Influencer Marketing Strategies for Digital PR

Discover how influencer marketing strategies can help you connect with your target audience, build brand awareness and drive sales.

In the ever-changing world of digital marketing, one strategy’s been making waves – influencer marketing. Tapping into the influence of social media stars can be a game-changer for businesses looking to boost their digital PR efforts. We’ll look at how an influencer marketing strategy can help you connect with your target audience, enhance your SEO, increase engagement, and drive sales – with minimum effort.

What is influencer marketing?

Influencer marketing is a powerful digital marketing strategy that partners with people with an engaged following on social media like Instagram, YouTube or TikTok. These influencers help businesses and brands promote their products or services to a wider, more targeted audience.

The influencer market is booming at around $20 billion globally, and a massive 72% of millennials and Gen Z are loyal followers. But only 25% of marketing people are exploring how influencer marketing can be used to support digital PR campaigns.

Like businesses, influencers come in various shapes and sizes:
 

Influencer Type	Follower Count	Description
Nano-influencers	1,000–10,000	Although they may have a smaller reach, nano-influencers often have higher engagement rates, making them ideal for niche products or local campaigns. They’re also typically the cheapest, or don’t require fees. Some nano-influencers will accept product only for their services.
Micro-influencers	10,000–100,000	Striking a balance between reach and engagement, micro-influencers are popular with businesses looking for authenticity – where the influencer genuinely uses or believes in the product or brand. They’re usually more niche-focused too.
Mid-tier influencers	100,000–500,000	Mid-tier influencers may have spent years building their following, so are usually very experienced in creating content, with a great connection to their audience.
Macro-influencers	500,000-1 million	Macro-influencers tend to be high-profile people, boasting a substantial following. However, they can be expensive, and it’s been seen that engagement rates may drop as the following grows.
Mega-influencers	1 million+	These digital celebrities possess massive followings that can give your business a global presence, but you’ll pay a lot for the privilege.

The key to success is the influencers' ability to genuinely connect with their followers and literally influence their buying decisions. All you need to do is properly research and choose someone who matches your budget and brand, and whose audience meets your target demographic.

What brands should consider influencer marketing?

Before you dive into an influencer marketing strategy, here are a few things to think about: 

Product or service relevance
Are your products or services ideal for showcasing visually? Organisations dealing in fashion, beauty, fitness, and food lend themselves perfectly to an influencer marketing strategy.

Target audience
Is your target audience active on social media platforms, especially the ones influencers prefer, like Instagram, YouTube, or TikTok? If so, influencer marketing could put you front and centre.

Storytelling opportunities
Can you tell a compelling story? Brands with a great narrative and who can collaborate with influencers on creative content can thrive.

Budget
How much are you willing to spend? Always think about your budget. Influencer marketing can range from affordable nano-influencers to high-priced mega-influencers. Nano-influencers will often accept products for their services, rather than a fixed fee.

Brand reputation
Not all influencers are created equal. Make sure you choose people whose brand values and image match yours. Remember, their reputation can impact yours, so do your research: who have they worked with before, and what was the overall response?

How to include influencer marketing in digital PR activity

So how can you seamlessly integrate influencer marketing into your digital PR activities?

Know your audience
Amazingly, HubSpot’s 2022 marketing survey found 42% of marketers don’t know their target audience’s interests, shopping habits, the products they want to buy, their purchase history, or where they find content.

Understanding their behaviours, lifestyles, values, and interests is crucial. Once you've pinpointed your specific audience, you can tailor your marketing strategy and content effectively.

Identify the right influencers
Check out your targeted social media channels to find out who’s talking about your business or areas of expertise. Hashtags that reflect your brand like #beauty can help you drill down, or invest in a social media listening tool that scans for specific keywords, brands, or topics. 

Set clear goals
Whether it's increasing brand awareness, driving website traffic or boosting sales, make sure you know what you’re trying to achieve.

Create authentic, SEO-optimised content
Authenticity builds trust, so work with the influencer to create content that resonates with their audience, promotes your brand, and boosts your search engine rankings. But don’t dictate. Followers know their favourite influencers inside out and will quickly detect any whiff of outside influence or insincerity. Also, influencers involved in a digital PR campaign can earn backlinks, in turn boosting traffic to your website.

Engage your audience
Encourage the influencer to interact with followers’ comments and questions about your brand to build engagement.

Measure and analyse
Use analytics tools to track how well your influencer marketing campaign is working. Metrics like reach, engagement, and conversion rates all provide valuable insights.

Benefits of influencer marketing

If done properly, social media influencer marketing can benefit your business in loads of ways, including:

Increased brand awareness
Reach a wider and more targeted audience – building brand awareness and making you stand out in a crowded market.

More credibility
Influencers are seen as trustworthy sources by their dedicated fanbase, giving your business more credibility.

Improved SEO
Creating SEO-optimised content with influencers can boost your website's search engine rankings, increasing organic traffic.

Cost-effective
Nano and micro-influencers especially offer cost-effective marketing for smaller businesses with limited budgets.

Diverse content
Working with influencers adds diversity to your digital PR, widening your output, and hitting multiple touchpoints.

An influencer marketing strategy can be a great addition to your digital PR strategy. Once you understand it, find your brand's perfect fit, and blend it into your PR efforts, you'll unlock its incredible potential.

Want more advice on how influencer marketing could help your business? Speak to one of our V-Hub Digital Advisers and find out more.