ARCHIVES: This is legacy content from before Marketing Dive acquired Mobile Marketer in early 2017. Some information, such as publication dates, may not have migrated over. Check out the new Marketing Dive site for the latest marketing news.

Social influencer campaigns 11x more impactful than digital advertising: TapInfluence

During a Luxury Daily webinar, executives from TapInfluence emphasized that social influencers have a dramatic effect compared to traditional ads, but marketers should be valuing transparency, authenticity and audience targeting.

During the webinar, "10 Key Influencer Marketing Predictions," the executive explained that celebrities, bloggers and other individuals on social media are having a direct impact on sales and campaign results for marketers by leveraging their bond with followers. However, brands need to pay attention to performance data, influencer data and audience data to see the right results.

Influencing decisions
With any campaign, it is highly important to see what works best using various performance metrics. When it comes to social influencer campaigns, marketers need to tie performance data to influencer and audience data.

For instance, brands need to be sure that their influencer of choice must align with their image and share something in common. This could mean something as small as the influencer living in the same location in which a product is sold or it could scale to a beauty blogger promoting a makeup product.

One of the most important things marketers should look for in a social influencer partner is his or her audience. A large audience does not necessarily mean better revenue opportunities for brands.

Smaller and more targeted audiences can be a much better driver for marketers, as long as they are aligned with the brand. For instance, the Kardashian family is known for each member?s substantial following on social media but often times sell products that would better be targeted to investment bankers and fall flat on the audience.

Similarly, luxury brands should not be focused on an audience who cannot afford their products even though the social influencer is known for a lavish lifestyle. However, luxury brands should focus on appealing to consumers who at the moment may not be able to afford their products, but might be in the near future such as millennials climbing up the career ladder.

Targeting consumers early on can be especially beneficial for luxury automotive brands that can pull in young consumers as fans who then might be able to purchase later in life.

Transparency is key
Marketers leveraging social media influencer campaigns should strive to be authentic. Promoted posts should always include a small mention that the image or text is sponsored, which could even be as simple as using the hashtag #ad.

Signifying that the post is promoted will likely not deter most consumers, but instead solidify a stronger trust with the brand and influencer.