Most people who work in marketing or are active on social media have likely heard about industry influencers. While most people know about influencers, it can be a little confusing as to who they are, and how they work within the business world. In its most basic terms, an influencer refers to a person or public figure that carries authority and knowledge within her respective industry. The authority that they hold can influence their followers’ purchasing decisions, which has led to more businesses partnering with popular influencers in their industry.
To give an example, more fitness influencers have become popular on social media properties like Instagram, where they can share fitness videos, tips, products, and more with their followers. When an influencer promotes a product or service, they are helping expand a company’s marketing efforts to new audiences. In order to properly utilize influencer marketing, it is important to be able to identify potential influencers to work with. For those who are not able to work with a marketing firm can try a few strategies to create a successful influencer marketing plan.
Buzzsumo
Useful tools like Buzzsumo makes it easier to find the right influencers in your specific industry. Buzzsumo helps find influencers using their advanced data to help complete your research. The platform allows you to search by location, topics, and industry, and can provide detailed information about potential influencers. Businesses who are looking to expand their marketing efforts on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram may find Buzzsumo to be helpful in their research. The platform also offers other useful tools to aid in your overall social media marketing efforts.
Hootsuite
An online marketing tool that is commonly used is called Hootsuite. While it has been primarily used for scheduling social media posts across different properties, they have expanded their services to offer conversation monitoring. The conversation monitoring can be set to help marketers identify potential industry influencers based on the specific demographics. The variety of services makes Hootsuite another great option for influencer marketing research.
Followerwonk
Because of its extensive popularity around the world, it is likely not surprising that influencer marketing tools have been created specifically for Twitter. One of the free tools is called Followerwonk, and it works by conducting Twitter searches of biographies and keywords to find influencers related to the respective industry. Those interested in focusing on Twitter would find Followerwonk to be a great option.