Influencer marketing: Leveraging digital PR to reach your target market

Influencer marketing: Leveraging digital PR to reach your target market

In the ever-changing world of digital marketing, one strategy’s been making waves. It is known as influencer marketing. Tapping into the influence of social media stars can be a game-changer for businesses looking to boost their digital PR efforts. We’ll look at how an influencer marketing strategy can help you connect with your target audience, enhance your SEO, increase engagement, and drive sales – with minimum effort.

What is influencer marketing?

Influencer marketing is a powerful digital marketing strategy that partners with people with an engaged following on social media like Instagram, YouTube or TikTok. These influencers help businesses and brands promote their products or services to a wider, more targeted audience.

The influencer market is booming at around $20 billion globally, and a massive 72% of millennials and Gen Z are loyal followers. But only 25% of marketing people are exploring how influencer marketing can be used to support digital PR campaigns.

Like businesses, influencers come in various shapes and sizes:

• Nano-influencers

• Micro-influencers

• Mid-tier influencers

• Macro-influencers

• Mega-influencers

The key to success is the influencers' ability to genuinely connect with their followers and literally influence their buying decisions. All you need to do is properly research and choose someone who matches your budget and brand, and whose audience meets your target demographic.

What brands should consider influencer marketing?

Before you dive into an influencer marketing strategy, here are a few things to think about:

• Product or service relevance

Are your products or services ideal for showcasing visually? Organisations dealing in fashion, beauty, fitness, and food lend themselves perfectly to an influencer marketing strategy.

• Target audience

Is your target audience active on social media platforms? Especially the ones influencers prefer, like Instagram, YouTube, or TikTok. If so, influencer marketing could put you front and centre.

• Storytelling opportunities

Can you tell a compelling story? Brands with a great narrative and who can collaborate with influencers on creative content can thrive.

• Budget

How much are you willing to spend? Always think about your budget. Influencer marketing can range from affordable nano-influencers to high-priced mega-influencers. Nano-influencers will often accept products for their services, rather than a fixed fee.

• Brand reputation

Not all influencers are created equal. Make sure you choose people whose brand values and image match yours. Remember, their reputation can impact yours, so do your research: who have they worked with before, and what was the overall response?

How to include influencer marketing in digital PR activity

So, how can you seamlessly integrate influencer marketing into your digital PR activities?

• Know your audience

Amazingly, HubSpot’s 2022 marketing survey found 42% of marketers don’t know their target audience’s interests, shopping habits, the products they want to buy, their purchase history, or where they find content.

Understanding their behaviours, lifestyles, values, and interests is crucial. Once you've pinpointed your specific audience, you can tailor your marketing strategy and content effectively.

• Identify the right influencers

Check out your targeted social media channels to find out who’s talking about your business or areas of expertise. Hashtags that reflect your brand like #beauty can help you drill down an audience. Or, you could invest in a social media listening tool that scans for specific keywords, brands, or topics.

• Set clear goals

Whether it's increasing brand awareness, driving website traffic or boosting sales, make sure you know what you’re trying to achieve…

• Create authentic, SEO-optimised content

Authenticity builds trust. Work with the influencer to create content that resonates with their audience, promotes your brand, and boosts your search engine rankings. But don’t dictate. Followers know their favourite influencers inside out. They will quickly detect any whiff of outside influence or insincerity. Also, influencers involved in a digital PR campaign can earn backlinks, in turn boosting traffic to your website.

• Engage your audience

Encourage the influencer to interact with followers’ comments and questions about your brand to build engagement.

• Measure and analyse

Use analytics tools to track how well your influencer marketing campaign is working. Metrics like reach, engagement, and conversion rates all provide valuable insights.

Benefits of influencer marketing

If done properly, social media influencer marketing can benefit your business in loads of ways, including:

• Increased brand awareness

Reach a wider and more targeted audience – building brand awareness and making you stand out in a crowded market.

• More credibility

Influencers are seen as trustworthy sources by their dedicated fanbase. This gives your business more credibility.

• Improved SEO

Creating SEO-optimised content with influencers can boost your website's search engine rankings, increasing organic traffic.

• Cost-effective

Nano and micro-influencers especially offer cost-effective marketing for smaller businesses with limited budgets.

• Diverse content

Working with influencers adds diversity to your digital PR. It widens your output, and hits multiple touchpoints.

An influencer marketing strategy can be a great addition to your digital PR strategy. Once you understand it, find your brand's perfect fit, and blend it into your PR efforts, you'll unlock its incredible potential.

Want more advice on how influencer marketing could help your business? Speak to one of our V-Hub Digital Advisors and find out more.