Influencer marketing through the years has been one of the most effective ways to attract customers and clients. Consumers nowadays are blind to billboards and deaf to commercials. They trust recommendations from a friend or someone they know more than some hollow impersonal marketing scheme, and it makes sense if you think about it in a more personal level. Everyone knows that ‘word of mouth’ is one of the most effective ways to get your name or your brand out there. An influencer is like a mutual friend connecting your brand with your target consumers.

That’s why it’s important to reach out to these influencers who can vouch for and speak on your brand’s behalf. But it is also important to find the right Influencer who can represent you.

Here are 4 key things to remember on finding the right Influencer.

• Check their Engagement Ratio

A good start would be to look at the engagement ratio between the number of followers, likes, and comments that they get. It’s easy to look into a Facebook and Youtube influencers engagement. However, with platforms such as Instagram, where the data can’t be readily available, there are actual tools you could use in order for you to find out if they have enough traction for you to spend your efforts on.

Iconosquare is one. Their Influencers Index is a really quick and simple way of identifying influencers on Instagram. Simply choose the category you’re interested in and search influencers based on their number of followers or engagement rate. You can also find out more details about the influencer’s account, like their posting frequency and their most engaging media for example.

The more popular they are, and the more engagement they have, the more credibility they have towards your target market. The end goal here is to reach out to your potential customers using Influencers as the bridge.

• Who is Following Them?

Influencers tend to be popular in the niche they chose to work in. They can specialize in creating content for a particular topic, genre, or subgenre that could be relevant to your brand. Like for example: makeup tutorials, DIY’s, video games, movies, lifestyle and more. You should always follow where your audience is and know what they’re interested in based on your target demographic.

These popular influencers talk to your target consumers on a daily basis. Audiences tend to hang on to their word, especially if they swore by a product! As I’ve said, they’re a mutual friend that could introduce your brand to your audience.

• Check Out All their Platforms

Some influencers start out on one platform and tend to be popular on that particular platform, but more often than not, they also branch out to other types of Social Media to keep the conversation going. A Youtuber could very well have a Twitter account or an Instagram where they could also post other kinds of content.

You should be aware of which platform your product should most likely have some traction. Always remember to follow your audience. You can therefore choose to contact an influencer on a particular platform you wish your product or brand to be featured in.

• Let them be Creative

Get them involved in the creation process. If, for example, you want a youtuber to review a new product that you’ve just launched, let them use this product on screen. Let them be genuine. If the product really works and if it’s a great experience for them, they’ll be more than happy to recommend it to all their viewers and subscribers. One example is to have them create a scenario where there’s a “problem,” and your product would be the “solution.”

Do not give them scripted roles. They aren’t traditional celebrity endorsers where they just smile at the camera and read out a script, instead give them guidance on what they should be posting. Give them the ideas to work with, and additionally give them the right information about your brand and your product, plus what they should expect from it.

Want to know more on how you could leverage potential Influencers in your Marketing strategy? What are other ways you think could be an effective way to reach out to your audience?

Check out my youtube video about more on this subject and share!