Influencer Marketing Trends in 2018

What can you do to get the most out of influencer marketing this year? Will the same strategies from 2017 pay off in 2018? We’re here to answer all those questions for you. Let’s take a look at how to be successful with influencer marketing in 2018: 1) Don’t restrict your Influencer marketing to Instagram: If you think Influencer marketing is only about Instagram, you’re mistaken. Although, one survey found that Instagram was the No. 1 platform for 92% influencers in 2017. While Instagram is likely to stay at the top of the list, that doesn’t mean you should ignore every other channel. The same survey showed that influential personalities also exist on Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, YouTube and Pinterest as well and are open to brand associations and collaborations. Here’s why this should be appealing to your brand - most influencers base their pricing on their following, engagement and demand. If they’re getting a ton of offers to promote brands on Instagram posts, it’ll likely drive up their price because of the perceived value. But that same influencer might not have as large of a following or as much demand for advertising on Pinterest or YouTube. As a result, their pricing on those networks will likely be significantly less than they’d charge you for working together on Instagram. In 2018, consider other platforms to work with influencers on that other brands might be ignoring. While you may not reach the same number of people as you would on Instagram, you could generate a better ROI if you’re paying less and getting better conversions. 2) Measure Influencer Marketing ROI Influencer marketing sounds fancy but it’s wise to measure if you’re actually reaping the rewards of your investment with influencers. While there is non-monetary value in getting mentioned by an influencer, make no mistake—you can absolutely track how much revenue influencers bring in. A lucrative option, depending on your goals, is to give influencers unique promo codes to share with their audience. Making the ROI all the more traceable and measurable. 3) Create Relatable Content, Not Ads The idea is to create content which is not only relevant and relatable to the influencer and his followers but also entices the followers towards some action. In 2018, your influencer marketing campaigns should look a lot less like generic ads and much more like content marketing. It’s advisable to have great content which educates, entertains and evokes some sense of emotional connect from the viewers. But marketers and brands usually lose sight of this basic thing and get influencers to create content which makes it look so scripted that the viewers don’t find it genuine. 4) A Larger Pool of Influencers to Work With The larger the database of influencers, the more is your brands’ scope to collaborate with them. Also, it is advisable to have a variety of influencers in your database which enables you to work with the top 1% of influencers and also micro influencers. Remember, the value of influencers isn’t their follower count. It’s their ability to capture the attention of their audience, no matter what size it is. There are plenty of brands with tens of thousands of followers, but can’t get 1% of them to actually engage or convert into customers. 5) A Push for YouTube Influencers Nothing works as good as a video which gives your influencer a bigger scope of story-telling and more time to interact with their followers. When there is an influencer that tells a story to his/her followers, chances are that your brand gets a better recall and also gives bragging rights to the viewers amongst their peers. Also, with the upcoming trends of creating video content over images and mere tweets, gives your brand a bigger platform to be understood. 6) Say Goodbye to Transactional Relationships Last but not the least, always look at building long term relationships with your influencers. Firstly, it helps you have better financial deals with them and secondly, it makes your content with the influencers very reliable. It makes the influencers’ followers believe that the influencer genuinely adores your brand and your products, as a result, it begins the process of building brand loyalty in the minds of your prospective customers. Stay on top of influencer marketing trends and make the most of it in 2018.