There are producers and there are consumers and then there are advertisements that connect each with the other.
However, with the big bang entry and dominance of social media in our daily lives, the dynamics of marketing have altered.
Although the age-old methods of marketing still work, their potency has taken a hit. After all, the human attention span only keeps dwindling.
People are no longer buying products based on mere advertisements. They prefer to buy a service or a product from a particular brand based on research and the opinion of particular individuals whom they consider, to be honest, content providers.
That is, advertisement has evolved from forced marketing to interesting, informative, interactive, opinion, and review-based content.
People are voracious consumers of online content and this is where the fertile land of digital marketing lie. People hate advertisements but willingly follow social media influencers for their presumed unbiased content.
In other words, influencer marketing is the most effective format of marketing in the digital world. The influence of the influencer over their followers influences them to purchase products and services from a particular brand.
Therefore brands are collaborating with social media influencers, to achieve greater visibility and higher conversion rate.
The purchasing decisions of people are generally influenced by word-of-mouth advertising from friends and family.
Influencer marketing also works in the same way and hence is the most sought-after form of marketing by numerous brands and companies.
Besides, there is no limit to influencer marketing as there are different types of influencer marketing suiting all sorts of businesses and industries.
On the whole, influencer marketing is completely content-driven. It is through this content that advertising is done by providing quality information.
So before understanding the different types of influencer marketing, let us first learn about the different types of influencer content.
Types of Influencer Content
Generally, influencer marketing is pocket friendly and provides an excellent Return on Investment (ROI). Through influencer marketing, brands can connect directly with their target audience.
Thus brands love to collaborate with social media influencers to avail a mutually beneficial agreement. However, there are a variety of popular social media influencers that brands can use for their promotion.
So they need to know which type of influencer content suits best to their brand and here are the different types of influencer content to take benefit of.
1. Brand-Developed Content
This form of influencer content involves the brand creating the content and asking the influencers to share it on their social networks as is.
The influencer does not get the chance to improvise, customize or personalize the brand-produced content.
A good example for Brand developed content would be an image promoting limited edition Hide and Seek biscuits by Parle.
They will activate influencers and ask them to share the image with their social network without personalizing the content. This is Brand developed content.
2. Influencer – Developed Content
In this format of influencer content, the content is completely developed by the influencer. It may include the use of a brand product or service, but the content will be completely developed by the influencer.
For example, Micromax asks users to make use of their smartphones to take pictures of sunsets. This content would be completely generated by the influencer and can include pictures from the top of a building to a beach. This form of marketing depicts a raw customer experience.
3. Co-Developed Content
When brands create the foundation for the content for influencers to share but permit some creative freedom for influencers, then it is known as co-developed content.
For example, CafeCofeeDay asks its users to take a picture of their branded CCDay coffee cup in a Republic Day setting and asks them to include the hashtag #CCDayRepublicday.
This form of content will be co-developed content for the hashtag by the company but the content can be personalized by the users or influencers.
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Influencer Marketing Examples
With the introduction of ad-blocking online, brands have found it difficult to reach their customers. So they have migrated into the use of word-of-mouth advertising through social media platforms and influencers.
It is safe to say that if you have an online presence, then you have seen some form of influencer marketing one or the other time. However, here are some Influencer marketing examples.
1. Daniel Wellington
One of the best successful examples of influencer marketing is Daniel Wellington. Their well-planned and executed online marketing strategy through social media grew the company from a $15k start-up to a revenue of $220 million.
All the Swedish watchmaker did was effectively leverage influencers in different niches, mainly lifestyle and fashion, to promote their brand.
DW did not make use of any form of traditional advertising and depended solely on word-of-mouth advertising through influencers.
They launched a social media campaign using top Instagrammers who used eye-catching images and branded hashtags to promote the brand. Besides, they also encouraged followers to use the hashtag and post their images using the products of the brand.
2. Zara
Another successful example of influencer marketing in retail is Zara. The brand made profits in billions after deciding on using the help of top fashion-focused Instagram influencers’ accounts in its social media campaign.
Zara aimed to highlight their latest product in a way that would appeal to its target audience. Their Instagram posts showcased their products resembling photos from the pages of a fashion catalog.
This would then inspire people to search for ideas and tips on the latest in the fashion industry. Thus, by working with influencers, Zara created an impression that their products were more accessible in comparison to high-fashion clothing.
Influencer Marketing Campaign Examples
Generally, influencer marketing works but it can be confusing for brands to select the right type of influencer marketing campaign.
So here are some of the top Influencer marketing campaign examples for you to understand and make the right choice.
1. Product Placement
This form of influencer marketing campaign involves seeding your products within the influencer’s content. For example, an influencer sharing a selfie during a holiday wearing a watch you sent them.
The influencer may or may not write something specific about the brand but will tag the product for interested followers to check out the brand by themselves.
2. Unboxing
A customer’s journey with a product begins and continues from the moment they receive their product. This is how they connect with your brand. Unboxing influencer marketing campaigns take advantage of this journey.
In this form of marketing, a brand sends a well-packaged product to the influencer and asks them to open it on camera, use the product and detail their experience with it. Viewers will then be able to make informed buying decisions regarding the product.
3. Pre-Release
Brands opt for pre-release campaigns when they want to drum up excitement about a product or launch before it happens.
This is a very effective form of influencer marketing campaign because influencers, as well as their followers, feel a sense of exclusivity to have come across the products before anyone else.
4. Sponsored Content
Any content by the influencer that you sponsor is called sponsored content. For example, a travel agency might sponsor a holiday getaway for an influencer.
The budget and the locations will be pre-planned but the influencer will have to speak about the brand during their travel and especially thank them for giving them the opportunity to travel.
5. “Brought to You By”
Similar to sponsored content, brought to you by campaigns does not require much content relating directly to the brand.
For example, imagine you are a software company that makes automated book-reading software and chose to collaborate with an influencer dealing with home cleaning supplies.
This might seem odd but the marketing idea usually works. However, during a video, the influencer will comment on using your software to listen to stories while cleaning their home.
In turn, some of the viewers may find it interesting and buy your products. Thus, despite not being a direct ad, it will still garner viewers’ attention.
6. Integrated Content
This is an influencer marketing campaign that feels less sales-y. In this process, the product is intertwined into the storyline of the content instead of being the sole point of focus.
Generally, the content wouldn’t make much sense without the mention of the product but, the mentioning of the product also does not make the content look like a hardcore advertisement.
7. Themed or Hashtag Campaigns
All brands always wish to go viral but only a few succeed. You go viral when more and more people start sharing or talking about your content, products, or services.
This is easier to achieve with hashtags, the language of digital beings. As a brand, you collaborate with influencers and start a hashtag influencer campaign.
The influencers engage the audience and make them share or talk about your specific topic using your predefined hashtags.
8. Shoutout Content
This is one of the easier campaigns to go for smaller brands unable to afford a dedicated piece of content on social media.
In this case, the influencers will talk about the brand or its product in their Snapchat, insta-story, or other time-sensitive content.
This works best when the influencer has already bought your product since they are more likely to give a shoutout on social media when compared to someone who does not know about your brand.
9. Giveaways
In this form of influencer marketing, you give a product to the influencers which they can push as a giveaway. This works best when the influencer has a similar audience to the brand and a larger following.
It’s an excellent way to show your products to the audience and also give them a chance to win them for free. This can sometimes generate additional sales from people who didn’t win but liked the product.
10. Discount Codes
Offering discount codes through influencers is an excellent way for brands to get more visibility as well as conversion rates.
One cannot simply use influencers and hope people make a purchase. Instead, offering discount codes will widen the brand reach as week as encourage customers to make a purchase.
11. Affiliate Marketing
This is a very cost-effective form of an influencer marketing campaign and works with loads of influencers. The best benefit of this campaign is that it can be run simultaneously with many influencers irrespective of your budget.
This is because you pay the influencer only if and when a customer makes a purchase using the unique code or link provided to the influencer.
12. Brand Ambassadors
Influencers who regularly post content for a brand are known as brand ambassadors. They usually work with a company for an extended period and can merge the different types of influencer campaigns in their marketing process.
In most cases, the brand ambassadors aren’t paid for the work but are offered product incentives or other incentives that could lead to money.
Conclusion
In conclusion, there is no one form of influencer marketing campaign that suits all brands. You’ll have to try and experiment with what works best for you. Most brands prefer to use a combination of multiple campaign types in their influencer marketing strategy.
So if you are excited about working with influencers, get in touch with OneCity’s talented team and achieve digital marketing success.
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