One of the most important aspects to influencer marketing is, obviously, choosing the right influencer. Simply having a large following is not enough to justify contacting an influencer, they have to ‘fit’ with your brand. So just how do you find an influencer that ‘fits’? Well, lucky for you, we have several options to help you with choosing the right influencers for you.

Choosing the Right Influencers: What to do

Know Yourself

First and foremost, know what your brand represents and who your audience is. It will always be impossible to find the best influencers if you have no idea who you even want to engage with. Understanding your target market and who you are trying to appeal to will make it easier to find the best influencer. Even top-tier influencer marketing platforms like NeoReach can’t help if you don’t know who you are looking for.

Know yourself and your audience first, then seek your influencers.

Know the Influencer’s Message and Tone

You have to know what an influencer is saying before you even talk to them. Every influencer has a specific style and way of conveying information that distinguishes them from the average user. These messages are unique to their personal brand and are tailored to fit their audience. If that audience is not yours you cannot expect them to change no matter how much money you throw at them. Get to know the influencer and what they’re saying and ask yourself if this is something you want your brand associated with.

If it is not, then you are best served by moving to greener pastures.

Choosing the Right Influencers: Authenticity

Partially contradicting the last point: there are influencers that you can buy off. The issue is, these are not influencers you want to work with. Influencers that endorse brands for the money alone are easily spotted and called out, and ones that do so frequently will find themselves losing their audience. Trying to change an influencer ruins the value of that influencer and is simply counter-productive to your marketing efforts.

Seek only the most authentic influencers, and never work with an influencer you can easily manipulate. If you can manipulate them, so can others.

Know the Values

Your influencers are human beings, they have things they care about and are passionate about beyond their channel. Learning what your influencers value and care about can help you predict what they might say and discuss in the future. If those values are contrary to those of your brand then it is best to search for alternatives. In cases where you do find alignment, then the influencer can not only help promote your brand but also help demonstrate where you stand to customers who factor brand values into determining who they do business with.

Have an Emergency Plan in Place

Even a sure thing can turn into a disaster. This is tied to that authenticity matter discussed earlier. Authentic influencers are fantastic and critical to the success of your brand, but it also means they’re more likely to say something or get caught doing something you do not want your brand associated with. So, make sure you have an emergency plan in place. If a valued influencer says something damaging, know how you are going to respond well in advance. Having these plans can also help you resist the knee-jerk reaction to dump an otherwise valuable influencer where that might be overkill.

Knowledge is Power

When it comes to influencer marketing, knowing is half the battle. Research and soul searching are essential to making the most valuable connections. If you do not know yourself, you cannot know if an influencer fits, and if you don’t research to find out if an influencer fits, they won’t yield a positive return on your investment. Know as much as you can, THEN commit.