Bloggers vs Blaggers - Things to keep in mind when working with an influencer

I’ll start this blog with a bit of a confession. I, personally, am a traditionalist when it comes to media. I pride myself on my carefully curated network of media relationships in print and broadcast, and my ability to feature my clients in magazines, newspapers and television. However, the fact of the matter is that we are living in a social media revolution.

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Online platforms have generated an influencer marketing industry that is currently worth an estimated $8 billion globally and is set to hit $15 billion by 2022 according to Business Insider Intelligence estimates. The fact of the matter is that social media influencers are now an integral part of the media landscape, like it or not.

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Thankfully, at ASC we work with an extensive cohort of digital natives that keep our clients on the cutting edge of social. Before you dive into social media collaboration, it is important to sit down with your PR agency to ensure you get the best ROI possible in this brave new world of new media.

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There are millions of influencers out there, and the market is almost completely unregulated. Unlike traditional journalists, social media influencers need not prove their qualifications or fact check their content, they simply need to carry the ability to influence their audience. Most influencers work very hard at what they do and can produce incredible results. However, there are a few bad eggs.

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Influencer selection is crucial to a campaign achieving a robust ROI. First up is identifying the right influencer for your brand. Work with your PR agency to identify influencers that speak to your industry, clients and consumers. Even if an influencer has millions of followers, there is absolutely no point in engaging with them if none of those followers are customers or potential customers. A good PR agency will identify and shortlist influencer that speak to your audience. 

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When shopping around for an influencer to champion your brand, the first instinct is to check out their following. Of course, this is a logical first move but beware! Unscrupulous influencers oftentimes have fake followers - instagram accounts that are purchased en masse to make the influencer appear more popular than they really are.

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Thankfully, there are plenty of free social media audit tools out there that will give you an estimate of the size of an influencers genuine audience. For a quick check yourself, pay attention to the influencer’s engagement. If they are posting but no one is liking or commenting, that is a surefire sign of a big faker.

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Finally, there is the price tag. The cost of collaborating with an influencer varies wildly, from thousands of dirhams for a single post, to nothing more than the chance to use your product or service. The good news is, that with so many influencers out there, your PR agency should be able to identify one that fits your budget.

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Navigating the world of social media influencers can be daunting, but with the right agency by your side, the results of an influencer campaign can be invaluable. We can help your brand find an influencer who speaks to your audience and hits your price point without the risk of throwing your investment away on just another instagram faker.