Key Influencer Strategies for Creating Long Term Success

Over the past five years, the world has seen the emergence of new audio and visual social media platforms, such as TikTok, Twitch, and Clubhouse along with the rapid growth of Instagram. However, nearly 60% of influencers do not understand the value of creating a strategic cross-platform presence — a key ingredient to long-term business success. 

Along with the development of these channels, we are seeing a new sub-niche of influencers flooding the market. Typically, social media has been dominated by platform-specific talent who have built audiences based on a single-channel marketing approach. The emergence of new social media avenues creates the opportunity for a diversified group of influencers to develop. This new talent will need the flexibility to engage with audiences across multiple arenas and their level of engagement will require strategically utilizing all available resources while taking advantage of unique growth opportunities. 

Establishing a cross-platform presence allows you to grow audiences. 

A thoughtful, cross-platform presence is a powerhouse for organic audience growth and maximizing reach. Developing these unique audience pockets should occur naturally if this approach is executed correctly. A prime example of this occurs when a brand partners with an influencer to develop an individualized piece of content with a cross-platform post request. This content is served to both large and small audience pockets which allows for engagement with those intimate groups. 

The ability to “double-dip” and enhance engagement rates creates larger opportunities for monetization and relationship growth; both invaluable tools to building a strong future.

Platforms often work together symbiotically. 

Each platform has its own purpose that influences the way content is created, curated, and consumed, but they often work symbiotically with one another. There’s a company called Famepick who created a technology called Linkfolio. LinkFolio allows influencers to build a beautiful, on-brand portfolio for their social media bio in a few easy steps. This drives traffic, tracks audience growth, sells digital goods, and creates new opportunities for branded partnerships. Those implementing tools such as  Linkfolio are seeing a surge in growth rates, as well as facilitating organic discovery of cross-medium sources while providing immediate access to consumable content. 

Each piece of content is not a singular vehicle; think in multiples. 

Creating content is time-consuming. Imagine being an influencer with over one million Youtube followers, great organic performance, and in high demand for brand partnerships. Unfortunately, Influencers are only able to participate in so many branded partnerships at one time while maintaining their sense of authenticity and balance. Influencers have to create continuous organic content, posing the question, how do you combat oversaturation while focusing on expansion and growth?

Creators need to position each piece of content as not one vehicle, but as multiple — one for each platform. Then release it on strategic timelines similar to a promotion for a movie launch. You may decide to cut long-form YouTube video content into smaller previews for channels such as Twitter and IGTV. The question here is how can non-dominant channels be used as high-quality, traffic-driving teasers instead of empty, barren land?

Long-term success relies on creating content that can be repurposed. 

With so many a la carte options for live streaming, how do you define which is the best place to go live? Some influencer strategies consist of using multiple devices while simulcasting across streaming channels. Capturing a user's attention can be achieved in many ways. Consumers focus their attention on whatever is most enjoyable in the moment, often ignoring additional content or channels around them. Content must be curated for a diverse social landscape and based on consumption patterns. 

For example, some creators might choose to utilize TikTok as a preview channel and push audiences towards YouTube where content can be consumed in larger quantities and longer periods of time. The goal? Accumulating subscribers and converting viewers into well-rounded consumers with a higher social currency value.

Aligning with your audience’s consumption patterns will provide greater results.

Working with brand partners on the correct platform can be challenging. Identifying the audience’s consumption patterns should be the golden rule as you begin to build your social media empire. From a brand perspective, a product might not perform well on Instagram but it might drive impressive sales on Facebook. Similarly, a long-form YouTube video might resonate better than a 30-second video clip on Tiktok. Length of content is not the only consumption pattern of concern. Understand your audience and their preferences and apply these learnings as you structure your partnerships for the future.

The takeaway.

Establishing a cross-platform approach allows for a greater understanding of your audience. This, in turn, allows for creators to define value and determine where time is best spent with the highest return on investment. Remaining authentic while chasing your mission can often be challenging, but staying up to date on all platforms, tools, and features while utilizing the resources at your fingertips is pivotal to long-term success. 

If you want to push your cross-platform strategy and growth to the next level, pulling in professionals like Albert Management Group is a trusted way to maximize your potential.

Dan Albert has more than 10 years of experience in the performance-based marketing agency space. Find his previous articles here and get in touch at [email protected].