Market analysis
One possibility here is the search in the customer journey, which involves researching one’s own products on Google, YouTube or other platforms. The aim here is to find solutions to problems that others have encountered. In this way, it is possible to find out what is important to customers, among other things. At this point, a commissioned influencer could step in and answer questions from his or her followers. In this way, it is possible to find out what is happening in one’s own topic area.
Another way to find out how your own market is doing is by subscribing to hashtags. This makes it possible to quickly find out who is commenting on which topics. However, subscribing to hashtags is platform-independent and it is possible to find out in parallel what the competition is doing.
During a media analysis, other media can also be used to identify opinion leaders on a specific topic. Whether in the trade magazine, in podcasts or on TV, there are no limits to the variety. With such an analysis, it is possible to locate influencers for specific niche topics. RSS Feed or Google Alert can also help by informing you when someone publishes something on your own topic.
Influencer research also includes sifting through accounts. Influencer accounts that have already been identified should first be viewed and sorted before further tools are used for detailed checks.
The next step is the filter questions. What does the profile look like? In which language are the texts written? Can brand cooperations be seen? Is advertising sufficiently marked? How many followers does the account have? Can private content also be seen? Who are the followers? Which posts are liked and how do the followers comment? It is also important that the influencer fits in with the campaign and that the frequency of advertising for paid partnerships or the positioning in relation to the competition is examined.
Tools and databases – recommended by our Influencer Marketing Agency
The next step is to install a database to store one’s own research results. This also simplifies the work with regard to future, but also past campaigns and the maintenance of contacts. Various tools and databases are available for analysing influencer accounts. These provide key figures such as engagement rate, growth rate, quality of followers. This is the only way to meaningfully assess the quality of an influencer.
Likeometer
One of these tools is Likeometer. Filters such as the country and the number of followers help to display selected influencers. In further steps, the search can become more and more specific. The results displayed are automatically updated and show the engagement rate, forecasts and the times when the posts are best received. In addition, the tool shows the development of the follower counts and has the option of checking other brand accounts. This allows users to find out what is well received by them and what is not. Furthermore, Likeometer users can access hashtag trends and view similar hashtags. Statistics on TikTok will also soon be available via Likeometer.
Socialblade
Another tool is Socialblade. Like Likeometer, it also provides users with statistics and is free of charge. In addition, Socialblade can be used for YouTube, Twitch, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Dailymotion and Mixer. With the help of the tool, accounts are sorted into charts, which makes further research easier. In addition, the tool makes the development of individual accounts visible over a longer period of time. Especially for the YouTube platform, a detailed account selection is possible. There is the option to compare up to three influencers on Twitter, Twitch and YouTube with each other.
InfluencerDB
InfluencerDB is a paid tool and offers a wider range of functions and analysis than free tools. With research options for accounts with 15,000 followers or more, data such as the number of followers, growth and the like follower ration can be determined. Smaller accounts can also be examined after manually adding them to the database. In addition, the tool provides information on, among other things, where the followers come from geographically and whether they are male or female. This can create a detailed picture of the community and determine who the influencer is reaching. Another option of the tool is to show the media value by post. This feature represents the amount of investment it takes to achieve comparable reach and engagement
Research tools and automations
Using platforms like Collabary is another way to choose the right influencer for the campaign. In doing so, users can save a lot of time and effort. This makes it possible to plan and implement a campaign independently without an influencer marketing agency. The filter options help to narrow down the selection and find the right influencer. This saves a lot of work. In addition, such a platform determines the recommended price for an influencer, which can be useful for making an offer. Collabary is good for product placements, and users can use it for branding and sales goals.
The first step is to enter the most important data of the campaign and describe the brand, values and goals. In addition, there are dos and don’ts and, if necessary, further information material. The influencer receives this data in connection with an offer. This way, he can get an idea and use the data later in the posts. For this reason, it is advantageous if everyone works as detailed and carefully as possible.
In the second step, matching influencers are already displayed, whereby additional filters can be used to further specify them. Each user can search according to requirements such as age, country or city and interests.
Step three deals with audience delimitation. This means, for example, narrowing down the gender mix, age and interests. It should be noted, however, that fewer results are displayed the more the search is specified.
After filtering, it is time to prepare the offer. The offer should include the price on the one hand and the legal regulations, deadlines, release regulations and the desired formats on the other. The tool has functions that handle the entire communication and approval process.
Like every tool and platform, Collabary has advantages and disadvantages. Every user should consider these before using it.
Advantages:
Collabry significantly minimises the effort required for research and thus generates time savings.
The platform is especially practical for smaller influencer marketing agencies or newcomers. It minimises the risk of forgetting important points in the planning. In addition, there are verified partners and transparent pricing.
With Collabary, research, booking, communication, documentation and billing are combined on one platform.
In addition, there is a large pool of verified influencers in various sectors.
Disadvantages:
Such platforms are usually subject to a fee. For a collabary licence, for example, a monthly fee of € 399.00 (CHF 430) is due.
There is no exclusivity with the selected partners.
Interview with Carina Kockelke, Head of Marketing at F1-Generation
Carina Kockelke knows from her own experience what it is like to run an influencer campaign using tools. She once used Collabary to raise awareness of a Canadian manufacturer’s nursing bras.
She reports that the nursing bra has a spiky target group, which in turn only uses the products for a relatively short time. This means that the company has to constantly look for new influencers to test the bras and post pictures. As a result, long-term collaborations are not possible in this niche area. The target group is also very limited due to the age and topic. The goal of the campaign is primarily brand awareness, whereby the influencers basically serve more than one platform. However, the set guidelines must not be too narrow for a niche topic of this kind. Expectant and breastfeeding mothers have other things on their minds than making a post. Therefore, the extent to which the product is to be seen is determined in advance, and the influencers can act independently and creatively. Furthermore, communication outside of Collabary is necessary to clarify open questions about the products.
Tools like Collabary are particularly helpful for Carina Kockelke when the team is not very large. The constant search for suitable influencers, especially for such a niche topic, is very time-consuming and can hardly be done without support. Collabary makes it possible to save a lot of time and resources and even search by keywords, engagement and image styles. However, she also notes that Collabary cannot, for example, find out whether influencers are actually pregnant or young mothers. In addition, it cannot tell anything about whether the topic of breastfeeding is relevant to influencers. Companies still have to scrutinise the accounts closely. Nevertheless, the tool takes away a lot of research work.
Pricing: Statement by Dr Stefano Balestra, Managing Director at Collabary by Zalando
Influencer marketing has already developed into a professional market sector for several years. Previously, payment was made per blog post and post. Then the pricing was based on the reach and the engagement rate. Today, these factors still play a role in evaluating pricing. In the meantime, the question “Who does the influencer reach?” is also important. This is because the composition of the audience is enormously important for marketers to be able to have a product advertised effectively and efficiently. After all, no one should pay for an audience that is not interested in the product at all. So it is simply a matter of the performance of influencers.
In the future, there will be different models for paying influencers.
Base price + bonus
In this model, the influencer receives a basic amount for posting. Influencers can receive additional bonus payments if they achieve sales targets, for example. This model has the advantage that it additionally increases the motivation of the influencers, as the cooperation becomes more lucrative through the additional payments. With action-based billing, there are no more problems with fake followers.
The base amount is likely to change downwards in the future compared to today, if revenue sharing increases accordingly due to performance.
Affiliate models for existing content
This model is about providing already existing content with affiliate links, whereby the influencers receive an affiliate commission as remuneration. It is therefore the original form of influencer marketing. Only influencers with good content receive affiliate links. Bad content remains unnoticed. However, due to the high content rotation on Instagram, this model would mean an increased effort. Pinterest and YouTube are much easier to handle in this respect.
Regardless of the two models presented above, one thing must not be forgotten in influencer marketing: A campaign can only be successful if the influencer comes across as authentic and is enthusiastic about what he or she is doing. The entire marketing depends on many soft factors, the relationship between the brand and the influencer, and the quality of the audience. Which models will prevail in the long term, however, remains to be seen.
