Why micro-influencers can be your next powerful weapon

We live in a media saturated world where consumers are constantly targeted and marketed to. Are you looking for a way to market your brand in a cost-effective way, that speaks directly and authentically with your target audience?

Influencers have become the most trusted form of advertising, as they possess a level of influence that brand’s simply don’t have. According to data from marketing platform MuseMind, 92% of customers trust an influencer more than an advertisement or traditional celebrity. Influencers are seen as more authentic and trustworthy as they’re more engaged and responsive within their community. And whilst influencer marketing as a strategy has been growing in popularity for years, it’s micro-influencers, who are now taking centre stage. Evidently, there’s a clear shift to focussing on quality rather than quantity when dealing with social influencers.

Who is a micro-influencer?

A micro-influencer is an individual on social media, who’s following is anywhere between ten thousand and a hundred thousand people. However, some argue micro influencers can have just one thousand followers to be effective. They are normally recognised by their audience for knowledge and influence in some particular niche, whether it be gaming, photography, fashion, or food. Micro-influencers cover a huge range of niches.

The benefits:

While micro-influencers are fewer in number, their loyalty and engagement is proven to be much higher.

Why is this?

Micro-influencers have a more direct, personal and genuine connection with their followers. They’ve built their tribe, one by one, post by post, and it’s a two way relationship. Micro-influencers understand their audience and make them feel valued by engaging with them and serving out content that resonates with them. And of course, this makes micro-influencers highly trustworthy, because their audience are able to gain a true sense of who they are and what they like. In turn, micro-influencers offer brands a highly targeted, loyal and engaged audience.

There’s an increasing amount of evidence that micro-influencers offer far better ROI to brands than large influencers with hundreds of thousands of followers.

Let’s take Kae Sunderland, a fashion blogger from Amsterdam and the infamous Kim Kardashian, who became the sixth person to join the 100m followers club on Instagram last year. The infographic below highlights how micro-influencers like Kae are more likely to have a higher engagement and clicks per follower than working with a influencer with a much larger following, like Kim Kardashian.

As you can see, although Kim has a much larger following than Kae, Kae not only has a cheaper cost per post, but has a staggering 378% higher engagement rate than Kim Kardashian. So, if you were a fashion brand looking to advertise your new collection of handbags, picking out micro-influencers who fit your ideal customer profile like Kae, would not only give you the opportunity to specifically target your audience, but it’d be extremely cost-effective.

In sum, just because an influencer has hundreds of thousands, or millions of followers, it doesn’t necessarily mean that a specific campaign will be more effective than if a marketer or brand were to work with an influencer with fewer followers.

Micro-influencers can help your brand by raising awareness, gaining customer loyalty and building trust, all of which will help promote sales.

Find out more about social and influencer strategies that could have a big impact on your brand.