This is an article “Here’s Why Micro-influencers Are Performing Better Than Celebrities Online” by Marc Primo
For many, it is surprising how micro-influencers have become one of the most effective ambassadors for online marketing. As trends redefine how consumer behavior changes throughout the pandemic, how we categorize social influencers also varies – those with followers ranging from a humble 5,000 to mega-influencers with more than 1 million. Those with fewer followers seem to be the bigger hit among online buyers, based on current figures.
Brands and elite marketers keep a close eye on how influencer marketing strategies evolve. For one, competition in this type of digital marketing is tight, and a few tweaks can save dollars depending on which influencer best gets the job done.
At any rate, consumers continue to rely on the influencers they follow to show them new brands, tips, and 'how-to's' about things that interest them. The current figures say it all, with 88% showing that social influencers are as trustworthy as their friends, and conversion rates stable at an average of 2.5%.
As we look into how social influencers continue to help brands increase their digital marketing numbers, let's take a closer look at why micro-influencers are getting the upper hand in the digital race for sales.
Genuine genius
Among the top reasons why consumers trust micro-influencers with less than 10,000 followers online are their transparency and reliability within a community. Brands choose influencers within a particular niche not only because they already know what they are talking about, but also because they have an established loyal following.
With the low-cost production of user-generated content posted on their social media feeds, micro-influencers easily win their followers' trust. These days, online users find a kindred spirit in people who go for consumer goods that are not particularly expensive but are still premium quality, rather than take a celebrity's word for it. Most celebrities fall under the mega-influencer category with at least 1 million followers. However, the difference between those with fewer followers and celebrities is apparent in cost and results.
Of course, brands are also looking to cut production costs on advertising campaigns. Turning to micro-influencers reduces their expenses for ads since the people they hire can produce user-generated content while churning better return on investment. Due to the way micro-influencers present genuine, highly engaging content to a particular community, brands can improve their lead generation and conversions—all while capturing their target audience's attention for long-term campaigns.
More bang for the buck
As for key performance indicators (KPIs), brands also look into how their micro-influencers can increase their website traffic and conversions through organic posts. More of today's consumers want more organic content than hard-sell marketing ads that the more prominent brands showcase online. That said, micro-influencers are more genuine to their followers and can better grasp how they communicate their messages.
Micro-influencers have also become more discerning in choosing the brands they want to collaborate with, but budgets remain low for brands that want to amplify their digital marketing strategies. Some micro-influencers even choose freebies they can review on their YouTube, Instagram, or TikTok channels over monetary compensation. This approach can be a huge win for brands on cost-cutting measures.
A give and take process
Due to how effective influencer marketing is these days, businesses are increasing their budgets for strategies by 42.2%. The industry grew from $9.7 billion in 2020 to last year's $13.8 billion. Social platform investments are significant because brands want to tap core audiences from micro-influencers who already have an engaged following. These investments include commercial tools and organic posts that affect consumers' purchasing decisions.
The overwhelming growth that influencer marketing continues to achieve also coincides with the rise of short-format videos and channels such as Tiktok, Facebook Stories, and Instagram Reels. More consumers are looking for content that piques their interest and, as a result, makes them willing to share their personal information to get more content from their influencers.
In turn, brands can use data gathered from their influencer's followers to improve their social media ads, generate more leads, and increase conversion rates.
Influencer marketing in post-pandemic campaigns
Since the pandemic, over 93% of businesses have resorted to influencer marketing to cut down on marketing costs while attaining higher ROI. As more folks stayed home during lockdowns, 79% of consumers searched for more information online, while 46% made purchases via the digital space.
The steady growth of eCommerce also stems from the strong presence of micro-influencers online, with more considerable impacts per impression than celebrities. In terms of monetary compensation, micro-influencers can charge $100 per post on average, compared to mega influencers' rates of $1,000 to $2,000 per post.
However, the benefits of hiring micro-influencers for your marketing campaigns are more than just cutting down on costs. Brands can shatter the influencer marketing silos by penetrating cross-channel accounts. On average, users have 8.4 social media accounts, making it essential for businesses to hire influencers who can reach them in each channel.
Many consider micro-influencers as thought leaders in their respective niches, making them more trustworthy than celebrities. Whether focusing on skincare, health & wellness, or fintech, online personalities that have already made their mark in a specific niche have proven that they can attract more consumers.
These new breeds of brand ambassadors are poised to maintain their follower strongholds in 2022, with those who focus on their key niches becoming more popular. According to 60% of online marketers, organic posts from micro-influencers perform better engagement than branded posts, and this trend will continue even after the pandemic disruptions subside.
Poised to take over the marketing space
There's no denying that influencer marketing will remain a formidable tactic for brands who want to increase both engagement and sales, now and into the future. The fact is that consumers find today's micro-influencers and their user-generated content more appealing than the traditional ads posted by big brands online.
From the way they tell a brand's story to how they convince their followers to make purchases, micro-influencer marketing will have a huge role to fill as the online marketing space continues to expand.