Social media marketing can feel very overwhelming, especially when you’re starting or building a new brand. There are so many different social media platforms, and it can be difficult to know whether you need the work of a copywriter, graphic designer, videographer, or all of the above. (The social media manager girlies know, we wear a lot of hats).
All that gets a whole lot more complicated when you bring in paid media and advertising, which is always changing.
One of the ways businesses can make the most of digital marketing is by partnering with digital content creators. This definitely isn’t your mama’s marketing.
We’re skipping the full-page newspaper ads and radio spots, and going straight to the source, by tapping into the potential of our favorite bloggers and influencers. These types of partnerships can really influence how you build your brand strategy, and we’re here to help you kick off the next great campaign.
How Digital Content Creators Are Reshaping Brand Strategies
Influencer marketing may seem like a complicated branch to break into, but it’s more than worth it for the brand awareness, high-quality metrics, and quick ability to grow. But you won’t necessarily want to stick with your current social media posts or templates when developing relationships with influencers and content creators, since it doesn’t maximize your business's benefit.
Instead, take a beat, refocus the brand, and check out some different ways digital content creators are reshaping the social media strategy for brands like yours.
It Makes for More Personal Content
When we see an ad on our feed, our eyes glaze over. Let’s be honest.
They’re polished, perfect, and totally distant, and that works for them — after all, they’re ads. But one of the biggest benefits of partnering with a digital content creator is that you can remove the barrier between the brand and customer, and meet them where they’re at.
Successful content creators make their viewers feel welcome; those viewers aren’t expecting the hard sell. Instead, you can tell more stories, utilize more raw or unpolished art, and get to know them in a real way. That’s how we get customers to keep coming on back.
It Allows You To Reach New Audiences
It may seem like there are so many content creators and influencers in the digital world — and there are, and that’s a good thing.
Digital content creators work hard to find and build their audiences, and those audiences tend to be pretty specific.
They’re there to watch for great content, like fashion recommendations, travel suggestions, or Sunday recipes, and they’re going to stick around for that kind of content. If you know your brand just isn’t reaching your target audiences, you can tap into the specific ones of your favorite creators.
This gets your brand in front of eyes that might not already know you, but will be more than excited to check you out.
It Acts As a Review for Your Business
It can be hard to build cred for your business, but your name will be hot, hot, hot when it comes from the right influencers and content writers. If they’re willing to work with your brand, there’s a general understanding that they endorse your products or programs, making your business seem way more legit.
There are a lot of different ways to go about getting this type of endorsement, and you’ll want to make sure you’re in agreement with the influencer, but influencer marketing is a combination of both reviewing and advertising in all the best ways.
It Reduces the Dependence on Paid Ads
Listen, there is totally a time and a place for paid ads. We’re def not saying stop the campaign, especially if it’s working well and your return is good. But when you leverage influencer marketing, you can reduce your spending on paid ads, which may be better spent on partnerships.
It’s also useful to know you’re not depending on these ads for your business exposure and growth since it’s common for advertising practices, guidelines, and requirements to change on a dime. Balancing the support of a social media content creator with paid ads will help to take some of your chickens out of the basket.
It Allows for Greater Interaction
The personalized nature of digital content creation does mean that your brand will be a lot more accessible for potential customers — and that’s great.
We want the potential customer demographic to feel connected to your business and ready to grow as you grow. Digital media and content creation allow you to take that to the next level.
You’ll be able to interact and communicate directly with consumers, which is much more complicated to do when publishing advertisements. This means you can better address your customers' needs, learn more about what they’re looking for, and come across as approachable and available.
It Increases Your Chance of Virality
What’s the perfect equation for going viral? Even if we did have the recipe in our digital spell book, it would change by the end of the workday tomorrow. The engaging content that goes viral changes from platform to platform and day to day, and you just never quite know what YouTube video or TikTok sound is going to climb the ranks overnight.
That said, there are definitely some steps you can take to increase your likelihood of going viral and reaching that kind of instant success.
Sure, some brands have those lightning strikes that shoot them to stardom overnight — and no one can guess where lightning will strike. But when you choose to partner with a digital content creator, rather than focusing mostly on ads and advertising, you’re putting out lightning rods, which means even if you can’t guess the exact position of the next burst, you’re a lot more likely to be ready for it.
Content creators already have huge platforms and brand awareness and may even be going viral on a regular basis, which means you have a pretty good chance of seeing quick growth from your business.
You’ll want to consider this when deciding exactly what and how you’re utilizing a content creator and content strategy. If you have a brand or product launch, a pop-up store, or an event coming up, that might be a good time to try to put your brand out into the universe.
It Helps You Build Your Online Presence
Even if you don’t go viral overnight, there are still so many benefits to working with an influencer or digital content creator, including your social media presence. An online content creator is useful for sending potential customers over to your digital platforms, where they’re more likely to interact with and interact with your content.
The more they do this, the more your content will be shared with them in the future, and the more likely they will be to utilize your products or programs. It’s especially easy since all the content creator will have to do is @ your brand or share a link, and with a few clicks, a whole lot of people are hanging out in your house.
There are a lot of different ways to customize and personalize this marketing strategy to your particular business needs, like sending customers to your specific podcast or online courses, sharing discounts if they sign up for your mailing list, or making sure they know when you’re going live with new product launches.
And all that traffic is easy to monitor in your social media metrics pages, which means you can easily track your growth. No matter your specific social media goals and plans, a digital content creator can give you a boost.
Conclusion
It can be tricky to bring in or partner with digital content creators, but this type of content can be useful for brands looking to develop and grow. It allows for a sense of authenticity and accessibility, and can help you target audiences that will appreciate and enjoy your products. With influencer partnerships, you’ll have a higher chance of going viral, more ability to interact with your customers, and a lot of opportunities for growing your social networks.
These are just a few different ways that forging the right influencer and content creator partnerships can work for your ecommerce, educational, or creative brand — and 10PM Curfew has the rest.
We’re the team you can trust for the latest in digital media trends, SEO, and influencer marketing, and we’re sharing a closer look at what you need to do to boost your social presence and reach the customers who will really dig your vibe. Start working with our team today.
Sources:
Understanding Influencer Marketing And Why It Is So Effective | Forbes
6 Powerful Ways To Build (And Maintain) Your Business’s Credibility | Forbes
When Your Content Goes Viral: What It Means And How To Use It To Grow Your Business | LinkedIn
3 Reasons Why Authenticity is Key to Your Business Success | LinkedIn