The power of social media is well acknowledged, and influencers are the ones who control it. They command millions of followers who rely on their knowledge and recommendations. They can influence the purchasing decisions of their followers. No wonder 93% of marketers consider influencer marketing an important tool and have utilized this medium. If you want to expand your brand’s reach, you need to learn how to tap into the current influencer talent pool. They can not only help you promote your brand, but they would also help you gain more customers. If you want to take advantage of their potential, you should be skilled in influencer management. We’ll walk you through a five-step strategy to help you master influencer relationship management (IRM).

What is Influencer Relationship Management?

Influencers are social media personalities with large social media followings, but anybody with a YouTube or Instagram account is not an influencer. To be considered one, they must have at least 1000 followers. Since they have such a large audience, they have become an essential tool for marketing for many brands. As such brands value them as strategic partners and cultivate a positive relationship with them through influencer relationship management. Influencer management is the process of managing, controlling, and guiding influencer marketing campaigns. That is, influencer management plans are developed with the purpose of ensuring that any associated influencers regularly produce high-quality material that helps your firm achieve its objectives. They research the influencers’ voice, audience demographics, etc., and then partner for promotions accordingly. They also keep track of the influencer’s analytics. In India, the influencer marketing sector was valued at nine billion rupees in 2021. Over the following five years, it is expected to increase at a compound annual growth rate of 25%. Being a pro at influencer relationship management has handsome rewards. Collaborating with an influencer who aligns with your brand creates brand recognition, customer loyalty, and a rise in sales. And all of this can be done without spending millions on other marketing tools. Recommended: 10 Reasons Why Influencer Marketing is Important For Your Business in 2022 (helplama.com)

Benefits of Influencer Relationship Management

Thanks to social media, there are hundreds of influencers in every industry today. They have a large following enough to create brand awareness and generate sales. However, they also have opinions, and their audience values their perspective. Even the most powerful influencer in the world won’t be able to boost your sales if they don’t know which goods to promote, who their target audience is, or what sorts of material they should be creating. Influencer management, among other things, gives this crucial guidance. As a result, if you know how to cultivate influencer relationships, you can reap the following benefits:

• Brand awareness: Influencers know what content will be liked by their audience. Hence, when you partner with them, they promote without making it look like a sponsored ad. They educate their audience about your brand, which the latter remembers for a long time.
• Customer loyalty: Viewers trust the influencers they follow loyally. Hence, if an influencer has given positive reviews for a product, they will trust that too. And if they find your brand trustworthy, just like their favourite influencer, they will continue to be loyal to it.
• Boosts sales: If you collaborate with the right influencers, then it can get you double or more ROI. As per a survey by Tomoson, influencer marketing gives 6 times more returns compared to the amount you spent on it. Thus, brands who used this channel correctly earned $6.50 in revenue per $1 spent on influencer marketing.

5 ways to Ace up your Influencer Relationship Quotient

If you have signed up influencers or want to go for influencer marketing, then these tips will help you be a pro in influencer management:

1) Select the right influencer

To begin with influencer relationship management, you must pick the right influencer. Look for highly engaged individuals who are relevant to your brand.  You may do so by studying their channel’s likes, subscription rate, and audience comments, among other things. Even influencers prefer partnering with brands that are relevant to their audience. As a result, scour through current and new social media platforms to find an influencer suitable for your brand. Some websites identify influencers and allow you to select them based on their ratings. Recommended: 8 Effective Ways of Finding Micro/ Nano Influencers on Instagram – Helplama.com

2) Personalize your outreach

After finding an influencer who fits your brand, research before contacting them. Try to get a sense of their tone, style, how they interact with their audience, what causes they support, and so on. Then, as an audience, interact with them by liking and commenting on their posts. And after they’ve noticed you, reach out to them for collaboration. Instead of sending a cold outreach email, send a personal message. Explain why you admire their work and how it aligns with your brand. This email will set the tone for your influencer management partnership and make them revert to you affirmatively.

3) Fair pay

Influencers can direct their followers to your product or service. They’re well aware of their reach and the financial benefits it may offer you. As a result, rather than giving them freebies, it is essential to give them reasonable compensation. In addition, it helps them feel valued and recognized for their efforts. Influencers will do their best to ensure you receive the most satisfactory return on your investment (ROI). According to a poll, 68% of influencers said they would like to collaborate with a brand again if they were compensated relatively. An influencer’s fee is directly proportional to their audience size. Those with 1000 or fewer followers, for example, are paid $86 for each post. Those with a million or more charge $763/post. Before signing up with them, do some research to learn about their fees. Also, make your expectations, usage rights, contact information, and other specifics clear to the influencer.

4) Creative freedom

Content production requires creativity, and your influencer understands how to tug at their audience’s heartstrings. Their fan base can attest to that. These influencers understand their audience’s pulse and produce content that resonates with the latter. As a result, rather than limiting them with a restrictive guideline, it’s critical to offer them the flexibility to produce content. The more autonomy they have, the better content they will create for your company. According to a Crowdtap survey, 77%  of influencers prefer to work with businesses that allow them to express themselves creatively. So, learn to offer your influencers freedom if you want to be good at influencer management.

5) Give them time

Creativity does not happen overnight. Creating quality content that the audience will devour takes time and effort. According to a report, 60% of marketers believe that influencer content is more engaging and effective than branded content. As a result, if you want your influencer marketing to pay off, give your influencers time. Do not attempt to constrain them by imposing rigid deadlines or content guidelines. Instead, respect their creativity and time. Learn to be generous with your time if you want to be great at influencer relationship management. The influencer marketing sector is quickly expanding, and most businesses are keen to use this method. Compared to other marketing initiatives, it provides rapid branding and a terrific ROI. If you master the above influencer management tips, you will reap the rewards for a more extended period. While influencer marketing is a decision that could take time if you’re not already doing one, the same is not the case with quality customer support. This is because, after a good customer service experience, 89% of customers are more inclined to make another purchase, as per Salesforce Research.  So, ensuring excellent customer support is an unputdownable aspect of your business, and you cannot afford to go loose in this aspect. This is where Helplama steps in. At Helplama, we offer customer-support-as-a-service in such a quality that it feels like an extension of your internal team.  Interested? Learn how it works and more about us here.