Importance of Using Micro-Influencers in Retail: How and Why

Digital marketing is now a huge part of our lives in this day and age. As we browse our social media accounts, it is almost impossible not to see a post by a certain influencer promoting or talking about a certain product. Almost all of us social media users are now familiar with the so-called influencers and what they do.

Sure, influencers can be effective, but have you tried the possibility and effectiveness of micro-influencers? You may then ask: what is a micro-influencer?

What is a micro-influencer?

If an individual has a following between 1,000 to 100,000, that person is considered a micro-influencer. These individuals usually post and promote brands or products based on their niche or specialties.

Why choose a micro-influencer?

You may wonder why you should go for a micro-influencer when there are several available influencers out there. Here are some reasons to consider:

Higher engagement

Since micro-influencers are focused on their niche or specialty, it is more likely that their followers are also interested in that particular niche. It is somehow safe to say that a micro-influencer’s followers revolve around his/her niche and support or follow him on what he has to say on that niche.

That said, it is safe to assume that a micro-influencer would receive a higher engagement on a single post — or higher relevant engagements — compared to influencers with a million followings but without a focused niche.

It is almost better to have large and niche-focused engagements. This is why if a brand is looking for a micro-influencer, the brand should conduct their research regarding the best micro-influencers for their products.

For example, a beauty brand should look for a beauty blogger or vlogger for its micro-influencer; a food brand should look for a food blogger or a foodie for its micro-influencer, and so on.

Budget-friendly

The rates for micro-influencer is lower than the influencers’, which is a good thing for brands that would like to expand the market of their product — but on a tight budget.

Influencers tend to charge more when promoting a post for their clients. This is because the number of their followers and fans are particularly higher.

And this is one of the good things about getting a micro-influencer for your brand. They charge less, which is a great factor, budget-wise. It is also possible to make a cross-deal with the micro-influencer. A cross-deal can come in the form of letting the micro-influencer try your products and some freebies for a promotional post on his socials.

A cross-deal between a brand and a micro-influencer can work perfectly well, especially with proper communication. But if it will be a cash-basis deal, the rate for a micro-influencer is notably lower than that of an influencer.

How can a micro-influencer help your brand?

Having a niche-focused following, a micro-influencer can gather a huge amount of relevant engagements and responses in their post. If a brand chooses to have their product promoted by a micro-influencer, this will no doubt lead to a good and positive result.

How to pick the right micro-influencer?

Picking the right micro-influencer may be tricky at first, but once you find that right person, everything will flow smoothly for you and your brand.

Once you go online, you will find a lot of social media users promoting products — sometimes sponsored or for free. It is now the brand’s job to conduct some research and find that perfect micro-influencer for their brand.

Niche-focused micro-influencer

Sure, there are lots of micro-influencers in the specific niche that your brand is related to. That is why doing further research on them is very crucial. You may search for relevant hashtags to check if there are micro-influencers that are posting about the niche that your product is related to.

Make a shortlist out of these micro-influencers, then do further research from there.

Here are some questions/factors to consider:

Are his/her posts relevant and in line with your product or brand?

Through checking out the micro-influencer’s posts, or your reference. Look out for posts that are relevant to your brand and how good their engagement on those posts is. This is to assure the specialized niche of that person.

Usage of hashtags

Every social media influencer and micro-influencer should know this rule by heart: the usage of proper and relevant hashtags.

To have gathered several followers on a certain niche, the micro-influencer should have been using helping tags in each of their posts, especially if they are posting for a certain product or brand.

The usage of hashtags is a big help in further promoting the brand and product, which gives one post the ability to reach a wider audience that is on the lookout for that certain hashtag or anything related to that topic.

Legitimate or bot followers

You also have to keep in mind that some accounts with many followers have been using bots or fake accounts for them to gain followers in an instant. Micro-influencers who have bots or fake accounts as their followers should be avoided at all costs.

Having that kind of following is equivalent to receiving almost none or fake engagements and insights for their postings.

Engagement rate and its effectivity

Another important factor in choosing the right micro-influencer for you is by checking their engagement value and how effective they are. Positive comments and responses are a plus.

Legitimate accounts with legitimate positive responses are proof that your chosen micro-influencer has a huge impact on his followings. It will help if the micro-influencer engages or responds with some of her followers to keep the conversation going.

As a micro-influencer, that person is also expected to make all of their brand-related posts friendly and relatable for his followers to appreciate.

Post insights and reach

As an outsider checking the reach of a micro-influencer, you will be basing your reviews on what you see on their feed like the number of post likes and comments. This is still effective because what you see is the actual engagement rate of their post.

The brand can then contact the micro-influencer if they are satisfied, considering their post insights and reach, in addition to the other factors above.

But to thoroughly check a certain post insight, the brand will have to reach out to their chosen micro-influencer and possibly ask them for an in-depth analytics report of their promotional posts. The analytic report would have to include insights and reach of every post.

A more precise report can be asked containing the following information: age range of followers, days and time with the most activity, the nationality of the profile visitors, and even the gender of the profile visitors.

Once you get all the factors checked, and once you have chosen the right micro-influencer, it is now time to seal the deal, so they say. Make an agreement with your chosen micro-influencer then work together for a more successful brand.

Conclusion

Both your brand awareness and brand reach will surely boom with a micro-influencer on board. Having the perfect micro-influencer for your brand may be tricky to find at first but a hundred percent worth it once you find them. Having the right micro-influencer will give good results for your brand and/or product in the long run.