What is Micro-Influencer Marketing & Why is it so Powerful?

Hey there. Have you ever wanted to know more about micro-influencer marketing and why it is so powerful?

If yes, then you're in the right place.

For starters, we'll like to begin by stating that influencer marketing is one of the most powerful and effective forms of marketing that exist today.

In fact, some marketers even believe that it's the single-best form of marketing and brand awareness.

A brand with non-existent website traffic and almost no sales can quickly become flooded with orders after collaborating with the right influencer.

However, many brands have resisted influencer marketing because they think it's costly. After all, aren't influencers famous-name celebrities like Kendall Jenner and Jessica Parker?

Well, not necessarily.

Even though there's been a massive spike in influencer marketing over the past few years, there's a new kid on the scene that's stealing the thunder- Micro-influencers.

Micro-influencers are professionals with strong fan bases in small niches, and even the smallest of brands can leverage influencer marketing by partnering with such influencers.

Micro-influencer marketing is taking off, and it's beginning to be (if not more) just as celebrity influencer advertising and campaign.

Even though micro-influencers don't have the massive follower numbers that people like Jessica Parker might attract, their audience is the same as yours, and they have more sway over their followers.

In the world of influencer marketing, cats can offer pet food coupons, dogs can sell cameras, and anyone can become a celebrity on social media.

So,

• Who is a micro-influencer?


• What is micro-influencer marketing?


• What are the benefits of micro-influencer marketing?

Don't freak out, buddy; we wrote this post just for you rock-dwellers.

Let's dive in.

MICRO-INFLUENCERS – WHO AND WHAT ARE THEY?

Before talking about micro-influencers, we'd love to first talk about the meaning of the word "influencer."

Generally, influencers are people that have a following on different social media channels like Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.

Influencers are people that develop their audience by creating and posting original, unique, and appealing content.

Such influencers are trusted, respected, and many people strongly believe in their opinions about specific niche topics, ways of thinking, and even lifestyles. They're people who exert influence.

Influencers share these opinions via the social media channels listed above, and they're essential because sometimes, their opinion includes endorsements for products and/or services that have helped them to attain a certain level of success, fitness, happiness- you name it.

Got it? Now let's look at what influencer marketing entails.

INFLUENCER MARKETING:

Influencer marketing is the technique or process of promoting, selling, and distributing a product and/or service without the direct exercise of command or using intangible or indirect means.

It occurs when an influencer works for a brand to promote its products and/or services.

Influencer marketing can also be viewed as the strategic process of connecting companies and brands with influential and authentic online leaders and superstars to help increase buzz and brand awareness.

Influencer marketing isn't just meant for the billion-dollar organizations that can afford to partner with celebrities.

Now, even small and medium-sized brands have a plethora of opportunities to collaborate and partner with authority figures, experts, and even the often overlooked, but very important, micro-influencers.

Let's now dive into the meaning of the buzz word: micro-influencer.

WHAT (OR WHO) ARE MICRO-INFLUENCERS?

Micro-influencers are individuals that have anything around 1,000 to 100,000 audiences and followers.

These influencers are regarded as experts in their respective niche (like traveling, food, fitness, health, etc.)

Micro-influencers are passionate and authentic content creators with small but trustworthy, active, and interactive followers. They're everyday people who engage with their audience and produce rich content.

When working with micro-influencers, it's not their overall number of followers that matters the most.

Instead, it's their level of engagement (shares, comments, retweets, likes, etc.) that matters the most.

Here's a rule of thumb: bigger isn't always better. It's still good to do a quality check and stop judging an influencer by his/her follower count.

Effective micro-influencers are listeners, followers, viewers, and readers engage with their content. People are always interested in their opinions and recommendations.

Micro-influencers have built a relationship with their audience, and by partnering with them, you can reach out to their fans.

Micro-influencer marketing works well because people tend to buy products and/or services when they get endorsements from people they trust.

It paves the way and makes the entire influencer marketing efforts to be worthwhile.

 

BENEFITS OF MICRO-INFLUENCER MARKETING

Brands might ask: why work with a micro-influencer when there are other influencers with millions of followers?

After reading through this section, you'll know why micro-influencer marketing is very powerful and why you should consider working with a micro-influencer.

INCREASES THE TRUST

It's very difficult to gain trust, but once you're able to earn your customer's, they'll become loyal to your brand.

Studies have revealed that the millennials are more loyal to brands than others, and they're even the most dominant generation in the US.

Micro-influencer marketing can help you to win the trust of customers and turn them into loyal customers.

Afterward, you're more likely to increase sales because loyal customers will recommend your products to others.

MICRO-INFLUENCER MARKETING INCREASES ENGAGEMENT

Most times, brands forget that their customers and potential customers are human beings as well. They want the care and attention, and that's what micro-influencer marketing entails.

Micro-influencers have a stable relationship with their audience because they always have enough time to respond to their customers because of a smaller number of followers. They also care about their follower's opinions.

Furthermore, the content posted by micro-influencers has more impressions and engagement than the posts published by the top influencers or celebrities.

Studies have even revealed that YouTube micro-influencers have more engagements than mainstream celebrities.

And what does that mean for brands?

An increase in engagement will also result in more emotional attachment to your brand.

HIGH CONVERSION RATES

This benefit is pretty straightforward.

Micro-influencer marketing helps to increase the conversion rates for brands.

In fact, about 49% of people affirm that they trust endorsements by influencers to make purchasing decisions.

You shouldn't be surprised that: recommendations and reviews are huge and very useful.

For instance, whenever you want to visit a restaurant for the first time, you'd be more likely to check Google's review or Yelp to see what other people think (i.e., if you haven't asked friends).

In the business world, if you're looking for a business solution, you're more likely to ask for recommendations from friends.

If you're doing personal research, you'd also be more likely to check reviews of their service online or even request for case studies and references.

The whole idea is centered around asking for people's opinions.

That's because people's opinion matters a lot whenever you're trying to make a purchasing decision.

MICRO-INFLUENCER MARKETING PAVES THE WAY FOR SMALL BUSINESSES

Big brands and companies have massive budgets and can afford to work with everyone and anyone. That's why many of them ignore the smaller influencers.

While big brands can work with celebrities and influencers, start-ups and small businesses can work closely with micro-influencers that aligns with their budget and target market.

What this means for consumers is that everyone and anyone can play in the influencer marketing space, and you can compete with your competitors no matter your investment or budget.

Here's the point we're trying to make:

Micro-influencer marketing allows brands to tap into influencer marketing and begin to see some great results.

LOW COST, INCREASED RETURN ON INVESTMENT AND PERFECT TARGETING

Ideally, most brands don't have the millions of dollars needed to market their products.

Some other small-sized or medium companies have limited budgets but still, want to launch influencer marketing campaigns.

With micro-influencers, such medium or small-sized brands can promote their products and/or services within their budget.

Furthermore, the influencers can help to promote the products to a specified and target audience.

But then, you need to look for influencers who have the kind of audience you're targeting.

Since people with specific interests follow most micro-influencers, targeting will be more accurate and easier.

Additionally, micro-influencers charge less than many other top influencers or celebrities, and you'll get a good ROI when you work with them.

MICRO-INFLUENCERS ARE KINGS AND QUEENS OF CONTENT CREATION

Are your influencer marketing efforts centered on content creation? If yes, then micro-influencers are the holy-grails.

Just like we mentioned above, working with micro-influencers is cost-effective. Even though they don't have a huge following, they can create significant and excellent content.

Whether you're looking for video, multimedia, imagery, or written content, you can always rely on micro-influencers to get the job done without compromising.

PERSONAL AND AUTHENTIC

What makes an audience to be faithful to one influencer over another?

It's their personality, topic niche, content aesthetic, authenticity, tone, and their ability to be personal with their audience.

Micro-influencers value their growing community, and they're always available to reply to comments, interact with followers, engage with their community, attend events, and even build both offline and online presence.

High-profile influencers, on the other hand, have a celebrity status that avoids them from being personal with their audience.

For instance, imagine what it'd look like to reply to about 500 Instagram messaged every day.

Pretty, challenging, right?

Another factor that makes micro-influencers more personal is that they've earned their audience's trust.

This is particularly uncommon with macro-influencers who continuously work with tons of brands and always take on paid advertising projects.

 

THINGS TO LOOK OUT FOR IN A MICRO-INFLUENCER?

Before diving into the micro-influencer pool, it's always ideal to critically analyze what you're trying to do.

You need to ask yourself questions like: who is my ideal micro-influencer? What does he or she care about?

The answers to the questions above won't be the same for every marketer. But then, here are some essential qualities to always consider when you want to work with a micro-influencer:

PASSION: 

You'd want to collaborate with an influencer who is passionate about his/her industry. Working with an influencer who isn't passionate about his brand will only paint your brand in a negative light.

ACTIVITY: 

Good micro-influencers are active on social media and their blogs. They're also always interacting with their audiences.

BUDGET:

Generally, influencers expect to receive some compensation for their efforts. You need to ensure that his/her requests fit with your marketing budgets.

VALUES:

You need to work with influencers who share your company's beliefs and values. For example, if your company values are centered on a safe and family-friendly culture, then you probably wouldn't want to work with influencers that post racy photographs or those that are not mindful of words.

PAST PERFORMANCE:

It's possible to work with an influencer that has never partnered with any brand before. But then, if you're working with a seasoned and professional influencer, you need to examine their results from past campaigns.

Conclusively, you need to ensure that you partner with an influencer who aligns with your brand personality. That way, you'd get to achieve better results and satisfaction.

 

CONCLUSION

Here's a summary of what we talked about in this article:

• Micro-influencers – who and what they are


• A brief overview of influencer marketing


• Benefits of micro-influencer marketing and


• Things to look out for in a micro-influencer

Influencer marketing is much more than just a trend. It's a revolutionary form of marketing that's transforming how people relate with brands.

Micro-influencer marketing is even becoming more vital to the marketing landscape, and it increases the potential for business growth.

Remember that audience engagement and loyalty is currently on the bread and butter on social media. Also, don't underestimate the power of a small but loyal following.

We're hopeful that this article has given you the information you need to hop on the micro-influencer bandwagon.

It's now over to you.

What are your thoughts? What is micro-influencer marketing, and why is it important? Do you have other contributions? Please sound off your views in the comment section below.