How your business can leverage Influencer Marketing in your Email channel
As a D2C business, you may have already ventured into the world of influencer marketing in order to get your products in front of new customers. If you're still on the fence about whether it's the right strategy for your brand, take a look at our previous post on the rise & importance of influencer marketing for D2C businesses - we're not the only ones who think it's a strong marketing opportunity that can produce fantastic results!
There are multiple advantages to influencer marketing that are worth considering when working this method into your overall strategy:
Low cost: The cost of influencer marketing could be as little as the cost of one item plus shipping! This makes it an incredibly cost effective marketing tool. Even if you strike a deal with an influencer and agree to pay them a sum of money, many businesses believe that RIO for influencer marketing is higher than other acquisition methods.
High reach: Working with an influencer who carries the same values and beliefs as your business gives you immediate access to your perfect target audience without the need for complex algorithms. Even if their following isn't massive, the quality should make up for the lack of quantity.
Positive perception: When you team up with an influencer, it creates a bond between your brand and their followers. The trust that their follows feel will extend to your brand and its products. Even if the customer doesn't convert right away, you've formed a positive connection with that individual that can endure over time.
But here at KDV, we're not an influencer agency. We believe in the power of email marketing, and how it can work in synergy with your other marketing channels. Why restrict your influencer content to social media, when it's perfect for working into your email strategy?
Here are our top three ways that influencer content can benefit your marketing comms (and vice versa!)
Convert your email list into a social following - If your customers love your brand enough to subscribe to your mailing list, there's a good chance they will also want to follow you on social media. This 360 approach to marketing creates a fuller online experience for customers and presents them with multiple avenues to your website, making it easier to shop! The great thing about partnering with an influencer is that it benefits both parties - the influencer also has the opportunity to convert your email subscribers into their social followers. It's a win-win situation, where both teams are working towards the same goals. TOP TIP: Mention your email database size when pitching to potential influencers. Show them that you have an engaged audience that they can leverage on top of your social audience - this will definitely go down well if you are looking for someone to partner or collaborate with.
Convert social followers into email subscribers! Likewise, you can use influencer marketing to draw social followers to your mailing list. This may happen organically by curious followers who wish to know more about your brand, but a carefully planned collaboration is a great place to generate signups through an exclusive discount, competition or giveaway. By offering an exclusive discount, new signups feel like they are getting the VIP treatment as soon as they hit the subscribe button - a great way to start a new customer relationship! Offering a prize draw in collaboration with your influencer is an excellent way to drum up excitement and the prospect that the winner may get something big in return for their consent! You can always offer a discount to new signups who didn't win the big prize, to try to retain their attention after the competition closes. TOP TIP: Try to encourage entrants to share competitions or tag a friend, this will help generate awareness for your influencer and your brand beyond the original follower base.
Social proof - Once new content out in the virtual wild, this can be reused and repurposed well after its initial run. Be aware that the influencer may want restrictions or credit for any content they produce, so make sure you have their permission to use content in your email marketing going forward. It's worth maintaining a healthy relationship with them, as there may be more opportunities for collaborations in future. If you've gifted them a product, this is the perfect chance to include any reviews or imagery they produce. They may also have good things to say about how much they love the brand and your products in general - even better! It could simply be worth mentioning any high profile collaborations in your welcome emails - it will help add a layer of legitimacy to your brand that will strike a chord with new customers. TOP TIP: Customers love to see UGC in emails, they are up to twice as likely to interact with it more than branded content. Utilise UGC wherever possible across all channels, just make sure you have the consent or the content owner and give credit where credit is due.
Having anyone talk about your brand online is going to raise awareness one way or another - they say no news is bad news but we would have to disagree when it comes to talk on social media. The more good news, good reviews and brand positivity that gets visibility online the better - and nothing works better than real, honest opinions from real, honest people! Investing in influencer marketing means that the messages being conveyed are partly in your control, reducing any less flattering noise around your brand and raising your profile.
The more you join up your marketing channels and create a multichannel experience, the more likely your customers are going to feel a sense of positivity and trust.
Email marketing is all about creating a one-on-one relationship with your customer, whereas the point of social media is that it is social! It gets people talking, brings people together and lets people share the opinions and experiences.
By implementing a multi-layered approach where each channel echoes and compliments the other, you can create a full and unique customer experience that works to generate a cycle of growth, revenue and loyalty.
Want more expert tips? Get in touch!