What are the biggest challenges companies face when implementing influencer marketing campaigns?

Here are the ???????? challenges while implementing influencer campaigns by firms: ?? Dissonance in objective: Brands are unable to understand what they really want from an influencer/ creator. Clarity is NEEDED in terms of brand awareness/ conversions/ other types before shortlisting influencers. ?? Influencer Myopia: Brand POCs and Agencies need to address the elephant in the room - Which influencer(s) to shortlist and why. It is an area of concern as the right-fit can be acheived only when brand-content fit is met in terms of authenticity, reliability, and consistency. Not by vanity metrics. ?? Tracking Impact: What is being reported and how it is being reported needs to be taken care of. RoMI focused! Tx

I have run dozens of influencer campaigns in the B2B world and the ones that work nearly always have the same profile... -Influencer actually uses and understands the product/service. You can give them a comped license. -Influencer and your brand build a deal that is not purely pay-to-play transactional. Instead, you work across a longer time-frame and they serve more as an ambassador where they mention your product organically. -They have a community/following of the right fit folks

The process should be reverse engineered from a customer centric perspective. First step is to identify your Ideal User Profile(s), and narrow down the influencer candidates based on the IUP.

Finding the right influencer for a campaign can be hard also because many people still assess influencers based on the amount of followers, which is far from ideal. Brand values and influencers values alignments, as well as making sure the influencer is reaching the audience you're targeting is way more important. Also, besides finding a different influencer for every campaign, brands should start developing longer and closer relationships with influencers so that more campaigns can be considered.

From what I have seen researching brand and influencer marketing, I found most companies DO NOT establish a goal before launching a campaign. Then, they try to track clicks or sales, and the campaign was actually more suited for awareness. So, before launching that campaign, do align your goals with the influencer and choose ways to track as well as metrics and KPIs that are adequate to the chosen goal.

Yes, it's a big problem to measure impact/ROI in influencer marketing. Try to inculcate as much transparency as possible. What we suggest when we work with startups- 1. Give customized links to them to use in YT video descriptions or LinkedIn post comments. 2. Customized coupons can be used on Instagram. 3. Segregate the links and coupons differently for every influencer. This way it helps you track who did better and than you can make smart decisions for future campaigns.

As an influencer, I can attest that it's impossibly to effectively represent a company that does not respect me, my work, or my ethics. If companies approach influencers first and foremost as human beings, and only secondarily as a means for promoting their products, they will lay the groundwork for positive and mutually beneficial working relationships.

And you also need to understand influencers are not Banners. Don't try to place performance ads. And don't overbrief them. Upon hiring an influencer, it should be clear to you that your brand wants/needs their reputation and influence, something they built by being who they are. They are the best people to know how to speak with their audiences. Let them create and let them sound natural, or their audiences will see right through it, and the influence your brand was trying to borrow will be lost.

My agency a few years ago worked with a Global Fast Food Chain to boost low-performing stores. Our holistic campaign focused on five areas: earned media, influencer outreach, community events, fundraisers, and food drops. We engaged local influencers, like food bloggers and moms, to authentically promote the dining experience. Community involvement was also key; we hosted events and fundraisers with local schools and nonprofits, donating 50% of the proceeds. Social media tied it all together and helped us scale our campaigns by amplifying influencer content and using geo-targeted ads to reach nearby customers. This multi-pronged approach effectively increased brand awareness and foot traffic, revitalizing struggling locations.

Another significant challenges is navigating regulatory aspect due to various laws and regulations that govern marketing activities, primarily aimed at protecting consumers and ensuring fair competition like for example:adhering to advertising standards set by regulatory bodies to prevent false or misleading advertising, consumer protection laws thay prohibit deceptive marketing practices, such as false advertising, bait-and-switch tactics and unfair competition or complying with the numerous privacy laws. So how to tacke this. - Keep up-to-date with relevant regulations - Ensure that your marketing team understands the applicable laws and regs -Consider legal review of marketing materials, -Be transparent in your marketing efforts.