Online has become the new normal. From groceries to the latest shopping, everything and anything can be brought online. Not only business marketing has also shifted online. Well, digital marketing has opened an array of opportunities for businesses to get closer to their targeted audience. Pandemic has also brought a lot of changes in the advertising world. With the world on lockdown, advertising has also swiftly shifted online. Acquiring new customers has become challenging as businesses are forced to retain their existing customers first. The marketers have also understood that their existing marketing techniques have expired and they need a new plan of action.
Although more businesses have started digital marketing before the pandemic they didn’t quite understand its importance. Most businesses have also failed to recognize the power of social media platforms to advertise. During the pandemic, people were stuck at home and their only source of entertainment has become social media platforms. It has become a part of our daily routine making businesses see its potential of reaching their audience. From TikTok to Instagram, every platform has become a platform for users to shop.
But one thing that needs to be remembered is that audiences are tired of advertisements online too. If given a chance they are opting out of advertisements. Like traditional television or radio advertisements, people don’t have to sit through the advertisements, they can skip ads or purchase ad-free subscriptions. In this new age of advertisements, the consumer is the king, they choose what they want or don’t want. This is why it has become important to find new ways to engage and connect with the audience.
Trying to gain your customer’s attention using old tricks in your marketing books is not going to work, especially if your target audience is between the ages of 16-35, the people in this age group have a huge presence online, typical Google, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok advertisements are not going to cut it. What can you do to attract their attention? The answer is influencer marketing.
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Is influencer marketing the next big thing?
Looks like it is. Influencers are gaining popularity and some with big follower numbers are even promoting for major brands. Influencer marketing is not a new concept, earlier brands were paying celebrities to promote their products, and now they are paying internet sensations for the same. Since they already have a huge follower base, it becomes easier for brands to tap into their target market.
There are many ways influencer marketing works, the brands can send out their products to influencers at discounted prices or for free to get a review or shoutout. They can also pay the influencer to produce sponsored content on their brand or products. As the influencers have already worked hard to gain their own brand identity and have built trust with their followers, they are more inclined to believe the opinions of the influencers on a brand.
It is also highly important for brands to select an influencer that matches your brand’s style. Another thing that brands must understand is that they have to let the influencers make the call on content and posts, as they understand their audience better than anyone.
With all these decisions about influencer marketing, here are a few reasons why your brand needs influencer marketing.
Brand awareness
Well, the primary goal that any business wants to achieve from advertisement, be it online or offline is brand awareness. They want their brand to be exposed to more audiences. This is why influencers make perfect candidates for marketing.
As they already have a huge follower base, when you collaborate with them your brand gets exposed to all their followers. This way they can stand out from their competitors and gain increased visibility. Influencer marketing paves way for expanding the audience, tapping into new demographics, and gaining traction.
Trust and credibility
Brands need to gain a loyal audience. That loyalty comes only when they trust your brand, and it would take a long time for that. However, with influencer marketing, you don’t have to worry about that as the influencers already have their follower’s trust and credibility.
When they recommend your products it will have an impact on people buying from your brand. Collaborating with such influencers will also improve your brand’s credibility and reputation. A genuine shoutout from influencers can help you in building a loyal customer base.
Engagement
After a point of time, it can get harder for brands to improve their likes, followers, and shares on their social media accounts. It means that their growth has become stagnant. Collaborating with an influencer will give their brand the boosts they need and improve their engagement.
Influencers never create mediocre content as they have to satisfy their audience, if they have such original content associated with your brand, it will definitely improve the engagement of your followers and also increase your followers. Also, collaborations with micro-influencers have been on the rise as the engagement rate is high with them.
Improve your search engine rankings
Yes! This is possible. When an influencer posts or collaborates with your brand, their followers will naturally get curious about your products and search for your brand on social media and search engines. It will naturally improve your search engine rankings.
Also, if you have a new product launch or give-aways then the influencers will post your website link along with their content. This will naturally bring a lot of traffic to your website, improving your search engine ranking.
Final Thoughts
Influencer marketing is here to stay. As long as social media stays prominent you will only see the rise of influencer marketing. More and more brands, irrespective of their size are using influencer marketing to tap into a new audience base.
A great quality product combined with influencer marketing is a killer move. If your brand wants to stay ahead of its competitors and survive in this volatile market, then it is crucial to embrace the new advertising strategies. Want to know more about digital marketing? Check out the Zeen website.
