Its significant growth underscores its potential but may not suit every e-commerce business.

Let’s take a look at why…

The Reality of Influencer Marketing

Influencer marketing has proven effective, especially among younger audiences.

Statistics show that half of millennials and a third of Gen Z have been influenced in their purchasing decisions by influencer recommendations.

Collaborating with influencers can also lessen the content creation load for businesses by shifting it to the influencers, allowing for broader content dissemination across various social media platforms.

However, measuring the return on investment (ROI) from influencer marketing can be challenging.

Choosing the Right Influencer to Drive E-Commerce

When selecting an influencer, it’s essential to consider more than just their follower count.

Engagement rate is a crucial metric to assess an influencer’s effectiveness, especially for e-commerce brands.

In 2022, macro-influencers on Instagram had an average engagement rate of 1.06%, while micro-influencers saw rates around 4.84%.

This means that a more significant following doesn’t always equate to higher engagement.

Keep that in mind when selecting influencers for your campaign.

Influencer Seeding

A long-used strategy for influencer marketing is influencer seeding, where products are sent to influencers without formal agreements.

This approach can foster authenticity and lay the groundwork for a more structured relationship later.

But it’s also a strategy that’s losing traction.

Back in 2008, I used this method to enroll influencers into my campaigns all the time, but in 2023, influencers are more savvy and usually want more compensation.

Also, something to consider is what the product is that you wish to seed with them. How much is it worth?

Most influencers will likely pass if it’s an inexpensive item, like lipstick.

However, if it’s a laptop computer, you will probably still find influencers willing to work with you.

The upshot is that it’s relative.

Evaluating the Fit for Influencer Marketing and E-Commerce

Before engaging in influencer marketing to drive e-commerce, businesses should assess whether their product aligns with this marketing approach – working with influencers.

Products that are truly innovative or unique may benefit more from influencer promotion.

Businesses should also clearly understand their target audience and niche before pursuing influencer collaborations, which I have discussed at length here at The Influence Marketer.

Conclusion

To develop a successful influencer campaign, businesses should select influencers who align with their target audience, maintain good engagement rates, and are suitable for promoting the product.

By doing so, businesses will run effective campaigns with a more substantial ROI and see more success working with influencers.

Got a question? Pop it into the comments below.

The post Influencer Marketing: A Tactical Approach for E-commerce appeared first on // 551 Media LLC.

While they might occasionally overlap, they have fundamentally different principles at their core.

In this article, we’ll explore their unique characteristics and highlight the differences between them.

Let’s get started…

The Allure of Authentic Storytelling: The Essence of Influencer Marketing

In today’s digital age, ads bombard us from every direction.

Influencers stand out as trusted voices, offering genuine recommendations to their followers.

A staggering 92% of consumers trust an influencer more than a traditional advertisement or celebrity endorsement.

Influencers are not mere “plug and play” ad units or bots.

They are real people with authentic narratives and solid, visceral connections with their audience.

Brands collaborating with influencers don’t just buy ad space as they would with a billboard or at least they shouldn’t.

Ideally, they should strive to integrate into the influencer’s narrative, their story, tapping into their ethos.

Data from MediaKix shows that the influencer marketing industry is set to grow to approximately $13.8 billion in 2023, reinforcing its importance in the marketing mix.

Therefore, it’s the warmth, passion, and authenticity in an influencer’s narrative voice that grabs the followers’ attention.

This human touch gives influencer marketing its distinctive edge.

Performance Marketing: The Power of Metrics

Switch to Performance Marketing.

With this strategy, we marketers meticulously track every click, lead, conversion, and sale.

Every dollar spent seeks to ensure maximum ROI.

In fact, according to a recent eMarketer report, U.S. advertisers will spend $2.59 billion on performance-based affiliate marketing in 2023.

For those reasons, you can see why performance marketing doesn’t beat around the bush.

It sets direct, quantifiable goals.

If Influencer Marketing speaks to the human qualities of a digital strategy, Performance Marketing measures its effectiveness by data, the numbers.

Bridging the Gap: Can They Co-exist?

They can, and they do.

While they stem from different philosophies, both strategies fit seamlessly into a brand’s marketing portfolio and probably should.

A recent HubSpot report revealed that 63% of marketers intend to increase their influencer marketing budget in the next year, while 58% plan to do the same for performance marketing.

Influencer marketing doesn’t just chase immediate ROI.

It plays the long game by building trust and loyalty and ultimately demand gen.

Performance marketing, in contrast, seeks immediate results and tangible outcomes.

Final Thoughts: Respecting the Individuality

Instead of pitting one against the other, savvy brands today harness the unique value each brings.

As brands, as we steer through the digital marketing realm, we must honor the stories influencers tell and appreciate the metrics that performance marketing provides.

In our evolving digital world, the human touch remains paramount. After all, marketing at its core aims to connect, resonate, and foster lasting bonds.

The post Why Influencer Marketing is not Performance Marketing appeared first on // 551 Media LLC.

Let’s take a look at what’s going on…

The Blurring Lines between B2C and B2B E-commerce

Recent findings from BigCommerce’s Global B2B Buyer Behavior Report underline the rapidly evolving behavior and preferences of B2B buyers across the US, UK, and Australia.

One intriguing observation is the convergence of B2B and B2C e-commerce experiences.

More B2B buyers are anticipating the same online shopping experience they encounter as regular consumers. This means engaging mobile-friendly sites, transparent pricing, and a hassle-free checkout.

With B2B e-commerce still in its formative years, the trends call for brands to modernize their online operations swiftly. eMarketer forecasts suggest that US B2B ecommerce sales will catapult past the $2 trillion mark by 2024.

With stakes this high, Lance Owide, BigCommerce’s general manager of B2B, stresses the necessity for B2B vendors to embrace an omnipresent online strategy.

Failing to do so could mean a significant market share loss.

Key Insights from the Report:

1. Digital Dominance: 74% of buyers leverage online platforms for purchases, and 65% use search engines primarily for product discovery. 42% also turn to online marketplaces like Amazon Business.
2. The Gripes of B2B Buyers: The main issues encountered during the buying process were incorrect pricing and shipping costs (40%), followed by sluggish website speeds (29%), and subpar customer support (28%).
3. A Call for Clarity: While mobile compatibility and features like auto-renew were expected to rank high, the topmost desired feature during checkout was the availability of precise and comprehensive pricing information.

The Catalog Conundrum and the Post-Pandemic World

Digital platforms reign supreme in product discovery. However, a noteworthy 42% of respondents still find products through catalogs, indicating their continued relevance. In contrast, just a quarter of respondents cited trade shows as discovery platforms, no doubt a lingering effect of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Speaking of the pandemic, it acted as a catalyst for B2B e-commerce. With in-person interactions diminishing, there was a surge in online supplier identification – 87% in 2021 compared to 78% pre-pandemic.

Likewise, websites as evaluation tools saw a rise from 60% pre-pandemic to 74% in 2021.

Purchasing Platforms and Preferences

Across the US, UK, and Australia, supplier e-commerce websites and apps emerged as the top channels for purchases. However, regional variations exist.

For instance, Australian buyers showed a lesser inclination towards B2B marketplaces compared to their US and UK counterparts.

As for online marketplaces, Amazon Business was the preferred choice for 51% of respondents. Regional preferences again played a part: Australian buyers favored Amazon Business less than those in the US and UK.

The Decision Drivers

Ratings, reviews, and peer recommendations remain influential in purchase decisions, underscoring the role of social proof in B2B buying. Additionally, promotions and marketing campaigns are proving crucial, pointing towards the significance of robust B2B marketing strategies.

In summary, the B2B ecommerce landscape is rapidly evolving, with consumer-like experiences becoming the new normal.

Brands must stay agile, adapt to these shifts, and prioritize a seamless online buying journey to remain on top.

Stay tuned to The Influence Marketer for more insights into the ever-changing world of B2B marketing! If you’d like to delve deeper into the report, click here.

Got a question? Pop it into the comments below.

The post The Evolution of B2B Buyers: What Brands Need to Know appeared first on // 551 Media LLC.

I know that and you know that — but do your customers know that?

Maybe you’re not seeing the sales figures you expected.

Or perhaps your marketing campaigns aren’t getting enough traction?

Either way, you want to build your online store into a successful, recognized ecommerce brand.

How?

The answer is simple: influencer marketing.

Influencer marketing is almost as old as advertising itself, albeit in various differing guises.

But today, social media has turned it into a business in itself.

It’s no longer just slapping a famous face on your product.

With the ability to reach huge audiences across a variety of platforms, influencer marketing has become a core component of any smart marketing strategy.

Ecommerce brands need influencer marketing.

Here’s what you need to know:

Influencer marketing creates better content

Chances are, running your e-commerce store takes up a lot of your time.

Between juggling your store, your family, and even a full-time job, it can be hard to stay on top of it.

However, posting fresh, regular content to your site keeps your audience locked into your brand and enhances your SEO.

So how do you keep on track? Here’s where your influencer comes in.

Through guest posts, video blogs, or even social media takeovers, they can generate content in their own unique style, especially for your store.

Not only will this give you some breathing space to focus on other tasks, but it gives your brand that little extra boost.

A good example of this on a larger scale can be found in DJ Khaled’s campaigns.

A successful and renowned producer and DJ, he is known as the “King of Snapchat”.

He is hugely sought after for influencer campaigns, and regularly has Snapchat takeovers of brands from Stride Gum to the city of Las Vegas.

But you don’t need to pay A-list prices for A-list results.

Why not consider reaching out to a micro-influencer?

These are individuals who perhaps don’t have as many followers as a famous celebrity, but have garnered significant followings in specific niche areas.

For example:

If you sell fishing gear and accessories, get in touch with a fishing blogger for the occasional guest post and product review.

It’ll pay dividends, both for the influencer and for you.

Test out AI-driven social tools like Socialbakers to up your social media game, and keep exploring ways to stand out from the crowd whilst streamlining production times.

Increase your brand awareness

With the rise of user-friendly Ecommerce store builders, starting your own online store has never been easier. From setup to sales, almost all the hard work is done for you.

While this is great for making the world of business more accessible for your average Joe, it also means more competition for you.

From bespoke jewelry to high-end sportswear, people all over the world are scrambling to get a piece of that e-commerce pie.

This means you need to step up your marketing game to make your brand stand out amongst the rest.

A great example of this is the food storage company Dixie.

Not heard of them?

They teamed up with Markerly to create an influencer marketing campaign by linking up with 36 prominent bloggers to show the various benefits of their new Quicktakes food containers.

Influencers wrote about the great features of the product, resulting in Dixie’s brand awareness shooting up.

Reaching a total of 77 million people on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and more, Dixie became a recognized household brand. With influencer marketing, this can become a vision for your brand too.

Build trust and authenticity

People do what other people do — fact.

How many times have you seen someone wearing a cool new jacket, only to see ten other people wearing the same thing a few weeks later?

People trust other people’s choices, a phenomenon known as social proof. And while this works on the individual level, it also works at a business level.

Influencers are the social proof masters.

They have amassed a huge body of dedicated followers, who eagerly devour everything they post, tweet, or say.

And what do the followers do when the person they follow recommends something? If done right, they’ll go out and buy it.

This is because consumers trust the person they follow.

A good influencer has a history of posting informed, engaging, and reliable content. This gives them credibility and authenticity and builds up a level of trust between them and their followers.

So when they extol the virtues of your product, it lends your brand all those qualities as well.

Tracking and quantifying data

The above are just some of the benefits that influencer marketing can bring to your brand.

But you’re going to want to measure the actual effect that this would have for you.

Talking about it is all well and good, but you want to see some cold hard data — and you can…

There’s a variety of ways you can do this.

For example, you might want to increase your brand’s visibility — which would be measured in a different way to, say, actual sales. In this case, you might want to focus on reach, engagement, and shares.

You will want to monitor brand mentions using a tool like Mention.com and gauge overall brand sentiment.

Can influencer marketing directly correlate with e-commerce sales?

Certainly.

In order to track (and push for) sales, you could create a unique voucher code or affiliate link for that influencer.

And you don’t need to be a tech wizard to track or create this kind of data either — creating unique codes and assigning them to channels is easy these days.

Most eCommerce sites include robust analytics functions (such as the Shopify store dashboard pictured below) to monitor your orders, sales, and referral channels.

Focus on the ‘big picture’ data visualizations to get a quick overview (like the one below).

Be sure to delve deeper into month-on-month figures to pinpoint a sales uplift:

If you want to measure audience engagement, you can run tests on click-throughs to your site, likes, comments, shares, and so on from social media.

This gives you a feel for how the influencer content is being received, and how it is impacting your eCommerce brand

Use this data to determine which certain campaigns are performing better, and try to get to the bottom of why that is.

Is your influencer partnership a strong one?

Does your influencer content have a strong enough value proposition?

Do you need to up your discounts?

Influencer marketing is fast becoming the go-to for marketers everywhere.

From big brands to little brands, the value of people-led campaigns is being utilized to great effect.

We’ve told you what you need to know about influencer marketing for your e-commerce business, so all you need to know now is — which influencer is right for you?

Want to learn more? Join our FREE Facebook Group: Influencer Marketing for Badasses

Guest post by Victoria Greene.

The post What Ecommerce Brands Need To Know About Influencer Marketing appeared first on // 551 Media LLC.

I think my readers and viewers would describe me as a gadget/tech reviewer, while brands and marketing types would describe me as a tech or video influencer.

For me, though, I am really someone who loves consumer electronics and is passionate enough about it to write about the subject and make videos about them because I want to share that passion with others.

I’m just a guy who loves gadgets with a big personality!

Is Gear Live your full-time job or is it more of a passion project?

It’s both.

Gear Live is much more than a full-time job.

It’s a company in its own right, and as an entrepreneur, and video influencer, I face all the challenges that any other business owner comes up against.

The thing about entrepreneurship, though, is in the vast majority of cases, the business owner is doing what they love.

To do this, requires passion, though.

I am kind of a one-stop shop, in that, I pretty much do it all – I don’t have a staff.

Most people think I sit around all day playing with toys and then writing about them at my leisure.

Or they think that making a great YouTube video is as simple as pointing a camera at a smartphone, hitting record, and talking.

It takes much more than that to keep people engaged and interested in content.

As an example, the other day I posted a video that was about 6 minutes in length.

That video took about 4 hours of shooting, and another 3 hours of editing before it was ready to be shared.

And that doesn’t include the upload process, the social sharing, and the writing of the content that will live alongside the video!

The magic is in making something that is hard and takes a lot of time look effortless.

How did you get started building your audience?  What steps did you follow?

I wouldn’t say there was really a specific audience-building strategy, other than making content that I’d like to see.

When I create something, it has to be something that I would be interested in watching or reading.

So my audience is people who are fans of things I am a fan of, and people who are interested in the things I am interested in.

That turns out to be early adopters of consumer electronics, with a good overlap in the gaming space as well.

That was the start.

As time went on and more people found my videos, either through my fans sharing them on social networks or emailing them to friends, my audience expanded to people who were more generally interested in personal technology – after all, who doesn’t have a smartphone these days?

Just because you own one doesn’t mean you’re an expert.

When you are seeking out tips and tricks, the best apps to download, or which device to upgrade to next, my content is helpful because it’s useful from the research perspective … like when you want to make a purchase.

It’s not just entertainment for like-minded gadget fans.

In the world of YouTube, which do you consider most important, subscribers or views and why?

I focus more on views myself.

I want to get my videos seen by people who are interested in seeing them, or who would be helped by them.

The subscriber count doesn’t mean much in my opinion, because it is so easily gamed, and is also done at a whim.

Someone can hit the subscribe button and then never see your videos again simply because they weren’t on YouTube when it showed up at the top of their feed, or for other algorithmic reasons.

So, I would rather than 1 million views and 0 subscribers than 1 million subscribers and 0 views.

Do you use a marketing strategy to grow your audience? If yes, what is that strategy?

The only strategy I employ is to make sure I make videos that I think people will want to see.

Think of the audience before you make the video and plan out exactly how you will get the point across and how it would best be received.

Keep your audience in mind.

From there, I make sure to share it across the social and influencer networks that I am a part of.

All of my Twitter followers, Facebook followers, Instagram followers…just because a person follows me on one platform doesn’t mean that they follow me on all, or that they subscribe to my YouTube channel.

I make sure to go out to the people, rather than expecting the people to come to me.

That’s how a real video influencer has to think.

How important is having a video “go viral” to subscriber growth?

If you are asking how important a viral video is to getting your subscriber number to grow, I guess it would do a good job at that – but I don’t know that it is really meaningful in any way.

A video going viral is normally because of something about that one, specific video.

How often do you hear the term “viral video” compared to the term “viral channel”?

Viral videos are kind of like fads. People like them for a while and then they disappear. I am more about staying power and consistency.

Do you have a video crew who helps with your production or do you do production and appear on camera?

I do it all.

I’m behind the camera setting up shots and making sure things look good, that the colors are right and the white balance is on point.

I do the staging of the area where the video will be shot to make it look interesting.

Of course, I am on camera talking about whatever needs to be explained and showing up as the face of my brand.

When all is said and done, I am also the one at the workstation editing the video and trying to turn a couple of hours of footage into a nicely packaged 4-10-minute compelling video.

Of course, it doesn’t have to be that way though.

If you are great on camera but don’t know anything about editing or shooting, you can get help in those areas.

I just personally like to be involved in each step of the process because it all interests me.

How important is having the right gear to being successful at online video?

You definitely need to have the right gear – it’s important. I’ll give you a quick rundown of all the gear you need as a bare minimum in order to be successful on YouTube:

A video camera.

That’s it.

No, really. That’s all it takes.

Does your smartphone record video and audio?

Perfect, then you have the ability to shoot a video and upload it to YouTube.

No one has ever seen someone’s video and then said to themselves:

“Before I conclude that this person is a success, I need to take inventory of what gear they used in order to produce this. Only then can I determine their worthiness of success.”

No one does that.

Some of the most-watched videos were shot using a cell phone.

Don’t get caught up in the gear aspect, and it is very easy to spend a bunch of money on expensive cameras, lights, editing workstations, lenses, microphones, and the like.

Forget all that.

Just get started with what you have, and grow from there.

If you could improve one thing about your current video strategy, what would it be?

I love creating content and talking tech – and I’d love to remove any other barriers that require my attention that are also necessary.

For example, I have an accountant who handles business finances because I’m no accountant and I’d rather an expert deal with that.

Another area that would help with videos specifically is having someone who can handle my sales and sponsorships.

The process is time-consuming and takes me away from the camera but it has to be done.

What’s your advice for people looking to get started? What should a newbie focus on first?

Just start.

That’s it.

There are so many lists out there for what you need to do to get started on YouTube or in video or with blogging.

The longer the list gets, the more intimidating it looks.

My advice is to just use what you have, record something, and upload it.

Get used to doing it.  Make it a habit.  Post on a regular schedule.

Don’t worry about the views, the subscribers, the comments, or anything else.

Don’t compare yourself to other channels or other people.

Just start doing it, and get used to it, and things will start to make sense.

You’ll start to get a knack for things, you’ll see what works for you and what doesn’t.

The hardest part is just getting started!

Got a comment or question? Pop in the comments below.

The post Video Influencer Andru Edwards of Gear Live: Putting the Audience First appeared first on // 551 Media LLC.