Leveraging Influencer Marketing to Boost Your Brand for the Back-to-School Boom

With kids back at school, brands in all industries are taking advantage of what this means for marketing. There are a lot of ways to approach marketing but, with an increasing number of people turning to social media for product and service recommendations, influencer marketing is currently one of the most effective options. It’s become a powerful way for brands to stand out and make a lasting impression online. If you have a product or service that appeals to those gearing up for the ‘back to school’ season, influencer marketing gives you a prime opportunity to connect with parents, students and teachers.

What is Influencer Marketing?

There are a lot of ways to approach marketing as a brand – social media marketing, PPC campaigns and SEO are just three of the key routes – one of which is influencer marketing. This is a technique that’s really boomed in recent years, with the rise of social media stars and content creators. Influencer marketing happens when a brand partners with an individual online – more often than not, these are content creators with a large online following on one or more social media platforms – to take advantage of their engaged audience.

These individuals influence their audience by promoting products or services, helping the brand to reach more people and build trust through recommendations. As the influencers online trust them, this recommendation feels authentic and trustworthy enough to convince them to make a purchase. Influencer marketing uses an influencer’s credibility and relationship, which has likely built up over a number of years, with their followers to drive brand awareness and sales.

The Benefits of Influencer Marketing for Your Brand

There are a lot of benefits that come with influencer marketing, which is why it’s an approach a growing number of brands are trying.

• It Increases Brand Awareness – It’s a lot easier to share your brand with a larger audience with influencer marketing, as you can tap into the existing online audience of an established creator online. There’s no need to build up your own following. This helps reach potential customers that might not know about you already. It also helps you to reach people that may never have crossed paths with your brand if their favourite influencer hadn’t pointed them in the right direction. There are a lot of potential customers out there, and you can’t assume that they’ll find your brand on their own.

• It Boosts Engagement – Influencer marketing relies on creators making content that really appeals to their audience. This could be engaging TikTok videos, high quality Instagram posts or longer posts on LinkedIn. Luckily, they know exactly what their audience wants to see. This content boosts engagement by encouraging likes, comments and shares. This maximises the amount of people that see what’s being marketed, meaning that even more people hear about what you’re offering.

• It Targets a Niche Audience – No matter what you sell or what services you provide, there is sure to be a target audience or demographic you wish would pay attention to what you have for sale. When you use influencers for marketing, it’s a lot easier to reach your target audience, as they will already have solidified themselves in that niche.

• It Builds Trust – Influencers have earned the trust of their followers, and what they have to say means so much more often than your own marketing pitch. After all, you’re bound to say good things about your products and services, and people know that. Influencer marketing develops a sense of credibility for your brand. Their fans and followers trust what their favourite influencers have to say about a product or service, shining a positive light on what you have to offer. They don’t have to take your word for it, which they know is somewhat biassed.

• It Boosts Conversion Rates – No matter what you sell, the aim is always to convert leads into sales, and influencer marketing will help you do so. Influencers can persuade followers to check you out by directing them to your website or social media presence, which increases leads, conversions and sales. Even if someone doesn’t make a purchase directly from their content, it might be enough to encourage them to see what else you have available.

• It’s a Cost-Effective Marketing Technique – There are a lot of marketing techniques to try, but some of them are costly. Compared to traditional marketing, influencer marketing often offers a more affordable way to reach a large, engaged audience. Though it’s by no means a free approach to marketing, it does enable you to reach a large audience at a fraction of the cost of PPC, SEO and paid ads.

How to Use Influencer Marketing to Stand Out This School Year

There are a lot of brands using influencer marketing, especially in the midst of the back-to-school boom.

• Partner with the Right Influencers – To make sure that your brand is seen by the right audience, you should only partner with influencers whose audience is similar to your target audience.
• Create Content with a School Theme – For the back-to-school rush, make sure that your chosen creator creates content themed around school and the new term. It’s also important they highlight how your product or service fits into things. It needs to feel relevant, fresh and engaging to the back-to-school crowd. An influencer can then bring his or her own unique style to the content, making it more sensible and real.
• Make the Most of User Generated Content (UGC) – Influencer marketing doesn’t have to end with the posing of the agreed content. Ask them to encourage their followers to share content featuring your products, you benefit from ongoing visibility and engagement. Every time someone sees UGC featuring your brand, it reminds them of who you are. Customers are more likely to trust recommendations from other shoppers.

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