Partnering With Micro-Influencers Over Macro-Influencers

When it comes to choosing an influencer for your brand it is not a numbers game.

Micro-influencers have a niche audience of dedicated followers wherein quality trumps quantity.

Recently deemed the marketing force of the future, micro-influencers usually have between 10K and 500K followers on each of their social platforms.

A common misconception is that an influencer must have a following 10 times the actual amount needed to bring value to a brand, but this is far from the truth! In fact, the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) found that 96% of brands placed “quality of followers” at the top of their influencer checklist. “Credibility and reputation,” was a close second.

Lifestyle blogger Jordan Santos @jordanrisa partners with brands like Michael Kors and Dolce Vita. OPI recently named her their “it girl.”  She also has a knack for social advocacy and is on a mission to help end drunk driving by any means possible.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BnG5xC7hHRh/?taken-by=jordanrisa

In her Instagram post above, Santos sports Michael Kors sneakers and a D.A.R.E t shirt—seamless execution of combining style and social advocacy.

Fitness and wellness guru Michelle Carigma @_modernfit has partnered with nearly all of the big names in sports—Addidas, Nike, and Under Armor—to name a few. She has also worked with Victoria Sport, Wanu water, Beats By Dre and Panera Bread. Like @jordanrisa, Carigma also works to intertwine style and social advocacy. Carigma pioneered the #WCWoman social movement which strives, “to break conformity and introduce the influential power of the modern woman.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/BnO5WzJABtT/?taken-by=_modernfit

Engagement plays a huge role when looking at the quality of an influencer’s followers. A smaller following means higher engagement rates which parlays into more influence by said micro-influencer. Conversely, a macro-influencer with a larger following likely has lower engagement rates.

Not only is engagement measured in likes and comments but also by the ultimate trust an influencer must gain from their followers. Micro influencer, Nicholas Pakradooni has an average engagement rate of 6.57%. To put that in perspective, Kylie Jenner who is also in her early 20s averages at 3.84%.

Fashion influencer Nicholas Pakradooni @cholpak collaborates with brands such as H&M Man, ASOS, Swatch and Topman.

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A post shared by Nicholas Pakradooni (@cholpak)

When it comes to authenticity, celebrities pale in comparison to micro-influencers. Partnering with micro influencers who are genuine in their shared interests and likeness for your brand can be more mutually beneficial than partnering with celebrity macro influencers.

photo credit: Automated Social (Flickr)

Tailoring Celebrity Marketing to Individual Social Platforms

Social media is not one-size-fits all.

Joining the social media bandwagon just for a presence on social media does not work. A casual Facebook page or basic ad on Instagram is not enough. Each social platform has its own nuances that distinguish one channel from another.

Granted, any company wanting to spread its message to as wide as an audience as possible should be on multiple social platforms. However, it is important to recognize each social channel’s unique audience. From there, brands must creatively reach users by differentiating between these platforms and determining which and what type of celebrity influence is going to be most successful.

Brands need to determine content that will perform best on each platform factoring in the celebrity that will best enhance the campaign.

For instance, what does well on Instagram may not do well on Snapchat, and what works for Facebook may not work for Twitter. Each social media platform has its own tone and language. For example, Twitter’s 140-character limit, encourages users to keep their messages concise. In contrast, Instagram emphasizes the power of pictures to express its social content. Whenever creating social content, it is always important to remember that it should match the platform’s community and norms.

Likewise, individual social media platforms take on different roles. Whereas Snapchat is well-suited for raising brand awareness among millennials and Generation Z, Twitter frequently responds to customer complaints.

In addition, brands should think about the length of its content. Although Snapchat is no longer limited to 10 second videos, millennials respond best to ads that are short. So, when thinking about what advertising content to post next, keep in mind that the shorter the ad the better.

Moreover, visual style of brand content varies per platform. Content on Snapchat and Instagram are encouraged to be vertical, restricting the way brands create advertisements.

Tailoring content and identifying the right celebrity fit for each social media platform demonstrates that a company understands social media and has a solid strategy in place.

Ultimately, brands must learn the tricks of the trade if they are going to effectively advertise and market. Celebrity marketing is an excellent way of engaging users on social media, but if done incorrectly, brands will pay the price.

photo credit: TeroVesalainen via Pixabay.com 

Celebrity, Influencer Marketing and Shoppable Ads a Powerful Combination for Increasing Ecommerce

Brands with a bottom line goal of converting social media users into customers, shoppable ads with influencers and celebrities are a great option.

Combining the effectiveness of celebrity marketing with the quick and easy conversion allowed by shoppable ads creates a dynamic marketing opportunity for brands.

By reducing the amount of steps consumers need to take to buy a product featured in a post with their favorite celebrity or influencer, brands are seeing increased sales and using the tactic more frequently.

Shoppable influencer ads are not only leading to higher conversion rates, they are also giving brand marketers a clearer way to measure return on investment (ROI). They can determine what ads are performing the best and how well they are performing.

Links on social posts across the major platforms enable tracking sales from social media efforts. Purchases made can be traced back to the source to determine how many sales can be attributed to the ad.

Here are a few brands leading the way in shoppable influencer ads:

The clothing brand Loft partnered with actress Busy Philipps to produce a shoppable video ad campaign on Instagram. The campaign included a series of longer videos cut down into several clips and posted on the brand’s account.

Using the Like2Buy platform, consumers were able to view the ad and then use the link to visit the brand’s ecommerce site and see the items Busy had picked as her favorites.

Celebrity and Influencer ads on Snapchat are being revived since the platform recently debuted the ability for brands to link right to their websites.

Teva Women’s Health partnered with actress Sophia Bush to work on a campaign generating awareness about alternative birth control options. The #NoHormonesPLZ campaign included a ten second Snapchat video ad with Sophia instructing viewers to swipe up to learn more.

Users were able to go to the website for the campaign and sign up to enter the sweepstakes right through Snapchat.

The organization was able to get more entries by making the link closer to consumers and requiring less action to participate.

MikMak is a company that creates, measures and distributes shoppable ads on behalf of brands. Through their attach feature, brands are able to attach links to their ecommerce sites within their Snapchat ads or Instagram Stories.

Several brands began testing out the beta version of the service in spring 2017. GoPro, Birchbox and Dr. Brandt skincare are among those who have encountered success with the feature.

Birchbox created a series of shoppable video ads for their Mother’s Day campaign. Dr. Brandt Skincare saw a huge ROI, with a 500 percent increase in sales from Instagram for facemasks over a span of 10 days.

Seeing as all of these brands have used influencer marketing in the past, it will be important to keep an eye out for how they capitalize on the early adoption of tools like these to combine celebrity marketing with shoppable ads.

photo credit: Justyre / 27 images via Pixabay

How to Reach Multiple Demographics with the Same Campaign through Influencer Marketing

Big brands have led the way in using a wide range of micro-influencers to reach a variety of consumers.

Having a single campaign activated across numerous influencers allows brands to access more than just the typical, narrow target market. Strategically using influencers that impact a variety of populations can allow campaigns to reach far beyond the usual scope.

Rather than using a large number of influencers who have followings with similar characteristics, brands can use influencers with extensively different backgrounds whose followings are diverse. This allows brands to use the same central campaign to connect with a larger sphere of people.

Here are a few brands who have successfully executed this approach.

Walmart

In spring 2017, Walmart launched its “Fight Hunger Spark Change” campaign in partnership with Feeding America. Their goal was as many donations as possible to secure meals for hungry Americans. Walmart used 7 influencers on Instagram to spread awareness for the cause and increase donations.

A charitable cause as broad as this one could be taken up by a massive array of people from all different backgrounds. Walmart mimicked this through their use of a mixture of influencers. From professional soccer player Sydney Leroux to YouTube personality and cook Rosanna Pansino to professional skateboarder Ryan Sheckler, Walmart covered a broad spectrum of influencers.

The result was a huge engagement rate of 23% and raised $1.5 million.

Axe

Axe partnered with 30 male influencers for their “Find Your Magic”campaign with a goal to break the cycle of toxic masculinity and support men in destroying stereotypes and using hair products.

The Haircare VP of Unilever (the company that owns Axe), Piyush Jain, was quoted in AdWeek saying “this is the first time male influencers from all different walks of life are coming together to inspire guys to start styling.”

Amongst the 30 were actor Josh Peck, cooking channel star Josh Elkin and video gamer Joshua Ovenshire. With just these three celebrities, Axe was able to reach men with disparate interests by involving influencers with an assortment of personalities and fan bases who openly used Axe products on their social channels.

Gap

For their “Styld.by” campaign, Gap partnered with multiple prominent influencers across several categories. They enlisted photographers, writers, singers, models and bloggers amongst others, spanning different cultural backgrounds, races, genders and stages in life.

Each of these influencers posed for photos wearing Gap clothing mixed in with their own pieces showing how they incorporated the brand into their own styles.

The material was posted on several platforms, including Gap’s social channels, the influencers’ personal channels and the online community dedicated to the campaign.  

Using influencer marketing allows brands to extend their target market on a budget and/or create multiple campaigns.

photo credit: Mike Mozart via Flickr

Updates to Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat: What Brands Need to Know for Their Celebrity Marketing

Big changes are taking place across the major social channels as they compete to one up each other and rise above the rest.

Brands and marketers need to stay up to date and adapt their campaigns based on updates. Social and digital trends change quickly. In order to lead the pack and get the most out of a campaign, brands must stay current and be ready for more change.

Social Media has become an integral part of nearly all marketing campaigns.

Here is what the major social channels are doing next, along with some insight on how these features affect influencer and celebrity marketing.

Facebook

Facebook announced that they’ll be releasing an app for influencers to create videos. The feature will operate with Facebook Live and only be accessible to celebrities, journalists and internet influencers, or any other verified accounts.

Brands can integrate themselves with celebrities in an entirely new way through this feature. Current celebrity endorsement avenues include celebrities posting on their Facebook pages or influencers mentioning products or brands in their YouTube videos. The video creation app combines both, creating a new opportunity for brand and celebrity partnerships.

Snapchat

After receiving a lot of criticism from marketers and advertisers who want to use metrics to assess campaigns, Snapchat has tried to match the other social channels in terms of data and analytics. They released the paperclip tool which allows links to be attached to snaps.

This provides brands opportunity to drive more traffic to their websites and measure how much traffic comes from the ads’ placement on Snapchat specifically. When promoting a brand on Snapchat, celebrities can now include a link to whatever the brand chooses right within the snap.

Instagram

In an attempt to help brands follow the endorsement rules put forth by the FTC, Instagram launched a “paid partnerships” feature. It allows celebrities to clearly mark the posts that feature the partnerships they have with brands.

This feature allows brands to be clear and transparent about endorsements. Using this tool on Instagram will keep brands out of conflict with the FTC.

Social Overall

Across all social media platforms, more tools for data and analytics are being developed. Social channels are accommodating brands’ demands for better marketing outlets and striving to provide the best place for ads.

Using these tools as they are released gives brand marketers opportunity to showcase their campaigns and provides helpful insight for planning future campaigns.

Facebook and Twitter are among channels focusing on live streaming events. This trend is another to follow as it develops. With the decline of TV, this is another potential format for celebrity marketing campaigns to flourish.

 
photo credit: Anthony Quintano via Flickr

What Brands Need to Know about FTC Regulations for Influencer and Celebrity Marketing Campaigns on Instagram

Brands must educate themselves on how to use celebrity marketing in the most effective way that conforms to the rules set forth by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

Even though the FTC has cracked down on celebrities and influencers for not explicitly labeling endorsed posts, there is still a huge lack of transparency regarding paid relationships.

In April 2017, The FTC issued a notice reiterating the rules for signposting paid ads on social media. They sent over 90 letters directly to celebrities, athletes and other influencers noting their improperly labeled posts. Even so, a study revealed that during May 2017, 32 of the top 50 celebrities posted some sort of sponsored content and 93% of those posts weren’t signposted correctly.

With changes underway, it’s essential for brands to know what the FTC requires, what social channels are doing to lessen the problem and what brands should do to avoid issues and successfully execute a social influencer campaign.

What the FTC Requires

The FTC Guidelines state any “material connection” between an influencer and an advertiser must be made clear. Meaning if there is any kind of relationship that could affect the way the consumers view the credibility of the post, it must be exposed.

The FTC also instructs hashtags must be easily interpretable. Unclear hashtags like #sp (meant to indicate sponsored post) don’t have a clear meaning to all consumers, causing the material connection to go unnoticed.

Hashtags must also be near the top of the post. On Instagram, text indicating the post is sponsored must be before the “more” button. The info needs to be visible without having to look further to find it.

What Social Channels are Doing

In an attempt to restore clarity and structure to sponsored posts, Instagram has launched a “paid partnership” feature. This allows for influencers to indicate the sponsorship above the post, under their name, in the space where a location is often put.

This will give influencers and advertisers a clear-cut way to disclose paid relationships, leaving ambiguity out of it. The #ad or #sponsored labels and their variations being used now leave more room for uncertainty in some cases.

While Instagram isn’t enforcing use of the feature at this time, it is a step towards stricter regulation and allows brands an easy way to avoid any questioning by the FTC.

What Brands Can Do

It’s best for brands to be diligent and stay up to date on the latest news and requirements from the FTC regarding influencer marketing and not just rely on its agencies. It’s necessary to be aware of the regulations to ensure a brand doesn’t end up damaging its image.

One reason why social media influencer campaigns are loved by brands is because of the genuine and natural way consumers are exposed to brands or products. Some brands fear clearly labeled posts could diminish that effect.

The key to getting around this issue is finding celebrity and influencer partners that make sense. If a partnership is logical, then it will seem authentic and genuine even if clearly labeled as a paid endorsement.

photo credit: Heidi Klum via Instagram

Matching an Influencer or Celebrity Marketing Campaign with the Right Social Channel

Campaigns reach maximum effectiveness when placed on the social channel that best fits a brand’s goal.

Brands of all sizes and industries have stepped up their use of influencer marketing because of its ability to reach consumers in a genuine and valuable way. Research done by Linqia.com shows that 86% percent of marketers used the tactic in 2016.

Undoubtedly successful, influencer campaigns placed with the right social channel allow brands to optimize their spend. The decision of which social channel to use depends on the broad goal of the campaign according to the points below.

 Audience

Depending on which consumer the campaign targets, one social channel may be better than another. With the extent social networks are integrating into daily lives, people of a variety of characteristics and lifestyles are active on any given channel. However, some channels are still better than others for reaching a certain demographic. Some channels, like Instagram and Snapchat, are used more heavily among millennials while others, like Facebook, are more frequently used by an older audience.

Stride gum used DJ Khaled to promote their Mad Intense Gum. They had DJ Khaled take over the brand’s Snapchat account for two days as a part of the campaign. By using Snapchat, they were able to reach the audience they intended.

Reach

If the goal is impressions and getting the brand seen by as many people as possible, the campaign is best placed on a channel conducive to that purpose. This will depend on the chosen influencer’s following on each channel. In general, Facebook and Instagram currently allow for the largest reach considering that they have the highest amount of active users.

With 121 million followers, Selena Gomez is one of the most followed accounts on Instagram. The fashion company Coach brought her on as a spokesperson in December 2016. She has posted multiple pictures with their products on her account, allowing Coach to reach millions of consumers.

 Engagement

Engagement is a more powerful and intimate tool that focuses on getting consumers to take action. While reach can mean that they just saw an ad, engagement means they acknowledged it and interacted with it; usually by liking or commenting. When matching an influencer campaign with a social channel, choose the social channel where the influencer has the most dedicated and captivated following. Overall, Facebook and Instagram are good for engagement. Snapchat isn’t the best since the content isn’t likable or shareable.

Clinique for Men was able to generate a large level of engagement by partnering with influencers on Instagram. By using ten influencers across different demographics, the brand was able to achieve 3.8 times higher engagement than on their own account. Their products showed up on accounts including professional surfer and photographer Mikey DeTemple’s with 26,600 followers. A bigger influencer they partnered with was the lifestyle blogger and traveler Justin Livingston, with 246,000 followers.

photo credit: stux via Pixabay

 

The Importance of Following FDA, FTC Regulations on Social Media in Celebrity Marketing

Kardashian’s tweet is a reminder for pharmaceutical companies about social media.

At the end of every drug commercial comes the long list of health risks stated by the narrator.  This is a requirement enforced by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for all drug advertisements, and being an international celebrity as big as Kim Kardashian does not omit you from this regulation.

The FDA forced Kim Kardashian to recall a testimonial advertisement that she posted on her Instagram and Twitter about the morning sickness drug Diclegis. In the caption, she mentions positive effects of Diclegis such as, “I felt a lot better,” and, “It’s been studied and there was no increased risk to the baby.”  However, what Kardashian failed to mention was any of the drug’s risks or side effects.

OMG. Have you heard about this? As you guys know my #morningsickness has been pretty bad. I tried… https://t.co/5nA8eoDvl6

— Kim Kardashian West (@KimKardashian) July 20, 2015

A Warning Letter was sent on Aug. 7 to the executive vice president of Duchesnay, Inc., the pharmaceutical company that owns Diclegis. Among stating risks and facts that the posts failed to mention, the FDA requested that Duchesnay, “immediately cease misbranding DICLEGIS,” (aka take down the post and post ads with all appropriate information in the future). The letter also demanded a written response by Duchesnay by Aug. 21, and so far no response has been released.

Ads about drugs aren’t the only type of industry that has rules to follow. In 2013, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) updated their digital advertising guidelines, titled .com Disclosure, which stated that all digital media forms, including social media, must follow FTC advertisements and endorsement regulations.

The .com Disclosure particularly concerns, “space constrained screens and social media platforms,” as it obviously poses a challenge to fit all required material in a short 140 character tweet.

In regards to testimonials and endorsements, the main guidelines that the FTC focused on are:

1. The post must “clearly and conspicuously” disclose that it is a paid endorsement, and a link to a disclosure is not usually enough. The document recommends using “Ad:” or “#ad” as a short way to noticeably disclose the information.
2. The post must make clear what the average results are for the product, not just how it worked for the celebrity. Their example of a weight loss drug suggests saying, “Typical loss: 1 lb/wk.”

Unfortunately, as in the case of Duchesnay, it is the brand that has to deal with consequences by the FDA or FTC when a celebrity violates the regulations on their accounts. Some online celebrity endorsements have ignored the guidelines and not seen any repercussions (yet), like Kourtney Kardashian’s ex-husband Scott Disick’s post about Express Smile Atlanta. But, even non-high-profile people who post endorsements can cause backlash for companies. The Deutsch LA ad agency caused their client, Sony, to refund consumer money after they had employees post promotional tweets.

For more information, visit the FTC Endorsement Guides.

photo credit: instagram.com/kimkardashian

Celebrity Marketing Endorsements Flourishing on Instagram

Celebrity spokespeople help brands tell compelling stories reaching millions of Instagram users; here’s how:

Brands’ use of Instagram as a marketing tool over the last few years has drastically increased. While social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook are losing some stamina, mobile apps have gained millions of users and are an effective way for brands to quickly reach their target audiences.

Instagram allows marketers to create content that is different from conventional advertisements and engage audiences in a way that appeals to them. With thousands of celebrities on the app, brand endorsements are very common. Here are some examples of how brands have been using celebrity Instagram accounts to promote their products.

 Rihanna–Puma

With intense competition in the athletic footwear industry, Puma chose Rihanna to bolster their brand and increase sales. The partnership is displayed heavily on Rihanna’s Instagram page where she posts artsy shots of the line that she created with the brand. With 54.3 million followers, Rihanna is sought after by many brands, and also has endorsements with Chopard Jewelry and Stance socks, both of which are displayed beautifully on her Instagram.

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson–Under Armour

With his 87.1 million Instagram following and image of physical strength and fitness, The Rock is a great partner for Under Armour. The partnership was initially announced in fall 2015 and since has been frequently depicted on The Rock’s Instagram account. He often posts pictures of himself working out with an Under Armour logo visibly on his clothes, as well as photos of pieces from his custom line.                     

Instagram Celebrities

Similar to YouTube, Instagram has its own group of famous users who draw millions of followers. Fashion and lifestyle accounts are prominent on the social media outlet, and brands have taken advantage of that. Brands such as Urban Decay and Dior have partnered with the Instagram beauty influencer Chrisspy to promote their products.

photo credit: celebrityabc via flickr