4 Problems That Exist With Influencer Marketing
(Plus 2 bonus tips)
Nothing is perfect. Even though influencer marketing has gotten some serious traction over the last couple years, there are some things that aren’t as good with it.
However, the pros of influencer marketing outweigh the cons and on top of that, if you are aware of the problems that exist within the influencer marketing space, you can be better prepared and avoid problems like the 6 in this article.
To help you generate the best influencer marketing results you can, and avoid committing mistakes or being affected by the problems that exist with influencer marketing, I have written this article for you.
Problems with Influencer Marketing
1. Businesses may not correctly identify a match between their marketing goals and the support of a given influencer
The approach and activities need to be researched and planned carefully to yield the best possible results. Randomly selecting and working with someone because they have a high-profile is in no way a guarantee of success. Some questions to ask include: Does this person fit with our mission and values? Can they work with our positioning? What kind of appeal will they have with our clients?
This particular problem comes down to the fact that a lot of marketers are struggling to find influencers, or to be more precise, find the most suitable ones. It’s important that the influencer you decide to work with ticks a lot of important boxes, for example, is in the same niche as your brand, has a high engagement and an audience that is interested in what you as a brand has to offer.
Thankfully, there’s a solution to this problem with the name VeloceNetwork. VeloceNetwork is a directory that has gathered thousands of industry-leading influencers in one place. Filter the influencers based on your preferred criteria and then choose the ones that you find the most appealing. In this way, you can be sure to get influencers that speak the same language as your brand and has an audience that is targeted towards your niche.
2. Brands who contact influencers aren’t approaching them in the right way
The way you approach influencers is very important. Most influencers set out clear channels for contact and communication, and these should be followed. Make sure you are:
- Giving value to the influencer without asking for anything in return
- Standing out
- Making a name for yourself before you approach an influencer
- Engaging with them on platforms they’re active
The article 5 Powerful Ways to Build Your Influencer Relationships will go more in-depth on how you should approach influencers .
3. Measuring the ROI
The ROI on influencer marketing can be difficult to measure precisely. Most brands know that when an influencer re-issues a brand message, it can generate more traction than if it originated from the brand.
But the precise measurement of the ROI can be challenging. Because measuring the ROI of your marketing campaigns are very important for improvement and tweaks of your campaigns, it’s essential that you can measure your ROI.
Although measuring ROI of influencer marketing campaigns is more difficult than different other marketing sources, it certainly isn’t impossible.
Some quick ways to measure the ROI of your Influencer marketing campaigns:
Take a look at likes, comments and other interactions of a post
Ask the influencer to send screenshots of the statistics the post generated
Use individual links to your website that the influencer can use in their bio
Give the influencer a personal discount code, for example “Influencersname20” that gives the influencers’ followers 20% off in your store.
How To Measure ROI of Influencer Marketing – a more in-depth article.
4. Determining the cost
A smaller issue with influencer marketing is determining the cost of a post/campaign. Not all influencers have fixed costs. Some influencers have different prices depending on who’s asking.
For example, if the influencer genuinely likes the products the brand has to offer, they might get a better price than if a brand that isn’t as appealing for the influencer might get a higher price.
On top of that, at times the price might need to be negotiated and some businesses aren’t comfortable with that approach.
Bonus tips:
5. Determining the amount of time an influencer spends on a campaign
This can be challenging and again this aspect takes some negotiation. Because influencer marketing campaigns vary in the way they look, it’s difficult to say an exact time frame. In some cases, the only thing the influencer does is to post an image the brand sends the influencer and in other cases, the influencer does everything. Writes blog articles, photograph the product, write captions etc.
6. If the campaign doesn’t work or the relationship sours
This is rare but not impossible. There are many possible scenarios here. The influencer can take your money and never post anything, they can take your money and then block you, stop answering your messages etc. If this happens, the fall-out can be messy.
This is why it’s important that you only work with trusted influencers. A way for you to tell if they’re trusted is to see if they have done any previous partnerships with brands.
