Influencer marketing will soon become a $15 billion industry – and yet there are still many myths about working with influencers.
From being too expensive to not delivering results with micro and nano influencers, plenty of misconceptions can dissuade brands from working with social media influencers to promote their products.
Ready to separate fact from fiction? We are debunking 12 common myths about working with influencers to put you at ease as you contemplate launching your first campaign.
Why Should Brands Work With Influencers?
Genuine and authentic influencers have become critical to brand development. Influencers have tight-knit connections with their audience, and with the right strategy, they can help you generate more and better quality leads, increase sales and boost brand awareness. The opinions of influencers are trusted, and their audience looks to them for the best deals on the products they use in their day-to-day lives. They can talk honestly to their audience and deliver genuine recommendations that help brands sell their products to a larger crowd.
12 Things You Thought You Knew About Influencers But Were Wrong
While many people see influencers as lazy individuals who want to make a quick buck, they are much more than that. Here are the common myths about social media influencers that aren’t true.
Myth: Anyone can be an influencer.
Truth: It takes a lot of time and effort to become an influencer. Google defines an influencer as “a person with the ability to influence potential buyers of a product or service by promoting or recommending the items on social media”. So, unless someone has this effect on their audience, they don’t qualify to influence.
The journey to becoming an influencer is long, and it starts with creating authentic content that helps one attract a niche following. By engaging with the audience – and answering their questions, an influencer earns their trust and commitment. At this point, the individual can recommend a product or service, and the followers will gladly pay for it. Then and only then can someone be considered an influencer who can help brands promote their products.
Myth: If you have lots of followers, you are an influencer
Truth: Having a large follower count doesn’t make one an influencer. Of course, you will reach more people when you post, but they first need to trust you for them to buy anything you recommend. Brands working with influencers in 2021 are no longer just working with influencers with the largest audiences. They are more interested in engagement rates and prioritize influencers with an intimate connection with their followers.
With the rise of micro-influencers, follower count has become even less important. Brands working with micro-influencers are witnessing better marketing performances because these trustworthy creators produce the engagement and interest they desire.
Myth: Influencer have bought all their followers
Truth: Not every influencer with a large following has paid to acquire fake followers. We understand that some unscrupulous people in the community, but most of the notable influencers on the major influencer platforms have earned their followers organically. This is done by creating amazing content that draws people to their profiles. With time, brands working with influencers start taking notice, and the influencer lands a couple of deals.
Myth: Influencer audience size is all that matters
Truth: Follower count isn’t the first thing brands with nano influencers look at when choosing content creators for their marketing campaigns. They first want to ensure that the influencer has an audience that matches their target consumers. Next, they assess their values to ensure they don’t associate with influencers with a bad reputation.
After this, they will review their published posts to assess their engagement levels. Does the influencer get a significant number of comments and shares on their posts? Do they respond to questions and concerns from their followers?
After taking care of these critical issues, they can check the follower count to determine if the influencer can help them reach many people. A low follower count isn’t a deal-breaker for most brands as long as the influencer can guarantee them high engagement levels.
Myth: Influencers are all the same
Truth: The myth about influencers looking and acting the same is probably the biggest misconception in the industry. Influencers are diverse and varied, just like professionals in other industries. Of course, they are all-purpose to help brands reach their target consumers in a voice they trust, but every influencer has unique attributes that set them apart from the rest.
Companies working with influencers will tell you that each influencer has a unique voice and character that helps them appeal to a specific audience. They also operate in particular niches and appeal to specific audiences.
Myth: Working with influencers only works for specific sectors
Truth: Because influencer marketing is often associated with fashion, beauty, and luxury goods, many brands with products that aren’t glamorous in nature think they shouldn’t work with influencers for product promotion. Well, influencer marketing is all about credibility and not the image. Even if your product isn’t visual, the right influencer will tell your brand story to help you reach your target users.
Myth: Celebrities are the best influencers
Truth: While celebrities wield significant influence over their audience, they aren’t always the best option for your campaign. This is because the celebrity will only post your product on their page, and that’s it. They will not interact with users in the comments or respond to their concerns. They also charge hefty sums, which means most brands cannot afford them.
Myth: Influencers are all paid and driven by compensation. They are just in it for themselves!
Truth: Anyone who Googles to be a blogger influencer wants to earn a living through online work, but this doesn’t mean they will work with anyone who gives them money. Influencers owe it to their followers to remain committed to supporting their beliefs and values. They also want to stay authentic and not recommend a product or service they wouldn’t usually use.
This is why they cannot just work with any brand that comes along. They pick and choose the deals they take, and most influencers have turned down at least one brand deal because their values and the brand’s values don’t align.
Myth: Influencer marketing is only relevant for millennial and Gen Z audiences
Truth: Anyone can benefit from genuine product recommendations, irrespective of their age. People are always looking for the best products or services that solve their problems, and social media is a helpful place to find these solutions. Influencers who trust their audience stand out as the best resource to help users find the products they need in their lives.
An older person will enjoy recommendations about the best hotel destinations from a travel influencer just as much as a younger person would. Brands working with influencer contracts can appeal to both the young and the old when content creators promote their destinations.
Myth: Influencers only talk about the positive
Truth: Influencers don’t just talk about the positive things happening in their lives. Authentic creators share all aspects of their lives to build genuine connections with their followers. While some want to portray the perfect life, audiences love the creators who share both the good and bad things in their lives. This makes them human and relatable to ordinary social media users.
Myth: Campaigns are just one-shots
Truth: It takes more than one published post to achieve considerable impact with an influencer’s audience. This means that brands should prioritize long-term campaigns to help them gain credibility with their target audience.
Myth: Influencers can’t generate results
Truth: Influencer marketing has a real impact on sales, brand awareness, and online visibility. Statistics also show that influencer marketing can produce an 11X higher ROI compared to other advertising channels.
The marketers that say they can generate results with influencer marketing don’t know how to measure the ROI of their campaigns. They also don’t have clear goals for their campaign, making it challenging to decide which metrics to track. When you set clear goals such as brand awareness or reaching new leads, you will know the metrics to track to determine the success of your influencer efforts.
Despite hearing about how influencer marketing can help them achieve great results, most brands are still unsure of what to expect with this communication strategy. This is because they are often plagued with worries and doubts about the sector.
We hope this blog has cleared up some of the misconceptions you may have heard about working with influencers. If you are ready to launch your first campaign, try AtisfyReach – our AI-based influencer marketing platform. It’s AI-driven algorithm matches brands with the ideal influencers based on the campaign’s goals – be it an increase in brand awareness, more engagement, or boosting revenue at scale.
Register now to get started.
