Too many times “influencers” will comment under small business pages “hey lets collaborate” Sorry, this is a tell tell sign of someone who wants free stuff. They are not thinking about the ROI your companies is looking for. Understanding how to collaborate with the right influencers is essential for your business.
You Pick
Stop letting the influencers pick you. The ball is in your court and you want to work with people who reflect your business interest. Not just any jack or jill who found you while searching hashtags. Look at your Target Demographic Worksheet and see who those influencers are for your brand. I have seen clients pick people who are popular on social media not realize they are popular but have a disconnect with their audience. You can have a million followers and they want to buy what you’re selling. That is the wrong type of influencer for your company.
Bloggers Are Not The Only Influencers
Too many times small business owners think only a blogger can push their product to their potential target demographic. You are wrong here. On any given day I am posed where did I buy something. I have seen a chain reaction on followers and sales when I post something for a friend. I am not a blogger, I am business consultant. Think about people who influence you as a person that should resonate with you with the style of person you want to collaborate with. If somebodies all the qualities you want that is the person you want to work with even if they are not a blogger per se.
Engage + Connect
Once you know which influencers you want to work with its time to court them. You just don’t email Aimee of Song of Style or Jules of Sincerely Jules saying lets work together. That is just plain wrong. You need to truly engage people to see if they are a fit for your brand. It would be truly amazing if you found influencers in your surrounding cities to connect with. That way you can attend their events and see how they act and engage in person. You want to build rapport with the person you decided to do a campaign with.
Proposal
After you have built a rapport with those influencers you want to work reach out with a proposal. Its best you work with those in your budget. It is better to have 3-4 influencers you are working with verse just one big one and it flops. I have actually had a client spend serious money, in addition to giving said blogger several free products. Make sure that you get their current media kit. Even checking out such as quantcast if you do the blogger route to see if their numbers are align. Make sure your proposal outline what you’re trying to achieve. One of the best tips is to be open to their ideas also, they do know what works best with their audience.
Biggest advice when it comes to collaborating with others is make sure they are the right fit for your brand. Do the research. Just because someone says they want to work with you and they can bring you an audience doesnt mean they can. Get everything in a very detail contract just in case stuff does go south.
