Did you know that almost 86 per cent of internet users suffer from banner blindness? That means that most customers will ignore the ads that cost you time and financial investments. Since people are overwhelmed with banners, they tend to disregard your marketing efforts. Not because they are rude or your offer is so bad that they can’t spare several seconds to consider it, but because they want to protect themselves from the excessive amount of information they are bombarded with every day.
So, is there any other way to advertise your product without spoiling your prospects? Luckily, yes. And in this article, we are going to show you how it works.
This marketing strategy is not something new. Brands have been utilising influencers and industry leaders in order to promote their products or services for quite some time—probably longer than ads have actually existed. Now, more and more companies of all sizes and budget capacities leverage this marketing strategy to build a more solid online presence. Let us quickly explain how it works.
A brand marketer reaches out to a social media influencer who has already gained popularity (online, offline, or both) and has built a loyal audience. The company sponsors the influencer’s content to endorse their brand and product, reach the target audience, and drive more sales.
About 90 per cent of marketers say their RIO is much better, better, or the same compared to other marketing channels. That’s because of:
– Promotion of products through trusted people
– Enhancement of brand awareness and authority
– Connection with the target audience who might be genuinely interested in the purchase
– Beating ad blockers and banner blindness
– Exposure with prospects through different communication channels
– Possibility for high RIO
Being an influencer or approaching an influencer might sometimes be challenging. If you would like to collaborate with a brand, dive into this article’s insights for know-how about landing your first brand collaboration. But as a marketer or entrepreneur, you might be wondering if you are doing everything right to get the desirable influencer to work with you. This article will clear up how to write a great proposal to get the right person to collaborate with your brand.
First, let’s define whom you should consider for the campaign. One thing is for sure: you should not go for just a random celebrity or popular blogger.
Make sure you find a famous person in your business niche or a blogger with a large following on social media—the one whose opinion is much appreciated by their audience. If you are lucky enough to find such a person, do your best to win their heart, and make an offer they couldn’t turn down. Follow these simple tips to write a proposal that would convince the influencer to ‘do you a favour’ and become your brand ambassador.
Are you ready for the influencer campaign to launch? Apart from the product or service, you’ll also need to have social media accounts so that the people you reach out to can find you easily. A website or a landing page is a must-have requirement as well.
Let’s consider social media first. Did you know that 54 per cent of customers use social media to research products? This means that you are losing 54 per cent of leads if you are not on Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, or Twitter. But that’s not all.
48 per cent of buyers rely on the recommendations of the influencer they follow on social media. And this drives us to the conclusion that social media and influencer marketing are some of the most powerful business tools these days. And, of course, when the influencer will be posting branded content, they’ll be able to tag you on the shared platform.
A website and a landing page the influencer can visit to learn more about your company is also crucial. If they do care about their reputation, they’ll want to estimate whether the product or service you are offering is worthy of being advertised. They’ll also be using it when sharing branded content with their audience.
Before writing the proposal, ask yourself the following questions:
– How can my product benefit the influencer’s audience?
– What problems does my product tackle?
– How can my product improve the quality of life of the influencer’s audience?
– Is there anything interesting about my brand or me that would engage or intrigue the influencer or their audience?
– Do I have valid social proof that the product is worthy of being shown to the influencer?
Take your time to carefully think about every point of this list. You may want to take notes, but that’s not necessary. As you work out answers to these questions, you’ll be preparing yourself to write down your pitch. Also, think of the offered outline: section sequence, their appropriate length, and format. As you are planning the scheme of the proposal, keep the communication channel in mind. Would you reach your future partner via social media, email, or phone? And then adjust the plan to the selected platform.
Time is money. That’s a universal truth, especially in the business world. Hence, your proposal’s opening sentence should grab the influencer’s attention and explain why you are reaching out to start a campaign with them. Timothy Barrett, head of marketing at Adsy blog posting service, suggests: “You should mention the things you admire about this influencer’s work and why you think your cooperation would benefit both of you.”
Every relationship starts with an acquaintance. So introduce yourself and do it well to spark interest in your brand and, of course, your personality. It’s the part where you should sell yourself, so don’t be too shy to brag about your expertise or achievements.
Tell your story in brief and show some proof of why you are better than other brands. Maybe you are crafting the cosiest blankets that could keep people warm on cold winter evenings. Or you are promoting an idea of endless human possibilities through your collection of sports outfits. Brag about stuff you are proud of, emphasizing your products or services’ benefits for the influencer’s audience.
Give more details about your product (who will benefit from it, what problems it solves, how it can be applied in real life, etc.). Don’t forget to link to the website or your social media channels so the influencer can learn more about your offer. If you have social proof or awards, do include them. Statistics say that 97 per cent of customers made their purchasing decisions based on testimonials. And achievements in a specific niche can increase the conversion by 34 per cent. So if you have a lot to say about your brand or product, go ahead.
We do not recommend going into detail until you hear back from the influencer. You can mention that you’ll send one or several products for testing, but don’t mention too much at first. When the influencer agrees to become your brand ambassador, then you’ll have to go over all peculiarities and close the deal with a contract. There’s no one commonly accepted rule for sealing a deal. Some influencers do not charge anything and agree on product provisioning. Others have pricing depending on the type of work you are asking for and their reputation.
Just like with any type of sales writing (you are literally selling yourself and your product when approaching the influencer), politely ask the influencer to create a specific call to action (CTA). That might be an encouragement to visit your website, follow you on social media to get to know your brand better, write you back—just anything you think is relevant in the context.
Frankly speaking, there’s no magic formula to present your brand in a more favourable light so that your selected influencer agrees to promote you right away. You either do what you love and promote your products in such a way that no one can resist your passionate speeches. Or you might come out as too straight-forward and dry. Present your product in a way that highlights all your zest and passion for your business. And the influencer wouldn’t dare to refuse you. Good luck out there!
As one of the original ‘influencers’ (a label I still struggle with), I’ve been sharing my life online for a little over a decade. I started my journey on YouTube when it was still a fairly small website, I remember installing Instagram on my phone when it was virtually unheard of, and I’ve seen myriad other social media platforms rise and fall. Throughout my time on the internet, I’ve experienced many of life’s ups and downs, just like everyone else. Unlike everyone else, my journey has been self-documented, so I can look back at my video diaries that entertained millions of people and reminisce.
I was 22 when I started, and now, about to turn 33, I can step back in time and watch myself go through these moments whenever I wish. I bought a house, travelled the world, got married, worked on far many more ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ opportunities than that turn of phrase should allow. I lost my step-father to cancer, wrote a book, got divorced, branched out into traditional media, fell in love again, wrote a film, bought another house, did a stint as a presenter and am now engaged to be married for the second time.
It still blows my mind to look back on my adventures. It often feels like I’m watching someone else, and I believe, that for some people, this is where the problem begins. For my audience, I am someone else and we all judge other people. I’m the first to admit that I do it all the time. It’s totally natural, we just tend not to act on it because telling someone the negative opinions you have of them is socially unacceptable and will invariably cause more harm than good. However, when put in the context of social media, that judgement finds itself in a very unique position where people can say what’s on their mind from behind a username without seeing the hurt it causes and without fear of repercussion that a social faux pas will lead to.
Without exaggeration or embellishment, I am subject to hate comments, unwelcome opinions and online bullying on a daily basis, but I fully accept that it’s part of my job. I put myself out there and unfortunately, it comes with the territory but I count myself lucky that I was given the chance to grow a thick skin. When I started, the internet was a smaller, and much kinder place (at least it was to me). My audience seemed to love watching my escapades and the support I received was phenomenal. I could go weeks at a time without reading a single negative comment, but that has changed so much now that I find myself wondering if I’m looking back with rose-tinted glasses.
As social media has grown larger, it has also become more competitive as we all spend an increasing amount of our lives consuming other people’s existences. An unwelcome side effect of this is that the rates of online bullying have shot through the roof. Research by Ditch The Label found that this year alone, bullying has increased by 25 per cent.
Not everyone who is subject to this online hate has the coping mechanisms that I was given the time to develop and, as such, the consequences cannot be overstated. The negativity I receive built gradually and I was able to develop my hard exterior in response, but very few people have that benefit. I witnessed this first-hand when I started featuring my fiancé Sarah in my content. The majority of my audience were happy that I had found love again, but a small portion of them were very vocal about how Sarah would never compare to my ex. Some started rumours that I had cheated, others were cruel about her heritage, others still went further and began researching her so they could cut as deep and personal as possible.
Perhaps the worst thing I read was an individual who had so much hatred toward us both that she wished Sarah was infertile so we could never bring a child into the world. For the most part, this was water off a duck’s back for me, but for Sarah, who had never been exposed to it, it was crushing. Being with me was a bit of a double-edged sword for her in so far as, had she never known I existed she would have been free from this bullying, but by being with me, at least I was able to impart some of my experience that helped her deal with it.
With this in mind, although it’s shocking, unfortunately it’s not at all surprising that about half of those who experienced bullying in the last year say it has affected their mental health and around a third developed depression. There is a real and worrying negative correlation between happiness and time spent online. The problem is nuanced, complicated and very modern, but nobody can deny the evidence that bullying has a lot to answer to.
Social media is a wonderful tool that has allowed us to tap into other, like-minded people and to communicate with anyone in an instant. It has the ability to spark change in the world as we are all seeing with the Black Lives Matter movement and I owe my career to it. However, it’s also addictive and a tool that is all too easily manipulated, warped and twisted. That same ease of communication comes with a massive caveat that people can communicate whatever they wish, without accountability and that is something that needs to change.
For Anti-Bullying Week 2020, Screen Shot is supporting the anti-bullying charity Ditch The Label in its mission to raise awareness of the consequences of bullying and online abuse through our campaign Not Just a Comment, which features 6 inspiring change-makers who know first hand what it’s like to receive hate online. They shared with us the worst comments they receive as they come together to highlight the impact that words can have on each and every one of us. Read the facts, hear the comments, share with anyone who you think might be suffering from bullying and donate if you can to help support the incredible work Ditch The Label is doing. #NotJustAComment