Understanding Influencer Marketing with Ashley Walsh
Yash Bansal
Digital Marketing | Marketing Strategist | Social Media Marketing | Content Marketing | B2B |
Throughout my time at George Brown College, I have learned a lot and connected with people who are making a real difference in the digital marketing field. I have not only gained theoretical knowledge but also practical knowledge of the sector. Ashley Walsh, a fantastic speaker, spoke to our group last week and went into great detail on the idea of #influencermarketing
Let me give a brief introduction to Ashley Walsh before we get deeper into the idea of influencer marketing.
Ashley Walsh
Ashley Walsh has more than a decade of experience in social and digital media. She gained experience in the field of social media by interning at well-known photography studios and many magazines. At the Toronto social media agency Matchstick, she specialized in creating influencer marketing campaigns for a range of brands.
Before accepting the position of Social Media Manager at WedLuxe, Canada's Luxury Wedding Magazine, Ashley spent five years working at Matchstick.
She has been a social media and influencer lead for North Strategic since 2018, working with clients like GoDaddy, PlayStation, and Google.
Ashley explained the concept, how the North Strategic team fits into the content and distribution plan, and how influencer marketing may affect business results through digital brand relationships. Influencers are developed as a component of the wholesome campaign model, which focuses on data insights, distribution strategy, and commercial results while collaborating with the influencer and developing more customized campaigns.
Influencer 101
As we learned in Ashley's presentation the perception of a brand is no longer solely defined by what the company presents to consumers; it is now shaped by what consumers themselves say to one another. With the rise of the digital age, these discussions are taking place on the internet. Collaborating with #influencers helps personalize the brand and access trusted voices with dedicated followers.
Why Influencers?
Influencers act as modern-day marketers. We trust individuals on the internet whom we don't personally know because we feel a sense of familiarity with them. Influencers build a sense of community around their image, which could be centered around luxury living, pregnancy, or gaming. As consumers of their content, we become a part of their brand by following or subscribing to them, deepening our relationship with them due to their personal connection. This feels normal because we value their thoughts and opinions.
On the other hand from a business perspective according to the data provided by Ashley, we can observe:
Influencers vs Advocates vs Creators
Ashley explained the distinction between advocates and influencers. Influencers display sponsored content on their accounts, are employed under a legal contract, and receive financial support from the media. Comparatively, advocates are regular consumers who might voluntarily publish a review or a favorable experience about a brand, however, this is not always the case. On the other hand content creators are who create their own content in accordance with their individual aesthetics or style.
Considerations while selecting influencers for a Brand
Consider a range of factors when choosing an influencer, such as business goals, brand alignment, real metrics of influence (engagement rates, conversion monitoring, etc.), reach, budget, and creative prowess.
But to put it succinctly, there are four factors to take into account when picking an influencer for a brand. They are as follows:
The most popular category for influencers in Canada is micro-level influencers with respectable social media followings, reliable audiences, and high levels of engagement.
2. Identifying the "Right" Influencer
This can be done using the three main steps:
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3. Validating the Audience: Safeguarding the brand from fraud, fake followers, and fake engagement.
4. Establishing KPIs: To determine the strategy's direction and supporting methods, coordinate creator initiatives with quantifiable business objectives. Establish standards by monitoring and evaluating campaigns.
Career In Influencer Marketing
After listening to Ashley, I was very impressed and motivated to pursue a career as an influence marketer because I realized that influence marketing is the future of #marketing and is much more ethical than traditional marketing because influencers have earned people's trust through their level of involvement in their communities. As they have a stronger link and sense of obligation to their viewers than traditional celebrities, these influencers are far more responsible in their ads. The fact that this vocation is much more about people and society than it is about raw statistics, which also draws me to it, is something I admire.
2023 Influencer Marketing Trends
As discussed in the workshop with Ashley the latest trends in Influencer marketing are as follows:
Learnings from the Case Study
We conducted a case study on a Toronto-based beauty company during the session that launched a line of clean and sustainable skincare products aimed at millennials and Generation Z.
Through this activity, I discovered that the main goal of influencer marketing is to make consumers satisfied so they will spread their ideas and experiences to others. It's crucial to pick the appropriate channels to reach the target audience because each platform is different and has a different type of audience, so choosing the right influencer for the right platform is ideal in influencer marketing.
For a brand to succeed, it is crucial that the trust that an influencer builds with his or her audience not be betrayed, as this results in positive and negative audience responses and harms the influencer at the same time the brand.?
Conclusion and What I learned from Ashley Walsh
In conclusion, I would say that it was a privilege for me to participate in Ashley Walsh's workshop, and I would also like to thank Wendy Greenwood for giving us this educational opportunity.
What I learned through this workshop was that influencer marketing defies the conventions of traditional marketing, and it is a trend that will only grow. Influencer marketing focuses on creating genuine connections with clients while promoting your brand online. Based on their good reactions and experiences, people are influenced by the people they trust.
Against the backdrop of data, analytics, and KPIs, there is also another important aspect of marketing that marketing analysts like me overlook: emotions and personal experiences.?People develop a bond with influencers based on shared feelings and experiences, and influencer marketing is a way to quantify and monetize that relationship. This conversation has piqued my interest in learning more about the influencer marketing job path.