussocialnetworks.
Macro-influencers
Thebulkofinfluencersaremicro-influencers.Youcouldconsiderthemscaled-down
versionsofmacro-influencers.Unlikecelebrities,theyareunknownoutsidetheirniche.But
intheirnichepeoplerecognizethemasexperts.
Micro-influencers

13. 13
StepstoFindtheRightInfluencers
Ifyouopttouseanagencyforyourcampaign,influencerselectionisasimpleprocess.The
agencywilldomostofthelegworkinvolvedinfindingsuitableinfluencersforyourbrand.
UsinganAgency
Therearenowmanyplatforms,andtheydifferinthewaystheyoperate.Someallow
influencerstoapplytojointheirroster.Othersuseapatentedalgorithmtodiscoverthe
peopletheybelievearethebestinfluencersforanyparticularaudience.
UsingaPlatform
Ifyouintendtocarryoutyourcampaignorganically,youwillfinditaslowerprocessthan
usingaplatformoragency.Butyoumaybuildlonger-lastingmoregenuinerelationships
withinfluencers,whichcouldleadtoregularendorsementatlittle,ifany,cost.
CarryingOut
YourCampaign
Organically

14. 14
ToolstoFindInfluencers
Sometoolsyoucouldconsiderusingtofindinfluencersinclude:

15. 15
InfluencerOutreach
Oneoftheadvantagesofworkingthroughanagencyisthatyoudonothavetodomuchinfluencer
outreach.Thatisoneofthetasksthatyoupaytheagencytoperformforyou.
Someoftheplatformsalsominimizetheneedforinfluenceroutreach.Thisisparticularlysointhecaseof
platformslikeFamebit,whoshiftthefocusontoinfluencersfindingbrands,ratherthanviceversa.Inthis
case,businessescreateaproposalforaninfluencecampaigntheywishtooperate.influencersthen
makeproposalstoFamebit.Inmanyways,thisworksinasimilarwaytofreelancemarketslikeUpwork.
HoweveHowever,ifyoudonotwishtopayforanagencyorplatform,theninfluenceroutreachisanessential
stepforanybrandwishingtoengageininfluencermarketing.

16. 01
SubscribetoYourInfluencers’
BlogsandSocialMedia
Channels
02
ReplytoIntroductoryEmails
TheyMaySend
03
SharetheInfluencers’Posts
04
RespondtoAnyQuestionsYour
InfluencersAskTheirSupporters
05
CommentonYourInfluencers’
PostsandSocialMediaStatuses
06
LinktoYourinfluencers’Posts
07
WriteanEgobaitPostWhich
IncludestheInfluencersWho
YouAreFocusingOn
08
ReachouttoYourPotential
Influencers
16
HowtoDo
Influencer
Outreach
Onceyouhavecreatedalistofvaluable
influencersforyourbrand,youneedtobegin
theinfluenceroutreachprocess.Youneedtogo
throughtheslowandsteadystepsofbuilding
relationshipswithyourpotentialinfluencers.
AlthoughyouwillhaveminimalneedtodothisAlthoughyouwillhaveminimalneedtodothis
whenworkingwithanagency,youmaystill
needtogothroughtheprocessifyouuseda
platformtoextractyourlistofinfluentialnames.

17. 17
Ingredients
ofaSuccessful
InfluencerOutreach
Explainthebenefits-Connectingwithaninfluencerisnotreally
differentfromanyothermarketing–youmustexplainthebenefitsto
thepersontowhomyouarepitching.Whatbenefitcantheyenjoy
fromhavingarelationshipwithyouandyourbrand?Insteadof
thinkingabouthowaninfluencercanhelpyou,youneedtothink
abouthowyourbrandcanhelptheinfluencer.
Providespecifics–influencersdon’twantmorework.Ifyouwant
theirhelp,thenyouneedtoproposespecifics.Ifyouwantthemto
publishaguestpost,forinstance,thenyouneedtopitchwhatyour
guestpostwouldcover,indetail.
Createdeadlines–withoutadeadine,aninfluencerislikelyto
putyourproposalasideandforgetit.Itisfarbettertocreatea
senseofurgency.Ifaninfluencerthinksthatthebenefityou’ve
outlinedmakesitworthwhiletocontribute,thenhewillbehappy
toworkwithinarealisticdeadline.
Supposeyouhavedonealloftheessentialgroundwork
requiredforsuccessfulinfluenceroutreach.Youfeelthat
youhaveestablishedagoodenoughrelationshipto
approachyourpreferredinfluencersandaskthemforsome
formofhelp.Whatcanyoudotoimproveyourchancesof
successatthispoint?

18. 18
Templates
forInfluencer
Outreach

19. 19
HowtoWorkwithInfluencers
Itisvitalthatyourememberthatgenuineinfluencerswillonlybewillingtoworkwith
youiftheybelievethatyourproductprovidesvaluetotheirsubscribers.
Whilethebestinfluencersmaybeexpensive,theyarenotengagingwiththeir
audienceontheirblogorsocialchannelsforthemoney.Influencersmarketingisnot
justpayingsomebodytosaynicethingsaboutyou.
PeopleonlybecomeacceptedasinfluencersbecausetheypPeopleonlybecomeacceptedasinfluencersbecausetheyprovidevalue.Ifthey
weretotryandpitchirrelevantorshoddyproductstotheirfollowerstheywould
quicklylosecredibility.Theywouldlosetheirinfluentialstatus.
If,ontheotherhand,youhavenegotiatedaformalcontracttoworkwithyour
influencers,youshouldcommunicatetothemyourvisionofyourdreampost.

20. 20
HowtoCollaborate
withInfluencers
Therearequiteafewsocialnetworkandblogginginfluencers
whoarehappytosharetheirexperienceofaproductin
returnforafreesample.ThewholegenreofUnboxingvideos
onYouTubeisanexampleofthis.
GiveFreeSamples
toYourInfluencers
01

21. 21
Thisisanextensionofgivingfreesamples.Inthiscase,you
deliberatelyaskinfluencerstoreviewyourproduct.
AskforProduct
Reviews
02
Sometimesbandscreatecompetitionsforinfluencers(rather
thanfortheirfollowers).Youwouldneedtodecideonaprize
thatwouldinterestandbenefittheinfluencers.
RunaCompetition
forYourInfluencers
03
Sponsoredpostscanworkverywellwhenworkingwith
willingbloggers.Asponsoredpostiswhereyoupayablogger
towriteapostaboutyourproduct.Hewillwriteitinhisvoice
andnormalstyle.
PayforSponsored
Posts
04

22. 22
Havingtheopportunitytowriteaguestpostonapopularblog
isvaluablewhenyouhavegonethroughtheorganicprocess
offindinginfluencers.
WriteGuestPosts
05
Anotherproposalyoucouldmaketopotentialinfluencersisto
offerthemproductstheycangiveawayinapromotiontotheir
followers.
ProvideProductsfor
InfluencerstoGive
AwaytoTheir
Followers
06

23. InfluencerRelationshipManagement
(RelationshipNurturing)
23
Increasedreach,helping
themgrowtheiraudience.
Augere’ssurveyfoundthatinfluencerwerehappytoworkwithbrandsbecauseof:
Perks(discounts,free
samples).
55%
25%
Theopportunitytoearn
money.
24%
Increasedopportunityto
createqualitycontentfor
theiraudience.45%
Extrahelpavailabletoshape
theirimage.
Newexperiences-trips,
events,etc.
29%
22%

24. InfluencerRelationshipManagement
(RelationshipNurturing)
24
Therearevariouslevelsofinfluencerinvolvementinacampaign.Somemarketingcampaignsaresolelyinfluencer-based.But,
ofteninfluencersarejustonepartofanoverallmarketingcampaignstrategy.
Youneedtodecide,aspartofyouroverallplanning,howyouwishtouseyourinfluencersforaparticularcampaign.
Youcouldchoosetoincorporateinfluencersintoeverypartofyourmarketing–frommarketresearchthroughtomarketing
execution.Thisisanapproachmanyfirmstakenowadays.
Somecampaignsuseavarietyofchannelstodeliverthemessage–withsocialmediaworkingwithinfluencersbeingjustone.
YYoushouldalsoletyourinfluencerstellyourbrand’sstory.Theyspendtheirtimetellingstoriesonline,eitherintext,asavideo,as
aseriesofimagesorinsomeotherways.Agoodinfluencerwillbeabletotellyourstorytotheirfollowersbetterthanyoucan.

25. 25
HowtoSuccessfullyRunYourInfluencer
MarketingCampaignandMeasureROI
Influencermarketingisnota“GetRichQuick”marketingscheme.Itoftenrequiresaslow,steady
build-upofnetworking,particularlyifyouchoosetotaketheorganicmethodoffindingfollowers.
Oftenthebestinfluencersoperatewithinarelativelysmallcommunity.Butitwillbeavibrant,
engagedcommunity.Theseinfluencersmaynotbeabletoclaimthehighestnumberoffollowersor
themostlikesonapost.Buttheyarethepeoplewhoaremostlikelytogenerategenuineinterestin
yourproductleadingtoincreasedsales.

26. 26
HowtoManageYourCampaign
Ifyouareworkingwithapaidinfluencer,youwillhavetonegotiatepricingwiththem.Oftentheywillprovideyou
withafixedprice,andyouhavetodecidewhetheritisacceptable,orwhetheryouneedtonegotiatefurther.
Factorsthataffecthowmuchyoushouldhavetopayaninfluencerinclude:
Theaudiencequalityoftheinfluencer–
howwelltheinfluencer’saudiencematches
yourtargetmarket.
Howgoodafittheinfluencerisforyour
brand.
Whethertheinfluencer’spostshaveagood
mediavalue–doyouperceivethatthey
willprovidemorevaluetoyouthanifyou
advertisedonthesocialnetwork,yourself?
Theprestigeoftheinfluencer–hashe
alreadybuiltasolidonlinereputation.
Thequalityoftheinfluencer’scontent–
doestheinfluencerhaveareputationfor
creatingandsharinghigh-levelcontent
whichhasconvertedwellinthepast?

27. 27
AChecklistfora
successfulcampaign
Theexactlistofstepsyouneedtoperformwilldependonmany
factors,althoughthemostimportantdifferenceisthemethodyou
opttofollowforinfluencerselection.Youcouldchoosetosearch
forinfluencersorganically(andthenconnectwiththemontheir
terms,usuallywithouthavingtopaythem).Alternatively,youcould
paytohavemorecontrolofacampaign,eitherfindinginfluencers
onaplatformorworkingcloselywithanagency.

28. 28
CommonMistakesto
AvoidinYourCampaigns
Themostcrucialmistakemadebybusinessesistopickinfluencers
whodon’tappealtotheirtargetmarket.Whereisthevalueinworking
withsomebodywhoinfluencesthewrongpeople?Ithelpsifyoucan
workwithpeoplewhoalreadyhaveanaffinityforyourbrand.Ifyou
aresmallandunknown,youshouldatleastengageinfluencerswho
havefollowerswhowouldpotentiallybuyyourproduct.
AnothercommonmistaAnothercommonmistakeistryingtokeeptoomuchcontroloverthe
contentaninfluencershares.Asfarastheaudienceisconcerned,itis
theinfluencerwhoisthevitalpersonintherelationship–notyour
brand.Theyfollowertheinfluencer,notyou,becausetheybelievein
hisauthenticity.

29. 29
HowtoMeasureReach,
Engagement,Leads,andROI
Reachandengagementwitheachpost
madebyaninfluencer.
Therearesomegeneralstatisticsthatmostbrandsliketoknowabouttheirinfluencermarketing:
Additionalwebsitevisitorsreceivedasthe
resultoftheinfluencermarketingcampaign.
Anyadditionalsalesgeneratedcomparedto
thecostsofworkingwithyourinfluencers.
Thetypesofmarketingmessagesthatbest
resonatewithyourtargetaudience.
01 02
0403

30. Conclusion
Itisimportantthatyoukeepmonitoringyourcampaign.Influencecanbefickle.Youdon’twanttobe
taintedbyworkingwithaninfluencerwhohaslosthisorherrespect.
Forinfluencermarketingtosucceed,brandshavetotrustthatinfluencerswillrepresentthem
appropriately.Thesolutioncomesbacktoinfluencerselection.Ifyouchooseinfluencerswhohave
followerswithaclosematchtoyourtargetmarket,youhavecreatedoddsofasuccessfulcampaign.
IfbusinessesfollowthroughthestepsI’veoutlinedhere,andputtheeffortintosuitableinfluencer
identification,theninfluencermarketingshouldproducesoundresults.
influencermarinfluencermarketingworkshand-in-handwithcontentmarketingtobethemostsuccessfulwayto
marketyourproductsthisdecade.