The world of social media is an ever-changing landscape. You can’t just create a profile and expect to increase your following organically. That’s why many businesses are choosing influencers for help in building their audience on social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter.
In the last few years, it’s become more common for brands to companion with influencers, particularly on Instagram. Influencers may help you to achieve a wider audience than if you were only marketing your business on your own. For instance, your company may find an Instagram influencer who is already popular with an audience that’s related to yours, like a business that sells makeup would find another influencer promoting beauty products. This kind of partnership will broaden their brand.
This article will train you how to find the great Instagram influencers for your business needs: whether it be a one-time campaign or someone who can represent your brand on a regular basis.
How to find great Instagram influencers
Get clear on your brand values.
What are your brand values? They’re the things your brand cares about the most.
These may include environmental sustainability, accessibility, equality, and other causes—or more simple things like high-quality dog beds or healthy recipes. Understanding what your brand cares about is essential because if, for example, environmentalism is essential to you, you’ll want to companion with an influencer who also cares about environmentalism. Your Instagram influencer is going to be representing your brand online, so it’s essential that you share values to keep away from confusion.
Identify the kind of campaign.
Do you want someone for a one-time event or just to post once in a while about their experience using your product? Or would you want someone who is going to advertise, engage, and generate leads for your business on Instagram regularly? Think about what you need, and choose an influencer who seems to have experience reaching the goals you would like to reach with your own campaign.
Do your research.
It is important to do research on potential influencers before choosing the one to work with. Research potentials by checking out their followers, following them, and asking yourself how they may be able to promote your brand in unique methods that will grow both of your audiences. See if they have experience working with different businesses like yours in the past or ask them questions about why they want to work with you. Ideally, they will want to collaborate with you for more than just the money alone.
Post a job listing.
If you’re searching for great Instagram influencers to work with regularly, publish the job listing on your website or your social media. Make sure to provide detailed information about what you want and what they will get in return. This can help them decide if it is something that they need to pursue or not. Use your specific industry knowledge and make an educated decision when selecting someone who can represent your brand best, as this can pay off in the long run by building trust among customers and potential clients.
Find out what their targets are.
You want to be sure that the influencer’s targets align with your business goals, so it is a good place to begin when looking for someone who can represent you well. If they are not working on something related or if they do not have any interest in your industry, then there will be no point in continuing the discussion and hiring them as an influencer.
Check their audience size.
An Instagram influencer with a large audience (100,000+ followers) could be great to improve brand awareness campaigns but might struggle with engagement or conversion-focused campaigns. A smaller influencer (think 10,000-50,000 followers), who focuses on a niche audience related to your business could be a better match for those kinds of campaigns.
Follow hashtags related to your industry.
On Instagram, you’ll be able to follow more than just other accounts—you can follow hashtags too. Whenever you follow a hashtag, you’ll see all of the trending posts that also use that hashtag. And you’ll most likely come across posts by influencers that also use that hashtag.
For instance, if you sell ethical fashion, you might need to follow the hashtag #sustainablestyle to see Instagram posts from sustainable fashion influencers. If someone appears in your feed a lot, and you like what you see, you need to think about partnering with them.
Search in Google.
Maybe this seems obvious, but it’s worth mentioning in case you haven’t considered it yet. Search for the top Instagram influencers in your niche in Google. For instance, you can search for “top fashion bloggers” or “the best fashion Instagram influencers.”
Ensure to take a look at more than just the most popular accounts, who probably have tons of partnerships lined up already. But also pay attention to the average audience size, post types, and engagement that influencers seem to have in your industry so you can set expectations for your own campaign.
Read through their bio.
Another step in finding an Instagram influencer is looking at their bio. Be sure that they’re a great match for your business. This might sound repetitive by now, but ensure they have followers that align with your target market and brand values. An Instagram influencer’s bio will be an enormous clue towards both these things. They have 150 characters to let you know everything that they’re about.
Here are all crucial elements of an Instagram bio.
Pay attention to what other brands they’re affiliated with.
Does the Instagram influencer in question partner with any other brands in your niche? Then they could be a great match. They have experience doing brand partnerships and communicate with your audience. However they may not be an excellent fit if they regularly partner with a direct competitor. Or if their past partnerships haven’t worked well. Or if they’re related to a brand that is going through a PR crisis.
Reach out.
When you’ve completed the above steps, all you have to do is reach out! An effective way to start is by sending your chosen influencer a direct message on Instagram explaining:
- What your business or brand is
- Your campaign idea
- Why do you like their account and/or why you believe they are the best fit
Then politely ask this influencer about their expected rates, their upcoming schedule, and if they would be interested in working with you. Include any contact info to keep in touch.
In conclusion, finding great Instagram influencers is no easy feat. It requires lots of research and time spent scrolling through social media. However, with these tips, you’ll find the suitable influencer for your brand’s needs in no time at all and start gaining new followers who already trust you.