Each time you tap on your instagram app, it is highly likely that you will have been targeted by ads through people with large followings. It doesn’t matter whether its new blends of coffee designed to help you to lose your post holiday bulge, or teeth straightening options such as clear aligners- Influencer marketing has taken the world of social media by storm.
Instagram users all over the world are making their living from paid posts and collaborative marketing campaigns designed to meet the most influenced people out there- their large following.
With that, Instagram is the perfect space for advertising for brands. The idea is that influential instagrammers will use their platform to recommend products and services to an audience of loyal followers.
If you want to know how and why Instagram Influencer marketing works, keep reading to find out how.
What is Instagram Influencer Marketing?
Instagram with a large following of engaged users are also known as ‘influencers’. Typically with over 10,000 followers of people who respect them due to their hobbies, lifestyle, job, or style.
Due to the diverse nature of influencers, almost any brand has the option to use an influencer to advertise their product to a particular target demographic or audience.
The rapid growth of potential sales people and marketers on the instragram platform meant that there were huge opportunities for businesses looking to market their products and services, so the idea of ‘paid post’ came from here.
During its first emergence, brands may have sent an influencer a product as a gift in return for a post advertising the product. But as time has gone on and the rapid growth of the platform, influencers saw this as an opportunity to invoice brands for their advertising space on their profiles. As a result, some influences use instagram as their sole source of income.
Why Does Instagram Influencer Marketing Work?
Unlike traditional advertising, influencer marketing allows brands to reach their target audiences in a more genuine way as the advertising comes from somebody that consumers have developed a level of trust for.
The sole focus is all about establishing lasting relationships. Brands build these relationships with influencers who can sell for them due to their relationships with their followers. Influencers will typically share their lives with their followers, creating the illusion of a personal connection with them. So therefore, when an influencer recommends a product or service, it feels as though it is coming by personal recommendation from a friend.
If you follow a chef for their recipes or video content showing you how to cook a range of beautiful dishes, when they post about a dish sponge that they use to clean up after they cook, you are likely to remember the brand next time you need dish sponges due to the recommendation you have grown to trust and feel you have a personal connection with.
Instagram influencer marketing works best through natural and organic advertising and through building authentic relationships with target audiences and demographics.