Social media influencers can help you increase your brand’s reach and stretch your marketing dollars. Check out the September/October issue of Floral Management to read more on working with influencers.
Want to greatly increase your brand’s reach? Consider partnering with an influencer. Though not necessarily household names, these social media content creators have legions of loyal followers and a lot of clout — giving you instant credibility. In the latest issue of Floral Management, contributing writer Sarah Sampson explores the world of influencers and how partnering with them can benefit your business.
What is an influencer?
Influencers are social media users with a significant number of followers. They exist in the consumer-to-consumer, business-to-consumer, and business-to-business categories. Most post content that revolves around a topic, be it a broad category — such as humor, fashion, beauty, travel, food, wellness or design — or something extremely specific (think: potty training, curly hair styling, appliance repair tech). Nano influencers are entry level with 1,000 to 10,000 followers; micro influencers have 10,000 to 50,000 followers; and mid-tier influencers have up to 500,000 followers.
How does influencer marketing work?
With feedback from you, an influencer will create their own original content that promotes your product or services, introducing a new, wider audience to your brand and generating online engagement. It’s effective because the content comes across as raw and authentic, plus influencers’ audiences trust their opinions, priming them to act on sponsored posts.
“Working with local, smaller-scaled influencers allows small businesses to stretch their marketing dollars,” says Melanie Spilbeler of FreshPath Marketing. “Not only are they more engaging, but they are also more cost effective. They are typically focused on a very localized or specific audience, which makes targeting a particular audience through partnership with a micro influencer even more effective for florists.”
For more advice, including how to find an influencer for your business and negotiate terms and cost, read the Digital Strategy column in the September/October issue of Floral Management.
Katie Vincent is the senior contributing editor for the Society of American Florists.
