• Apr 11, 2022

Influencers: Why Brands Need You

Sure, if you’re influencer, you know full-well that followers make you or break you. And without brands to work with, you don’t have a business. Sure, you can walk around all day and talk about the things you like and the things you do, but you’re doing this to make those big business connections. Even if you’re in the early stages as an influencer, you might not be aware of a critical piece of information: even though you need those brand connections, the brands also need you. And they know it. It never hurts to check out the websites of brands who are looking to connect with influencers, and the companies they use to make those connections. Just as you’re reading this, some company is reading another blog that gives some crazy statistics. Statistics that might actually make you a little more hopeful about your chances of landing that big brand.

What is Influencer Marketing?

Companies have two lists they go to: their Public Relations List (PR List) and their Influencer Marketing Campaign List. The PR list is everyone – except influencers – a company thinks can help them spread the word. The Influencer Marketing Campaign List is always fluctuating because, as you probably know, some influencers just get more engagement than others. If a campaign doesn’t work, they move on. Influencer Marketing seems like a general term for “getting influencers to help sell a product or an idea,” when in fact it is much more fluid than that. It is “getting the people who keep helping sell a product continue to do so,” which means the roster is always changing. So is the type of influencer.

What is a Micro-Influencer?

The stats here are simple, but crazy. Do you have those big numbers? Even super-engaged numbers of followers? That looks perfect for every brand, right? Not necessarily. In fact, some businesses are straying away from big-time celebrities with massive followings to instead focus on smaller numbers. Why? Smaller numbers means they can pay you less. A ton of micro-influencers is often cheaper than one celebrity. In fact, the engagement for someone with 3,000 to 10,000 followers is GREATER than that of someone with over 100,000 followers. You read that right. More followers doesn’t mean engagement, and even if you’ve got a lot of likes on photos of your unbranded food posts, brands still expect that micro-influencers will get the kind of engagement they want to see.

How Can You Be Essential to a Brand’s Strategy?

The short answer: you already are. You obviously need to know how to pitch yourself, and it doesn’t hurt to have a PR team to help you with that. In the long run, though, even if you don’t have the numbers you think you need, you might be closer to what businesses want. They’ll pay you less, but if you can find a bunch of brands who swear by the magic of micro-influencers, that could be a game changer for you.