Working with digital influencers

As internet personalities gain popularity on the media and the strategy of pursuing digital influencers for the most diverse campaigns is pointed out as one of the top marketing trends for this year, many questions remain about working with influencers and web celebrities that are coming out and of a diverse and yet poorly explored environment. While brands and influencers are still learning to live together, this post brings together precious tips from what you can not forget when working with digital influencers.

Search for channels, have options and get to know the niches

Within the immensity of digital influencers, there are very specific niches, look for the right influencers who talk to your audience and avoid the obvious: not always the greatest numbers can bring the best results and not always the biggest web celebrities are the ones who will actually talk with your audience. You need to dig deep and keep an open mind for smaller influencers who can bring greater engagement and visibility into the audience you want to reach.

Dive into the networks of the chosen influencers

Watch as many videos as you can, follow them on all social networks, keep an eye on the influencer's relationship with the community, how they respond, if their online posture matches what you expect from the face of your campaign. Before making the final decision, it's important to know the performance of the web celebrity in depth, seek to know previous works and research the relationship of the influencer with other brands. To avoid future problems, it's recommended that the survey also answers some basic questions:

• Does the web celebrity often attack brands/products/services online? Have they ever put their audience against any brand? How was this resolved?
• Does the influencers have a good relations with companies that previously hired them?
• What is their dialogue and behavior like in the face of criticism and negative feedbacks?

If the web celebrities performance is questionable, prepare for potential crises and define paths to follow if the partnership faces rejection. Remember that the online environment can be hostile to both parties.

Know the person behind the character/channel

It is valid to know the human behind the character and understand who you are hiring for your campaign. Often web celebrities create for their networks entirely fictional characters and to respect the tone and characteristics of these characters may be the key to setting the right course of the work you want to develop. Ask if the influencer knows and uses your products/services, what he/she thinks, if he or she has had problems in the past, get to know the relationship of the person with your brand before proceeding. Understand the differences in routine, find out if the web celebrity works alone or if they have a production team that helps with the published content, be ready for more than one meeting with everyone on the channel/page/blog - that contact can bring insights and viable solutions for both parties, besides contributing to a clear definition of term, production and results.

Be prepared to offer options and have flexibility

One of the best aspects of working with the internet is the multitude of formats and options, remember to explore the possibilities and different social networks to choose an influencers. Explore the best of each network and the best of each chosen influencer, be ready to act on different fronts respecting the receptivity of the content and tone of each network. Utilize the flexibility that the internet offers in your favor to get the best out of every web celebrity in your native environment.

Keep in mind that a digital influencer is not like a traditional celebrity

Celebrities that are "born" in traditional media have a very different background from the celebrities that pop up in the online environment. The internet is much more democratic environment, allows and embraces the work of people whose original training and work experience differ greatly from what is found in traditional medias. The owner of a major Youtube channel, for example, may have started his work in the off-hours of a job as a store salesman or during college after school etc. They online presence is shaped according to their "real" routine and the time that the influencer has available to your brand may not be the same as a traditional celebrity. Do not forget that often a great digital influencer who has competence and success online will not have prior knowledge of the work for traditional media, be ready to point the way and share knowledge.

Try to keep the digital influencer within their native environment

We can see the recent migration of webs celebrity to traditional media campaigns, participation in TV shows, and entirely focused traditional media campaigns in which that celebrity is still largely unknown. Remember that the success of a campaign is also in the suitability of the celebrity to the public and the environment in which it is. Keeping work with digital influencers within  their native environment ensures the naturalness of the speech and the recognition of the audience. Keep in mind that within their networks, each influencer is the king of themselves, they are the directors, writers and owners of their own content - let the web celebrity maintain that freedom at work and try to create specific campaigns for specific audiences.

Manage Outcome Expectations

Keep in mind that direct conversion or immediate sales results may not always be observed directly after a campaign with an influencer. Blaming the chosen web celebrity is not the way to go, have a previous study and manage expectations of results in the short, medium and long term. Avoid working in a hurry to get results or deluded by the size of a web celebrity's audience, evaluate the audience of the chosen influencer and their purchasing power among other crucial factors to the success of your campaign.

Finally, when working with digital influencers, always be prepared to learn and exchange experiences that can permanently and positively influence the performance of your brand in the online environment. Web celebrities can be great advocates and partners, powerful allies whose contribution can be felt long after a campaign is over.

Take care of your "influencers" with affection and get ready for very successful partnerships.