The Rise of the Micro-Influencer

Did you know 47% of Marketers Are Betting on Smaller but More Engaged Audiences?

In fact, in one recent study, 47% of marketers professed a belief that investing in micro-influencers and small highly engaged audiences is better than trying to partner with macro-influencers or celebrities. But why has this shift occurred, and what is it about micro-influencers that makes them such an attractive proposition?

What is a Micro-Influencer?

In the ever-evolving cosmos of digital marketing, one methodology that has truly started to gain traction during the last couple of years is micro-influencer marketing. In itself, influencer marketing is nothing new; however, the uptick in micro-influencers, usually defined as social media personalities who have follower counts that range between 1,000 and 100,000, has piqued the interest of marketers across the board.

The Power of Engagement over Reach

Whereas the traditional mindset of marketing rested deeply on reach, or getting your message in front of as many eyes as possible, the proliferation of social media has indeed shifted that focus toward engagement. The digital landscape seems to have made a case that the sheer number does not translate into hard interaction and conversions. Quite often, micro-influencers, despite having so many fewer followers, have way better engagement rates than their macro-influencer counterparts.

That is, your audience will more likely comment, like, and share but, above all, take action upon your suggestions.

After all, this converts into greater engagement and much more effective marketing campaigns. Whereas a micro-influencer shared his or her experience about a product or service, their audience is likely to listen and buy, thus leveraging a higher ROI for brands. Fundamentally, quality over quantity is what micro-influencers maintain, wherein the smaller size of their highly engaged audience becomes the perfect target for brands with a view to creating authentic engagement.

Authenticity Sells in the Age of Transparency

Today’s consumers are decidedly more savvy, more knowing. The consumer can smell a rat from a mile away, and the forced use of paid partnerships with larger influencers and celebrities can many times seem, well, forced. Everything feels a little more organic with micro-influencers. Because they choose with whom they want to work, an air of integrity is built around them that in the end seems to make them trustworthy.

Since these micro-influencers are closer to their following, be it literally or otherwise, their suggestions actually seem more from a trusted friend than some sort of scripted endorsement. This level of authenticity is just gold to brands trying to forge deeper bonds with their potential customers.

Low-Cost Solution

Another reason why 47% of marketers would bet on micro-influencers is that they are cost-effective. Normally, the services of macro-influencers or celebrities do not come cheap on every engagement. Micro-influencers will fall cheaper for small businesses and even large brands wanting to get value for every buck.

With top-tier influencers requiring upwards of thousands of pounds or more for a single posting, micro-influencers are much cheaper: partnerships are very often based on product exchange and very modest fees. Since the level of engagement is high, often more value is achievable from the investment made by brands.

Niche Targeting: Hitting the Right Audience

The power of micro-influencers, however, is not just in the cost but in targeting an ultra-niche market. Think about how a fitness brand might partner with a slew of micro-influencers in fitness commanding an extremely engaged audience chock-full of health and wellness enthusiasts. Instead of casting that wide net, it can tap into a highly relevant and targeted audience-people much more likely to be interested in its product or service.

By focusing on a niche audience, a brand can really open the floodgates to even more creativity and flexibility in the campaigns they run. Brands can partner with multiple micro influencers across different niches to craft messages for very specific demographics and interests. Whether that’s reaching eco-conscious consumers with a sustainable living influencer or tapping into millennial homeowners’ courtesy of a DIY decor enthusiast, micro influencers allow brands to focus on the audiences that matter most.

Long-run Relationship Building

What’s really the big difference with macro-influencers or celebrities is that sometimes it just really feels like one big transaction: a single post or campaign, and that’s it. Micro-influencers are more likely to do a long-term collaboration with the brand, and the partnerships seem much more organic to their audience-building trust through quite some time.

Long-term relationships with the micro-influencers are nurtured by their very nature, and with their personal brand being integral to it, the brand is always out there. This type of integration works wonders in consumer behaviour and loyalty.

It Speaks for Itself in Numbers

Research has continued to prove that marketers realize fantastic returns with micro-influencers. For instance, recent studies have revealed:

• 82% of consumers are more likely to act on the recommendation of a micro influencer. 
• 72% take suggestions on something from a micro-influencer’s opinion just like their friends. 
• Brands collaborating with micro-influencers can achieve an ROI as high as 6.7 times more than traditional ones. 

These tend to give good barometers of how strong micro-influencers are in today’s digital marketing landscape, explaining why almost half of marketers will place a small but engaged audience ahead of the once-coveted big followings. 

How to Find the Right Micro-Influencer for Your Brand

The process of finding a perfect micro-influencer for your brand needs to be highly strategic to align goals, resonate with the target audience, and reflect brand values. The following are the key steps in identifying the right micro-influencer for your brand:

1. Define Your Goals

Clearly define what you aim to achieve from your campaign. This might be brand awareness, website traffic, or sales; whatever the objective might be, it must lead you to select the right one accordingly.

2. Understand Your Target Audience

Find out the demographics, interests, and behaviors of the target audience. Seek micro-influencers whose following fits the profile of your audience for greater relevance in the engagement.

3. Niche Relevance

Choose those influencers who fall into your particular industry or niche. For instance, a beauty brand would definitely relate to a skincare enthusiast rather than a travel blogger. Their niche expertise builds credibility and fosters more trust among their audience.

4. Assess the Rate of Engagement

While important, follower count is considered a worse predictor of influence. Check engagement through likes, comments, share count, and overall engagement by the influencer with their audience. Smaller but highly engaged audiences are likely to be much more effective than their larger, less-engaged counterparts.

5. Authenticity and Credibility Check

Authenticity is the key towards any successful collaboration. Check for consistency in the content he posts, real interactions, and whether his tone fits your brand. Avoid influencers who had cases of fraud and unnatural follower increase.

6. Review Past Collaboration

Check on past collaborations with other brands in terms of professionalism and efficiency. Positive comments coming from other companies could mean one of the most predictive indicators of the right fit.

7. Leverage Influencer Discovery Tools

With the help of platforms like AspireIQ, Upfluence, and Heepsy, you will be able to filter the influencers according to your needed criteria, including audience demography, engagement rate, and niche. 

8. Have Real Communications

Begin cold outreach to potential influencers with personalised messages. Actually build the relationship-lead conversation regarding your brand values and mutual benefits of a collaboration.

Carefully choosing micro-influencers that represent your brand and resonate with your audience builds authentic high-impact marketing campaigns that drive meaningful results.

Conclusion 

In the social media-driven future, this trend with micro-influencers is nowhere near slowing down. Their highly engaged, more authentic audiences, budget-friendly campaigns, and niche targeting-all sum up the reasons of marketers are now betting on these smaller yet loud voices. To other brands needing closer, more realistic relationships with customers, micro-influencers are a much-needed prescription for authenticity, engagement, and resulting trust.