Word of Mouth on Steroids

Some people have claimed that social media is the new word of mouth. And while this may be true in the sense that social media replicates a fast, informal way of spreading information, the truth is that social media is way more powerful that word of mouth ever could be. In this article, we will show you the ins and outs of one of our most effective strategies for leveraging the power of social media through influencer-centered marketing techniques.

Step One: Find Influencers in Your Niche

Influencers are the go-to individuals or brands on social media: those in the know, those who show the rest of us what we need to be paying attention to. Some have hundreds of thousands of loyal followers — and if you can get your message noticed by one of these heavy hitters, great! But that’s not the only way to get potential customers to pay attention. Influencers with smaller followings (5,000–30,000 subscribers) can also have a significant impact on targeted audiences — and the communities around such micro-influencers are usually small enough and close-knit enough that it is easy to participate in them.

Step Two: Get Engaged!

We recommend starting off by choosing a group of about 50 micro-influencers in your niche. After you’ve decided on who those relevant influencers are, organize them into five groups, each with ten influencers. Visit the Facebook pages (Instagram or Twitter feeds) of the first group on Monday. Interact by asking questions, commenting on posts, and participating in discussions you find interesting. You may want to mention a special promotion or offer if it seems relevant to the conversation or of interest to participants. On Tuesday, repeat the process with Group 2.

Continue this process with a new group each day. The following week, do the same again. Over a two-week period, an audience that is highly involved in your industry will have see your company name (and your product) everywhere. This steady trickle of exposure is a great way to generate curiosity, interest, and FOMO in your target audience.

Step Three: Encourage Your Audience to Join in On the Fun!

Using hashtags is a great way to find people already interested in your product or service. Encourage followers to use a hashtag specific to your business or promotion. Include a giveaway or other incentive as an incentive for followers to share your message. When customers and influencers engage with your campaign, momentum builds and you’ll find new visitors checking out your social media feeds to see what all the fuss is about.

Step Four: Give them Somewhere to Land

Once visitors arrive at your website it’s important to have an effective, optimized landing page that provides a clear indication of what your company is all about. Ideally, this will result in the customer sharing an email address and/or requesting further information. In some cases, you may even be able to earn a purchase on the spot.

For best results, be sure to provide a clear call to action. (I.e. “Sign up for our mailing list,” “Get our ebook delivered to your inbox” or “buy today for a discount”) Calls to action that encourage engagement on social media (i.e. “use this #hashtag to enter our monthly photo contest” or “share this post on Facebook for an extra entry in our monthly giveaway”) are also great ways to build interest and increase your company’s visibility.

Have any questions about this social media marketing strategy? Want to share you own marketing ideas with us and get feedback? Schedule a time to chat!

Originally published at www.scotchandramen.com.