influencer marketing strategy
influencer marketing strategy

Influencer marketing campaigns have become very successful tools in consumer public relations strategies, as well as growth marketing strategies. With the influencer industry seeing consistent growth over the years, there have also been plenty of changes.

Influencer marketing has drastically changed from the previous years, and it’s only going to become a more important tool in the future.

As with most other things, the pandemic managed to completely shift how the consumers engage with the influencers they’re following with many seeking out new people to follow.

One of the biggest changes that happened during the pandemic has been the expansion of the definition of the word influencer itself. During the pandemic, consumers started looking for other sources that would bring value to their own lives, including people that could help them grow financially, personally, professionally, physically, or even emotionally.

These days, influencers are far beyond people with style or celebrities. In fact, the number of micro-influencers, as well as experts in other professional fields, has also dramatically increased.

That makes influencer campaigns a lot easier in different markets, especially in markets that didn’t previously have influencers. This includes markets such as health, B2B, and even finance, which is a lot more than the previous influencers that mainly focused on lifestyle or travel.

Next, although brand or product awareness was the main goal of influencer marketing campaigns in the past, these days, companies have to take it a step further by meeting the customers in their buying journey.

Today’s consumers are looking for seamless shopping experiences, which means being able to make a purchase whenever they want, wherever they want. For brands, that means meeting those needs by changing their goals.

Instead of focusing on brand awareness, companies now have to focus on letting the consumers know they’re able to make a purchase easily on different platforms. That’s also the reason why plenty of platforms have introduced in-app shopping features.

Then there’s also the fact that consumers are a lot more purpose-driven and conscious when making purchasing decisions. Today’s consumers care more about where their products are coming from, and they will go out of their way to find products from companies that have the same values as their own.

That means sustainable, locally-sourced, or responsible brands are seeing a lot more success, even if that means the consumers are paying more.

That’s why it’s not only important for companies to become more conscious of their own actions, but of the influencers they choose to work with as well. The influencers’ values should line up with the company’s as well as the consumers’ values.

To do all of this, companies should build long-term partnerships by working with the same influencers over longer periods of time. That way, the target audience will be more familiar and create a stronger relationship with the influencers and the brand at the same time.

Companies should also be focusing on working with people that are more relevant to the industry, even if they have a smaller number of followers. This way, brands can leverage influencer content across multiple platforms and campaigns and drive positive sales results.

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Ronn Torossian is the founder and CEO of 5W Public Relations, one of the largest independently-owned PR firms in the United States. With over 20 years of experience crafting and executing powerful narratives, Torossian is one of America's most prolific and well-respected Public Relations professionals. Since founding 5WPR in 2003, he has led the company's growth, overseeing more than 175 professionals in the company's headquarters in midtown Manhattan. With clients spanning corporate, technology, consumer and crisis, in addition to digital marketing and public affairs capabilities, 5WPR is regularly recognized as an industry leader and has been named "PR Agency of the Year" by the American Business Awards on multiple occasions. Throughout his career, Torossian has worked with some of the world's most visible companies, brands and organizations. His strategic, resourceful approach has been recognized with numerous awards including being named the Stevie American Business Awards 2020 Entrepreneur of the Year, the American Business Awards PR Executive of the Year, twice over, an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year semi-finalist, Metropolitan Magazine's Most Influential New Yorker, and a 2020 Top Crisis Communications Professional by Business Insider. Torossian is known as one of the country's foremost experts on crisis communications, and is called on to counsel blue chip companies, top business executives and entrepreneurs both in the United States and worldwide. Torossian has lectured on crisis PR at Harvard Business School, appears regularly on CNN & CNBC, was named to PR Week's "40 under Forty" list, is a contributing columnist for Forbes and the New York Observer, and his book, "For Immediate Release: Shape Minds, Build Brands, and Deliver Results With Game-Changing Public Relations" is an industry best-seller. A NYC native, Torossian lives in Manhattan with his children. He is a member of Young Presidents Organization (YPO), and active in numerous charities.