For the last 10 years, influencer marketing has only become more and more valuable for brands to use. Closer to its’ inception, this strategy was inaccessible for small businesses, as this strategy was reserved for celebrities or bloggers with massive followers, and therefore, brands with large budgets.
The way that people consume media online is changing, and so are digital marketing trends.
Social media consumption and marketing trends were more focused on numbers, specifically followers and likes during the inception of influencer marketing. These were the numbers that you could publicly see, and what separated influencers from everyday accounts. Nowadays, the focus is on the quality of content, and audience interaction, v.s. quantity of followers and likes.
In a LinkedIn blog, Bret Brown, Senior Marketing Coordinator at Hunstman Building Solutions, said, “Everyone from the largest corporation to the smallest influencer uses online content to transform the way they do business. If you’re a digital marketer or owner of a small business, you know that making content for your online marketing is important,” emphasizing the importance of small businesses making quality content today.
The shift in focus to quality in content is partly led by consumers wanting more and more authenticity from brands. Plainly, consumers trust other consumers more than the voices of brands online. Sprout social claims, “Influencer marketing works because of the high amount of trust that social influencers have built up with their following, and recommendations from them serve as a form of social proof to your brand’s potential customers.”
Using a digital content creator is one way to get your product or service in front of trusting potential customers, potentially without posting your own content, and with way more “street cred” behind it.
What is a digital creator?
The job of a digital creator also called a content creator, is to create high-quality, niched-down, valuable content for a hyper-engaged audience. The focus of their content is the topic that they “teach” about first, and themselves as a person second. Their audience sees them as an expert in their niche, and come to them for that high education and production value content.
Hubspot says, “Engaging content can include formats like TV show reviews, tutorials, or day-in-the-life vlogs. Digital creators can influence their audience, but that isn’t the intent of their content. The intent is to educate, entertain, and engage people.”
Conversely, the focus of an influencer’s content is mainly on themselves, and their audiences watch their content to stay informed on their lives. There’s still a high amount of trust between them and their audience. Their audience looks to them for content around product recommendations, not education.
Why would you use a content creator in your digital marketing strategy? A good time could be when:
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You need a high-quality piece of content for your business’s digital presence
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You want to utilize a creator’s unique style to showcase your brand
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You want to tap into a creator’s niche audience
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You want to create a one-off project without hiring a contractor or freelancer on retainer
There are many ways for your small business to work with digital creators. The most common way is to pay them for an organic piece of content about your business shared directly with their audience, which is a great option, however, there are many more creative ways.
User-generated content (UGC) is a refreshing idea for both creators and brands. In a UGC partnership, the creator makes a piece of content surrounding the product or service, and that piece of content is owned by and delivered directly to the business. You can use this piece of content as content for your own social media, website, email, or a paid social media advertising campaign.
UGC is more effective because consumers are more likely to trust the word of other customers when making a buying decision, rather than hearing the benefits of the product or service from the brand itself. User-generated content can also look like a client testimonial, review, or an organic social media post from the customer about your product or service.
In this article, Instapage highlights the successful UGC efforts by GoPro. “Several years ago, GoPro helped kickstart the UGC movement by working their customers’ content into their marketing strategy. In 2013, it was estimated that 6,000 GoPro videos were uploaded to YouTube per day.”
Your business can also collaborate with a digital creator, and build something together. This could look like co-creating a new product together, or having them speak at your event or in your course. This gives the creator a chance to get paid to showcase their expertise, enriches your event or product, and gives you access to their audience.
At Studio 99 we can help you expand your business’s digital footprint, enrich the value you provide, and reach new audiences.
Sources:
https://sproutsocial.com/insights/influencer-marketing/
https://instapage.com/blog/what-is-user-generated-content
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/small-businesses-should-hire-digital-content-creators-bret-brown
https://sproutsocial.com/insights/digital-creators-vs-influencers/
https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/digital-creator
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