6 Tips for Using Social Media to Start Conversations with Industry Influencers

Social media influencers can do wonders for your marketing. Learn how to approach them the right way.

Before Alastair came to Oompf Global, he wondered how to do marketing for his young firm. He attributes some of his blockages to the stereotype of accountants not being very creative, which puts a strain on their campaigns.

And this is exactly why he knew he needed support in his firm so he didn’t have issues with bringing in more clients. 

Luckily, we were able to help him, and we worked together for a couple of years catapulting his firm into the limelight, attracting excellent team members and high value clients… . After going through our workshops and programmes, he figured out how marketing in the accounting space worked. He said that our work together ‘revolutionised his thinking’.

Alastair and his team soon unlocked a wealth of marketing opportunities that they hadn’t seen before. And now, they’re scaling, thriving and winning awards for their work. 

Many businesses face the same challenge as he once did. Not being able to think out of the box can definitely put a cap on business success.

To help you avoid this, we’ll discuss an important form of marketing that many business owners overlook – influencer marketing.

If you’re not connecting with your industry’s influencers, you’re missing out on a ton of opportunities. With the right people backing you, you can piggyback off the influencer’s reputation to build authority in your niche.

So, how do you get influencers to offer this kind of support on social media? 

Here are some effective tips to try:

Tip # 1. Focus on Niche Influencers in Your Vertical

People usually associate influencers with those who amassed hundreds of thousands of followers. But someone can be an influencer even with no more than a few hundred followers – as long as they’re loyal.

These niche influencers can be incredibly valuable to your business. 

Even though they might not have a swarm of interactions, they’re still seen as an authority in their niche. And you can leverage this to become one as well.

For instance, a person who posts YouTube tutorials for their 2,000 subscribers is a trusted and reliable source for them. If you start working with that person, the trust of those subscribers will spill onto you.

Plus, working with niche influencers can massively pay off in the long run. As they keep growing, so will your audience and their loyalty. With time, you can passively generate tons of leads on a regular basis.

So, where do you find niche influencers?

The best places to look are on forums and subreddits in your niche. Find those who answer the most questions and with whom people engage the most.

You can also find them on YouTube or dig a bit deeper into your Google search results. But, skip the first few results with massive influencers and look for the less popular ones instead. 

Niche influencers are almost always open for collaborations, so you should have no trouble partnering up with them.

Tip # 2. Use LinkedIn for Networking

Are you active or LinkedIn? If not, you’ll want to start socialising there right away.

Too many businesses focus on platforms like Instagram and Facebook. In doing so, they overlook LinkedIn and miss out on many connection opportunities.

You don’t want to make this mistake, especially if you’re doing B2B marketing. Not only can you find lots of new clients on the platform, but you can also build a strong influencer network.

Type your keywords in the search bar to identify the most popular accounts. Create a list and then send them a connection request. Make sure to introduce yourself and state how you heard of them. Doing so will add a personal touch to your request and make the influencer more likely to accept it. 

You should also follow their company page and like their posts. Feel free to share those posts as well to attract some extra attention.

And finally, you can join the groups that the influencers are in. When you become a member, you can reach out to influencers directly.

Tip # 3. Create Amazing Content (That Grabs Their Attention)

Great content is one of the cornerstones of a VITAL business. There’s a myriad of reasons why you need to put a lot of effort into original and engaging content. And drawing influencers’ attention is among them.

Putting out high-quality posts that set you apart from the crowd is a sure-fire way to get influencers to notice you. If you offer some kind of value to their audience, they will want to leverage it to grow their own following further.

You must create unique and appealing content through your blog posts, photos, or videos. 

But if you can’t do it on your own, it’s much better to hire a professional than try to make it work. Find someone who can create amazing content and post them consistently. You’ll catch influencers’ attention at some point.

Tip # 4. Create a Win-Win Partnership

Just because influencers may have a lot of followers doesn’t mean that they have everything they need. That’s why if you want to work with one, you need to make sure that they get something out of it.

Businesses often offer money in exchange for the partnership. But you can move far beyond this, depending on what the influencer in your niche needs. For example, you can invite them to special events, send free products, or help them expand their reach. 

There’s always something you can offer that an influencer will find valuable.

As you can imagine, creating a win for everyone involved will make the partnership much more likely to happen. 

But, it will also do something even better.

When an influencer sees that they can benefit greatly from a relationship with you, they’ll work harder to help you reach your goals. You’ll keep them loyal and motivated, which can make your influencer strategy much more effective.

Tip # 5. Build an Actual Connection

How would you approach an influencer with a partnership request?

Sadly, most businesses do it completely wrong. They just send a quick pitch to an influencer’s DM and hope for the best.

If this is how you plan to go about it, you’re setting yourself up for failure.

Influencers, especially the more popular ones, are usually bombarded with offers. They get tons of generic requests and end up rejecting most of those requests.

As with everything in marketing, you need to set yourself apart from this crowd. And the best way to do it is by building and nurturing a true relationship with an influencer.

You can do this in all sorts of ways. For example, you can share their posts, comment on them, and provide unique insights into the topics they cover.

Show that you’re genuinely interested in the content that the influencer puts out. Encourage conversations and make it known that you’re not only interacting with them because you need something.

Sure, it may take some time to build such a relationship. But once you do, the value that you can get in return will be more than worth the effort.

Tip # 6. Move Beyond the Digital World

Even though influencers operate in the online space, it doesn’t mean that you should limit your search to it. We all know that online interactions are often quite impersonal and dull.

That’s why you shouldn’t hesitate to reach out to influencers in the real world. Visit seminars and conferences that they attend. If they’re having a talk or presentation, go to their events and try to meet them face-to-face.

There’s always a higher chance of leaving a strong impression in person than online. 

So, look for influencers at reputable gatherings and take every chance to introduce yourself. Even if you don’t end up working with them, you can form many other fruitful relationships.

Build a Strong Influence Circle

There’s a strong reason why businesses care so much about influencer marketing. If done right, it can be the most effective strategy for launching your success into the stratosphere. 

So if you haven’t thought about it already, you’ll want to do it sooner rather than later.

Remember to add as much personality as possible to your connection. As mentioned, the online world is pretty impersonal by default. Influencers are pretty tired of generic relationships.

For this reason, show a true passion for your niche and the work that you can do with influencers. Don’t pitch or try to force a partnership. Instead, keep it simple and smooth by focusing on meaningful interactions.

And finally, make sure that you can offer value to an influencer before you expect value from them. 

Build mutually beneficial relationships and your influencer marketing will be on the money.