Getting Started With Influencer Marketing

GUIDE:

This guide should take you approximately 9 minutes to read

Congratulations! Youve taken the first step in starting your influencer marketing strategy. According to the latest research, more than 74% of marketers will be deploying influencer marketing strategies in the next 12 months1 . Are you one of them? Perhaps youve been toying with the idea? Perhaps you dont know where to start? Time to stop debating and start executing. As you start your plan, here are a few items to consider that well cover in this guide. Step 1: Know What You Want From Influencer Marketing Step 2: Understanding Different Kinds of Influencers Step 3: Design a Shareable Experience and Know How to Scale It Step 4: Recognize Influencer Marketing Differs from Traditional Advertising Step 5: Determine Your Investment Strategy

1. Technorati, 2012

Step 1: Know What You Want From Influencer Marketing

Todays consumers are bombarded with advertising messages on virtually every channel, but the voice of fellow consumers, friends and family remains supreme. When it comes to online recommendations, more than 90% of consumers trust people they know, and more than 70% trust consumer opinions online1 . Yet, only 33% trust online advertising. Also consider that

74%
Of consumers rely on social networks to guide purchase decisions2

71%
More likely to make a purchase based on social media referrals3

Consumers are

81%
Of consumers say posts from friends have directly influenced a purchase decision4

Game over. People win over ads! But dont let this discourage you as a marketer, let it empower you with a whole new world of possibilities to drive sales and awareness efficiently, effectively and measurably. There is an enormous opportunity for brands to harness the power of consumers to influence decisions and the path to purchase. The act of mobilizing this effort, proactively sparking conversation and leveraging social media tools to drive scale is what we call influencer marketing. When youre approaching a new marketing avenue, its always important to know your objectives. Whats the problem youre looking to solve? Here are some of the most common objectives our clients have: ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Generate positive brand recommendations Increase social share of voice over key competitors Create, capture and repurpose user-generated content Drive awareness about a brand launch or brand innovation Educate the market about a particular aspect of the brand Generate social media chatter about a brand Drive traffic to a digital promotion, coupon, sweepstakes Drive consumers to a specific retail partner Increase positive brand sentiment in social media

Having clear objectives is important in understanding what is working, and will help you better define how influencer marketing is impacting your business.

1. Nielsen, 2013; 2. SproutSocial, 2011; 3. Hubspot, 2012; 4. Marketforce

Step 2: Understanding Different Kinds of Influencers

Influencers come in many shapes and sizes, and consequently, the strategies surrounding each vary as well. Just like digital marketing applies to so much more than online banner ads, influencer marketing has many practices. Effective influencer marketing involves activating numerous kinds of influencers to help drive purchase. Among the spectrum of influence, there are typically two categories: high reach/exposure influencers and high trust/ impact influencers. HIGH REACH/EXPOSURE INFLUENCERS This group of influencers garner the attention of a large audience. We can typically characterize them by two subgroups: celebrities and content producers. Celebrities can be any public figures actors, musicians or athletes. Content producers are those individuals who are highly specialized in a specific subject or area, and have a following that values their opinion. This can include journalists, professional bloggers or industry experts.

One of the key benefits of a high reach influencer is his or her audience size. These individuals can offer exposure to a large scale following which is effective in building awareness about your brands product or service. However, each influencer group has its key strengths and weaknesses. Although celebrities and popular bloggers are efficient in driving reach, its important to keep in mind that celebrities and content producers typically have short term relationships with your brand. Additionally, working with a celebrity or content producer often involves compensation and they seldom carry the same authenticity that our next group of influencers deliver the high trust/impact influences.

1. Search Engine Land, 2012

HIGH TRUST/IMPACT INFLUENCERS This particular group includes consumer influencers individuals who are personally relevant to our daily lives and who are consumers like us. They have proven to be a credible source of information, especially with regards to the products we buy. Within the consumer influencer group, there are two subgroups that include brand advocates and social circles. Brand advocates are consumers who personally endorse a brand to both people they know and people they do not know. They are the consumer opinion. The consumer voice. Research tells us that 72% of consumers trust online reviews from people they dont know as much as a personal recommendation1. Brand advocates can include consumers who write favorable reviews online, post about your brand in forums and websites, and mention your brand to strangers and acquaintances. Our social circles are those who are closet to us. They are our friends, family members, colleagues and neighbors. This groups carries the most trust among all the influencers. More than 90% of consumers trust online recommendations from people they know and 84% say that a post from a friend has prompted action1. They carry personalized messages that are meaningful and impactful in our everyday lives. So while a high trust influencer may not command the same following as a famous celebrity or a high paid blogger, they do play a critical part in the path to purchase and discovery of new products or services. In fact, 86% of consumers say family and close friends have the greatest impact on products they purchase.

86%

Who Impacts Purchase Most?

58% 54% 42% 39%

11%

Family and Close Friends

Professional

Website Review

Acquanintance

Blogger

Celebrity

*2013 Social Recommendations Index

Marketers may spend millions of dollars on elaborately conceived advertising campaigns, yet o!en what really makes up a consumers mind is simple: a word-of-mouth recommendation from a trusted source [McKinsey&Company]

Nielsen 2013; Social Recommendations Index 2013

THE ORCHESTRA STRATEGY As consumers, countless people influence us every day. And, it is often more than one instrument that drives a purchase; an entire orchestra influences us to buy. Approaching influencer marketing with an orchestra mentality will ensure your target consumers are reached at every point in their decision-making process. As a marketer, its important to understand your customers influencer path and to understand when and where they rely on specific influencers to guide their decisions.

Step 3: Design a Shareable Experience and Know How to Scale It.

The experience an influencer has with your brand will impact the content created! Make sure to set aside a budget for the brand experience. Simply providing a coupon or a non-exclusive offer will drastically impact the conversation and excitement your influencer will have. Would you sponsor an event and arrive with nothing or very little to share? Of course not! The same principle applies to influencer marketing. The bang for your buck is in the experience you provide and the content it will help trigger. The are several factors to consider when investing in influencer marketing, but with any investment, creating an experience that is exclusive, creative and relevant will: Encourage more influencers to participant and share Drive multiple posting and prolonged advocacy Create rich and high quality content Further increase positive recommendations Spark greater action and engagement from friends, followers and readers ! Make your influencers look good and love your brand ! ! ! ! !

YOUR CHECKLIST
Is it relevant to your target influencers interest? Is it something exclusive/new/free? Does it provoke a personal story from the influencer? Is the experience easy to understand and complete? Does it educate the influencer in an easy-to-digest way? Does it help the influencer bring value to their friends?

AMPLIFY SHARING AND SPARK ACTION Now that you have a killer brand experience, the next critical element is amplification. It is essential for influencers to have the ability to share their experience easily, and for marketers to access these conversations. At Social Media Link, weve purpose-built our platform to leverage the greatest amplified of our time social media. Influencers should be able to seamlessly share their experiences across their expansive social networks with limited friction. This is what gives influencer marketing the scale needed to move the needle for your brand. When influencers are sharing about your brand, make sure to arm them with a way for their friends to engage. Ultimately, your end goal should always be action. Influencers are simply there to help influence that action. Just imagine seeing a glowing review about a product from a trusted source and then being able to buy it with a special discount. Providing a call-to-action for friends, followers and readers prompts immediate engagement. An effective call-to-action for an influencer marketing program could be a discount code, a high value coupon, a free sample order, sweepstakes, contest or special online content.

KNOW THE RULES With any influencer strategy, its best to know the rules. One of the most important rules is disclosure. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) requires that consumers who have received a free product, service or compensation in exchange for a review/post to disclose this information when publishing to social media, or when discussing with other consumers offline. Influencer marketing does not work without authenticity. Its authenticity that establishes trust in brand conversations and recommendations. Therefore, its critical that influencers are transparent with their friends and followers. This helps maintain their credibility as well as your brands. Make sure to educate consumers about the FTC requirements and to make it easy for them to properly inform their audience, both online and offline.

Step 4: Recognize Influencer Marketing Differs from Traditional Advertising

There are numerous cross-channel metrics in influencer marketing to help compare it to other investments and determine your ROI. But influencer marketing is about impact and quality as well. An online ad impression will pale in comparison to a product recommendation from a friend. Its vital to account for this fact and to factor engagement and action into your analysis.

Not all impressions are created equal. Impressions that are choice based get many multiples of higher impact than a passively viewed impression. Choice-based and shared impressions yield more than a passive impression. Chief Strategy & Media Officer, Digitas.

Anything with a consumer endorsement works better than paid media

EVP, Global Research Starcom

Today, there are boatloads of data points to help understand the impact consumer conversation has on action. Here are the most commonly used metrics in influencer marketing:

QUANTATITIVE

QUALITATIVE

ENGAGEMENT

BRAND IMPACT

RESEARCH

! Quantity of posts ! Friend & follower reach ! Earned media impressions ! Hashtag mentions

! Top keywords ! Comment sentiment ! Number of words per post

! ! ! ! ! !

Clicks/downloads/opt-ins Retweets Likes Shares Comments Posts per influencer

! ! ! !

Social share of voice Overall brand presence Overall brand sentiment Traffic to brand properties/call-to-action links

! Pre/post survey research ! Friend & follower research (Generation1)

Step 5: Determine Your Investment Strategy

You are off to a great start! Now is the time to make the magic come alive. If youre still on the fence about influencer marketing, you should consider a test-and-learn program. With Social Media Links solutions, this typically involves anywhere from 500 1,500 consumer influencers for a 10-week program. Youll learn how the process works, and get a taste of what you can expect when the strategy is scaled. If you know influencer marketing is just what your brand needs, you can easily plan an engagement strategy utilizing many waves of influencers to keep the conversations increasing and the sales going.

Test and Learn ~10 weeks

Standard 6-12 month activation

Well Done!
Well done you! Youve completed the first step in leveraging influencer marketing for your brand. We know how important marketing investments are to your brand, and how thoughtful consideration must be paid to each. At Social Media Link, well help design the perfect plan that fits your needs, and well make sure your investment garners the best return. Lets get to work.

About Social Media Link Social Media Link (SML) is the leading influencer and advocacy activation company that amplifies social media conversation for brands. We make it easy for brands to activate impactful and trusted reviews and recommendations across social media, triggering action and leading consumers through the path to purchase. SMLs platform, Smiley360.com, is a social community for influential people who love to share brand experiences. Marketers utilize our platform to mobilize targeted consumer influencers to experience their brand and share reviews with the large social audiences they influence. Our proprietary Single-Click Sharing technology makes it easy for consumers to feed reviews to their most preferred social networks in one place, giving brands enormous exposure in social channels from passionate consumers.

212-302-0777

www.socialmedialink.com www.smiley360.com

info@socialmedialink.com

263 West 38th Street, FL 8 NY, NY 10001