Niche influencers or micro influencers as they are often called, focus on small areas of interest that can fit into a company’s exact market niche. These influencers will usually have a relatively small but active following that’s sincerely interested in what they have to say.
By recruiting young mothers and midwives as influencers, ITMS is driving a cost-effective social media campaign for a maker of child safety seats to excellent results.
Niche Influencers enjoy close relationships with their audiences and actively interact with subscribers, making them feel like their opinion matters. Their communities might be smaller, but they are genuinely interested in their content which gets a great deal more trust. People tend to see their posts as more of a personal recommendation than an advertisement.
Another benefit of working with micro influencers is that by focusing on their target audience, a company can save significantly on their advertising spending. These relationships are often built on a pure barter basis, with influencers receiving products in exchange for a certain number of posts and stories on their social media platforms. As an agency adept at executing flawless campaigns, ITMS knows to work closely with the influencers to ensure the integrity and quality of the content without stifling their creativity.
The agency’s influencer campaign for Avionaut, a manufacturer of child safety seats, had the explicit objective of expanding the company’s social media reach while building trust with target audiences, a crucial attribute when dealing with products that have to assure the safety of children.
The campaign started in December with the agency’s first step being the search for an initial hand-picked group of influencers consisting of mothers and midwives with infants. Evaluating their online audiences and engagement rates was as important as was gaining the group’s confidence in the brand and its line of products. Midwives enjoy relationships of trust with their patients, and it goes without saying, that mothers want to fully trust the products they choose to protect their children.
Confidence was gained by outfitting the influencers who fit the agency’s requirements with appropriate safety seats for their infants, including the Avionaut PIXEL, the lightest baby seat on the market at 2.5 kg, along with details about the products’ safety qualities. With the influencers convinced, they were more than happy to wholeheartedly post content including photos, videos and images on their Instagram feeds and in plenty of Instagram stories.
Niche influencers take their content very seriously. They care about their reputation and so they work harder to make sure they produce high-quality content that will make their followers stay. This kind of approach is answered by increased engagement and passionate response.
By posting stories on a regular basis, the influencers convey short narratives in different kinds of content that feel more personal to the follower. Once the seats were delivered, the influencers took to action by creating fun “unboxing” stories and there’s nothing as exciting as opening an eagerly awaited package for the first time. The influencers included a swipe-up link within their Instagram stories to lead their followers to Avionaut’s new website thus generating more reach and awareness for the brand.
For an influencer marketing strategy to work, the agency sets goals and metrics to help it track performance. ITMS is diligent about tracking each influencer, the content they post, and how this contributes to the overall campaign objectives. The agency’s social media experts stay in constant personal exchange with the influencers and make sure that they create content that speaks to the target audience.
With the first satisfied influencers on board, the social media professionals at ITMS targeted midwives nationwide by inviting them to test the product in a couple of well-placed generic posts that were then repeatedly shared by midwives to different groups and their own followers. The response was overwhelming and resulted in hundreds of messages reaching the content managers at ITMS within only a few days. A high percentage of the midwives were also quick to accept the agency’s invitation to join Avionaut’s social media community.
The most successful posts created by the influencers are being re-used in retargeted ads to further enhance the campaign’s performance. These posts raise interest with different audiences and potential buyers who see photos of very happy and satisfied influencers with their new Avionaut safety seats. People who had previously expressed some interest in Avionaut products are now seeing actual recommendations from real users, which leads to recall and increased purchase intent.
Instead of only partnering on a campaign basis with influencers, the agency is seeking to develop long-term partnerships with the influencers that perfectly match the brand. Not only does this save time but it creates a high-level of authenticity and builds trust. Avionaut’s target audience is likely to view influencers who endorse the products in recurring campaigns as being more genuine. A long-term influencer can also regularly give a brand access to content it can share in its social media feeds and build recall. With time, the target audience will closely associate the midwives with the Avionaut car seats.
While the pandemic may have led to uncertainties about the future, brands can benefit more than ever from influencer marketing. Consumers value content from people they trust and influencers who can rightfully represent a brand in long-term partnerships as an excellent testimonial and multiplier for the brand.
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