Key Tips

How are Influencers pitching to brands in 2020? 0 605

With many influencers’ deals paused and/or adjusted during the first half of 2020, influencer marketing, once again, was put to the test.

Some of the brand campaigns being put on ice doesn’t exactly have anything to do with creators not being able to deliver excellent results through their social graph. Instead, it was related to the advertiser boycott of Facebook, whereby hundreds of marketers committed to moving their budget from the platform, during July.

The main factor instigating the abrupt content shift, though, was the lack of preparation, from many brands, big and small, to deal with a pandemic that wiped away months of sales while people stayed quarantined at home watching the world goes by. And Maybe Netflix.

Coronavirus was one of many factors that have made life harder for those working with Influencer marketing this year and it wasn’t for lack of online audience, either.

From March to July, usage of social media reached an all-time high, as a result of more people working from home, schools being closed, and large proportions of the workforce being furloughed. But before budgets could be revisited and amended, and Influencer Marketing strategies could be put in place, months after the pandemic spread across Europe, Asia and America, a similar pattern of frozen campaigns surfaced due to the worldwide repercussions of the Black Lives Matter protests – one of the most recent movement rightly prompting more brands to pause their campaigns while they re-evaluate their relationship with creators and their corporate voices on social issues.

Has all of this changed the way content creators approach brands to collaborate with? And, moving forward, what will the world, post Covid-19, look like for influencers, agencies, small businesses, and brands who make use of influencer marketing?

 

Authentic brand connections will be a plus

“Influencers (and their managers) are having to work harder to secure partnerships in 2020, specifically by showing that they were already advocates of the brand before they pitch. Influencers who can demonstrate an authentic connection to the brand as a consumer, showing that they use the product and have tagged the brand multiple times over the years, or even in recent months, will be better positioned to win that partnership. Those other influencers, who might have similar data insights and reach metrics but haven’t demonstrated their authentic connection, will get left behind.

Influencers can also provide brands with a solution to their growing demand for content. They bring efficiency and economy to content creation, while also providing deep knowledge of the social space and what works there.”

Jackie Segedin – Director of Brand Partnerships at CookIt Media

 

It is a good time to collaborate

“Influencers are homebound and not traveling to exclusive destinations. Right now is the best time to DM someone within your vertical to plan a collaboration project. This is a rare opportunity to get the attention of busy thought-leaders, with widespread followings, that can give your business more exposure.

Focus less on the medium of attracting influencers and more on building relationships with key players on social media that are experts in the topics related to the services your brand offers.

Mike Zima – Chief Growth Officer at ecommerce digital marketing agency Zima Media

 

A need for flexibility to adapt to new platforms

“To stay active, as an influencer, I adapt to the new social media platforms. Previously, I concentrated on YouTube to interact with my clients. Now, I focus on Tiktok. Who would have thought that a law firm would be on TikTok? You see, it is all about getting yourself into what’s ‘in’ and not getting left behind. I make sure that I’m active and visible on every platform that people are using.”

Jacob J. Sapochnick – Immigration Attorney and Social Media Influencer

 

Exploring the appeal of homemade content

“There is more work for influencers than ever before since normal photoshoots are not currently occurring, but brands still need content! My fiancé is a professional photographer, so we have been creating content at home and outside. I have been speaking with more brands, due to many losing their budget because of a loss of sales (COVID-19). However, other than having to reach out to more brands than usual to be successful, not much has changed for me. It is all about adapting to the change. Working from home and creating your own little studio space. Even if you don’t have a professional camera, iPhone photos still work amazingly!”

Mikayla Rose Becker – Content creator

 

PRO TIP 👍

Neal Schaffer – Author and Digital Social Media Marketing Consultant

Combining reach for lead generation

“As a B2B influencer, I have found that marketing budgets for events, or other inactive areas, are shifting towards influencer marketing for lead generation. For this purpose, lead-generating webinar-based work has actually increased since COVID-19, and although marketers are more conservative in their decision-making they still have budget. This is especially true for B2B influencers who are active on LinkedIn and Twitter like I am. Blogging, podcasting, and having a robust email list also help.”

Neal Schaffer – Author, Digital Social Media Marketing Consultant & Coach

 

Creating relatable content

“As a result of some substantial cuts to marketing budgets across the board, and production studio closures due to Covid-19, the industry saw – and will continue to see – a need for brands to continue to find ways to create content for social media and e-comm remotely. That need created an opportunity for influencers and creators to get their foot in the door. The most successful content creators have been the ones who provide high-quality, relatable content. Influencers who are professional, follow creative briefs, and provide content in a timely manner have been the ones who are in high demand and continue to grow and work with reputable brands.”

Pam Zapata – talent and Influencer Manager at SLAY Media

 

 

#DigitalMarketing #InfluencerMarketing ~ContentMarketing #Influencers #SocialMedia #ContentCreation

Previous ArticleNext Article
Marcio Delgado is a Journalist, speaker and a Content Producer working with brands and publications in the UK and Latin America.

Instagram reels: will your business be using this new feature? 0 543

Probably the last thing we needed in 2020.

But Reels, a new feature launched by Instagram earlier in August, is officially here, allowing people to record and edit short multi-clip videos with audio and effects. This feature is already available in over 50 countries around the world. Just a few days after hitting the market, some of the short videos uploaded to Instagram Reels are already getting 5M+ views – not bad for something that is supposed to be ‘new’. We use the term new loosely, as this feature barely differs from Tik Tok, which has been around for years.

Like it or not, brands, influencers, and marketing professionals have to be quick in adapting to features brought to the market by social media platforms. New features are their way to keep its user-base online for longer and it may benefit your business. However, with marketing budgets and resources as tight as ever, will businesses be adding Instagram Reels to their content calendars and overall social media strategy?

 

Instagram’s eagerness to push Instagram Reels will help you

“I have been testing it out from the beginning. I posted some short educational content and quickly gained 200+ followers. I also had one coaching client signed that found me through Instagram Reels. The views are exponentially higher than my follower count, as Instagram pushes the new feature and its video content. I can totally recommend trying it and posting educational, inspirational, or informative content at least once a day.

Hannah Geuenich – Social Media Coach at www.thecreatorconcept.de

 

Adoption by brands might take some time

“I expect Reels will help engage newer audiences, while also helping businesses to serve their current followers with interesting new forms of content. This will ultimately be good for business. The short-form nature of Reels is going to be great for experimenting with storytelling for paid/sponsored programs. However, adoption by brands might take some time. Data is hyper important to determining ROI; however, Reels does have the advantage of being built on Instagram’s strong data-centric creator platform.”

Kyle Hjelmeseth – Founder at digital talent management agency www.gb-dm.com

 

I will strategically add it to my monthly content calendar

“Reels is perfect for business because Instagram audiences are already used to being sold to. This was not the same for TikTok. I plan to do short-form videos that tease and get people to click the link in my bio for a free training or lead magnet and follow from there.

I will be learning on a daily basis and adding it to my monthly calendar of posting every day for a month. This is the same approach I took on TikTok and this helped me to grow fast.”

Olumide Gbenro – Public Relations and Digital Nomad Summit Founder

 

It’s an opportunity to repurpose content

“For a brand or someone who isn’t utilizing TikTok or short-form content yet, this might be an opportunity to repurpose content from YouTube or Facebook Live. So, don’t think of Reels as a new branch, but rather a means of repurposing.

From what we are seeing so far, there may not be as much visibility for smaller creators through Reels. The biggest benefit for me will be recycling TikTok content and reviving it in another discoverable format. I truly believe the more content, the better. If there is a new means of blasting your product or ideas to your followers in a fresh and engaging way, without sacrificing the quality of your content, why not give it shot?”

Victoria Jameson – Social Media Strategist, radio host, and Lifestyle Influencer

 

Create new ways to use new tools

“Developed as a direct competitor to TikTok, we are looking at the platform’s new addition in a different light. Rather than shifting our content from one platform to the other in its entirety, we are working on developing two separate content strategies for our clients – each with different goals in mind. For TikTok, we are capitalizing on viral trends, topics, and partnering with influencers to leverage the rapidly growing audience in a new and creative way. With Instagram Reels, we feel it will be beneficial to align this content with our already-existing brand voice hosted on the platform. However, we will seek to delve deeper with the new visual, interactive offering. Hopefully, this will create a seamless experience throughout. Case in point, why cut the content in half? We see this as an opportunity to broaden the scope of our coverage online for each brand we represent.”

Anneliese Peper – Director of Social Media at PR News Agency www.heronagency.com

 

Having all your tools in one place is helpful

“From a business perspective, the Instagram Reels feature is a clever move from Facebook as it allows businesses to stay up to date with the latest trends in marketing. For me, one of the biggest benefits is that it’s all done within one platform. You are already starting off with a following that you have gained over time. You don’t have to worry about starting all over again on another platform. Reels are also easy to create and they sit on your profile in a similar way to an IGTV.

I’m discussing the possibility of adding Reels to our social media strategy in two particular ways. Firstly, they’re an ideal length for sharing small, snappy pieces of information you want people to remember. Secondly, as a business, people like to see behind the scenes. Quick but fun videos could allow our followers an insight into how we work.”

Jaye Bonser – Social media manager at online advertising platform www.adzooma.com

How NOT to promote your Instagram if you want it to grow 0 528

Every business regularly spending time creating and adding content to an Instagram account has two things in mind: sales and growth. In the beginning, every new follower is celebrated, and engagement is followed closely.

However, not all businesses are the same, and nor is it a new Instagram account. Starting to see tangible results on social media can take a while, leading some small business owners and digital marketers to try and get ahead of the game.

From buying followers – a tried and tested technique that can seriously harm your Instagram – to binge posting, mass following, and other hidden ways of gathering more followers and leads. I have seen it all. The more desperate a new business or a novice social media professional is to get to the top of the social media pyramid, the more likely they are to fall into traps promising instant fame and money.

Here, 10 entrepreneurs, content creators, digital consultants, and even a magician share 10 hacks to avoid while promoting your business on Instagram.

 

1. Follow/Unfollow

“The worst hack is using some sort of automated application or Chrome extension (like Everliker) to gather followers through automatic following/unfollowing. On the one hand, it works…for a while. But the users you get from such techniques, for the most part, don’t actually engage with your content. This is also a great way to get your account temporarily or permanently suspended, as Instagram heavily monitors and cracks down on such abuse.”

Jay Andrew Allen – Technical Writer

 

2. Posting for the sake of it

“One Instagram hack or myth that should be busted is that you need to post every single day.

While consistency is key to keeping yourself visible, it doesn’t mean you need to post everyday. Curating an Instagram account is all about quality and not quantity. If you can post a quality image only 4 times a week then

That is better than several poor-quality posts per day. However, make sure you keep that weekly habit in place.

Mollie Newton – Founder at www.petmetwice.com

 

3. To use someone’s comment section to promote yourself

“There are several approaches that are not effective for promoting your Instagram. A few things that I see most newbies doing is spamming other accounts’ comment sections with self-promo and having no posting strategy at all.”

Brianna Desira – Content creator at www.girlhustlers.org

 

4. To buy cheap ads in countries with no potential clients

“I am based in San Francisco, however, when I first started using social media I bought lots of ads in Egypt. I did this because, for a long time, they had the cheapest cost per click. Over time I learnt that buying ads in countries your potential customers were not in is a waste of resources. On top of this, it also skewed who saw my future ads.”

Daniel Chan – Award-winning magician at www.danchanmagic.com

 

5. Aiming your content at the wrong audience

“I’ve known some companies tapping millennial influencers for IG growth but seem oblivious to the fact that it just won’t work because they’re in the wrong market. Millennials are, by nature, true digital natives. They’ve learned to know which brands to trust and which ones to avoid. They understand how brands are marketing to them. So, they approach campaigns with scrutiny rather than enthusiasm. However, they will react well if the message is authentic, if the product or service is valuable, and if the brand isn’t too pushy. Because of this, the best way to market to them is to avoid being overly aggressive and straight-in-your-face. It’s the reason why influencer marketing has become big business in the first place on Instagram.”

Michael Hamelburger – CEO at Expense Reduction Group.

 

6. Buying fake followers

“The worst technique that you could possibly use to promote your Instagram account is to buy fake followers.

By doing this, there is no promise of user engagement or promotion of your business. Essentially, most of these

accounts are bots or fake personas created for the sole purpose of inflating your follower count. Not only are these followers useless, but the spammy visuals often associated with these accounts is sure to deter potential customers away.”

Tom Mumford – Co-founder of Undergrads Moving

 

7. Promoting your Instagram while commenting on someone else’s content

“The worst hack that I have observed on Instagram is people engaging with others in the community with a reference back to their profile. This means commenting on a post with some valuable information, then ruining this connection by referring straight back to your profile. The comment with the valuable information is ok, but the reference back to your profile is not fine. In fact, this is considered spam by Instagram.”

Anjana Wickramaratne – Social Media Marketing Manager at Inspirenix Digital Marketing

 

8. Following people with the sole intention of selling to them

“One of the worst techniques I’ve seen is mass following, then immediately sending a copy/pasted sales message. Then, unfollowing a day later.

This approach will leave you disconnected from long term growth & authentic connection! Plus, it leaves a bad taste in people’s mouths. This hack is even worse as people do it so often. I’ve seen people follow/unfollow multiple times. This world is smaller than you think!

Sara Tea – DJ and Creative Consultant

 

9. Following everyone is not a strategy

“As the founder of a website, I made promoting my business my main responsibility. I do it on every platform that is willing to help, especially on social media. However, not all tips and techniques that can be found online can give an advantage to your business. For example, following everyone who follows you. More often than not, they are just following you so they can tag you in their posts to widen their reach. To prevent this, do not follow every account that follows you.”

Samantha Moss – Editor & Content Ambassador at www.romantific.com

 

10. Off topic comments is a no-no

“One of the tackiest tactics to get more followers and likes on Instagram is commenting on something completely irrelevant under the photos of other Instagram users just to get more attention.  I’ve seen a lot of smaller accounts try to comment completely ridiculous things under the photos of celebrities and popular influencers to try to get people in the comments to follow them. Commenting under popular photos and videos for the sole purpose of getting more followers is not just tacky, but it can also anger the person who posted the content.”

Liz Jeneault – Influencer and VP of Marketing at product review website www.faveable.com

 

Bonus tip – Using someone’s content without crediting it

“Our Instagram account is popular because it reposts content from customers, including celebrities, that use our products. These products include vehicle restoration projects and custom cars. Hence, reposted photos of those transformed cars always help grow our Instagram. However, a mistake you don’t want to make when sharing other people’s content is not properly crediting the person who made or owns that content. When you don’t properly credit customers or creators for their content, you are increasing your chance of frustrating others and potentially getting reported. You also want to properly credit people for their content on Instagram because those people will often share the reposts that you tag them in, which can help your account gain more followers.”

Sturgeon Christie – Auto industry expert and the CEO at www.secondskinaudio.com

Most Popular Topics

Lifestyle
Fashion
Business
Travel

Editor Picks

workingwithinfluencers

Load More... Follow on Instagram