The digital marketing landscape is constantly changing. Today, it is nearly impossible to distribute content without an influencer marketing strategy. By aligning your marketing strategy with the right professionals, you open the door to more collaborative content creation efforts, co-opting ideas from chatter across a wider online network.

Marketers have caught wind of the power of influencers in recent years and have run with it. Brands have seen the benefits of utilising the power of influencers, from all platforms, and have seen how brand awareness and traffic has increased by the relationships they have built with bloggers and vloggers.

Influencer marketing uses key leaders in the specific industry to promote a brand’s message to a large audience. Instead of promoting your content directly to the target readers, you use the influencers as mediators, who inspire other people to check out your words without feeling like they are being pushed towards your website. What makes influencer marketing better than the word-of-mouth strategy? These individuals share their opinions and recommendations with a huge audience, and they have the power to influence their actions. Here are five ways to boost your influencer marketing strategy:

1. Define Your Goals
As with any smart marketing plan, start by outlining your goals. Set your intentions for what you would like to accomplish with your campaign. Defining your goals in the early stages of planning will help you shape a consistent strategy throughout your campaign, and it will also give you an idea about the metrics you should track and monitor to measure your success at the end of the campaign.

Some goals you may want to consider for your influencer marketing strategy include the following:

• Brand Awareness: Getting more people to know, recognize, and like your brand.
• Building Brand Identity: Getting people to see your brand personality and values.
• Audience Building: Getting more people to follow and subscribe.
• Engagement: Getting more shares, comments, and likes for your content.
• Lead Generation: Getting more people to sign up for your lead magnets and offers.
• Sales: Getting more people to purchase your products/services.
• Customer Loyalty: Getting people to stay interested and connected with your brand.
• Link Building: Getting more links directed back to your site.

2. Choose a Type of Influencer Marketing Campaign
Once you know your goals, it’s time to start thinking about the type of influencer marketing campaign that will help you accomplish your mission.

Influencer marketing campaigns usually involve three types of relationship triggers: inspire, hire, or a mix of both. You can inspire an influencer to share your content or messaging on their own. You can pay them to promote your brand. Or you can create a situation that uses a little bit of both.

3. Identify and Define Your Audience
Once you have an idea about your goals and the type of influencer marketing strategy you want to implement, you still aren’t ready to start looking for influencers. Before you can identify who will help you connect with your target audience, you need to know who your target audience is.

Before you start looking for influencers, spend time outlining specific details about who you want to connect with through your campaign. Create a buyer persona that includes both demographic and psychographic segmentation. Once you know your audience, it will be easier to identify the top people they follow and websites they use.

If you need help with defining your audience, download our free buyer persona template to help you through the process.

4. Find the Right Influencers
With your audience clearly defined, you can finally start seeking out the influencers who will help you reach your goals and connect with your target market.

As you consider your options, explore the following types of influencers: Bloggers, Social Media Stars, Celebrities, Industry Experts, Thought Leaders, Customers, and Noncompeting Brands. Once you determine the type of influencer you want to use, start researching individuals or brands in that space.

5. Know Your Competitors
When you understand the contextual landscape of the other people in your field, you will need to choose the person that suits your brand the best. This also applies according to audience segmentation and targeting. It may be that a favorite influencer uses a specific channel. The key thing is to figure out where conversations are already being had, and whether you can fill a gap in that specific space. You’ll also want to have a solid understanding of who is naturally talking about your products or services.

Content is all over the Internet. Every single industry is busy, so it will take you a lot of effort to differentiate yourself from the crowd. When you enrich your content marketing strategy with influencer outreach, they will do the marketing for you!

Source:
https://www.nimble.com/blog/how-to-improve-your-content-strategy-with-influencer-marketing/
https://econsultancy.com/six-tips-for-influencer-marketingsuccess/
https://www.martechadvisor.com/articles/influencer-marketing/5-ways-to-create-an-effective-influencer-marketing-strategy