As a small business owner, there are many obstacles to face in getting started and running optimally.  One of the moving parts of a business plan is marketing and advertising.  Over the past four decades, finding what works in advertising has changed.  So, how is a small business to grow and do so with organic engagement?   Sweeping the marketing world is micro-influencers.

Aside from the traditional forms of an advertisement such as radio and television, there are social media platforms to spread the word about your product or business and this is where you will find micro-influencers. The question is which platform to use, timing, cost and finding the right micro-influencers.

Micro-influencers Are Important to Business

This isn’t a celebrity who takes your product and says a few words as an endorsement.  These influencers are consumers and they garner engagements in a nontraditional sense via social media.  It is a way to organically connect with your target audience through a consumer who posts and shares their opinions about your product or service on social media.  How can a small business work with them?

• Engage with them on their platform and show genuine interest in their stories.
• Have a campaign ready when you contact them.
• Are they rock star social media gurus? Consider allowing them to take over your social media accounts for a designated amount of time.
• Send product samples out so they can share their experience with their followers during your campaign.
• Ask what their preferred method of engagement is. Videos?  Photographs?
• Find out what their fee is per post.

The secret to micro-influencers is that it is not as easy measuring quantitative data as other forms of social media advertising.  What everyone is “talking about” and recognizing which social media platforms provide the most value, engagement and benefit for your given goals.  It takes a little time to measure the engagements received versus qualitative data of traditional advertising on social media.  Here are some steps a small business can take to get started in finding what works.

• Search hashtags relevant to your product or service.
• Engage and follow potential influencers and check out how many followers they have.
• Purchase brand monitoring services to know what keywords, topics and thoughts are being shared.
• Read the responses of an influencers followers from sharing a product.

Cost of Marketing

A smaller business may not have a large pool of monetary support to operate from to satisfy expensive television and radio ads.  Social media is a more favorable avenue and there is where the influencers are.  Here are some things to consider:

1. Do you have a one-year plan, or do you need to operate month to month?
2. Target audience- Who do you want to reach?
3. If your product is seasonal or can it be marketed all year long?
4. Do you have the staff to manage all your advertising or would you need help from a marketing agency?
5. Budget to pay fees for social media management software for you and/or your staff.

Social Media Platforms

Now you have a few ideas here are some platforms to consider for advertising and what the costs are.  Below are the costs of different platforms:

Cost per Click

• Facebook $.51
• Instagram- $1.28
• Twitter $.53
• LinkedIn- $5.61

Cost Per 1,000 Impressions

• Facebook- $9.06
• Instagram – $6.70
• Twitter- $5.76
• LinkedIn- $6.05

Say, for example, Company ABC finds 30 influencers with 50,000 followers each who will share the company’s information on Instagram for $250 each.

1.5 Million followers through Instagram @ $7,500

1.5 Million impressions through Instagram @ $10,050

This is an apple to oranges comparison because typically metrics are measured by a quantifier.  With micro-influencers would be more difficult because it is more qualitative data, however, paid advertising is a bit more expensive if you look at it from this perspective.

B2B vs. B2C

It is interesting to note that things are changing in terms of how much market share each platform is getting for advertising.  Facebook has seen a decline in how many marketers plan to use them.  In addition, there are places like Instagram that are seeing an increase in their B2C advertising.

For example, a company that markets its products and services straight to the consumer in a niche market may benefit from engagement and better cost having several micro-influencers on Instagram.

A company that markets directly to businesses may enjoy having both paid social media and influencers.  These variables are subjective, and it is important to test which feature and platform will be ideal given the product or service. A manufacturing company that sells an array of industrial products to business for production may have more success to advertise on social media and mix micro-influencers in from other businesses who have used the equipment.

It seems though that for small businesses in a niche market that targets consumers would have more success in using several micro-influencers on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube etc. versus purchasing paid advertisements.

Any business large or small can have the luxury of having a micro-influencer as a part of marketing.   They are your cheerleaders and could be the most pivotal aspect to the growth of your small business.  The secret to micro-influencers is any business can use this avenue, and it is about brand building as much as it is building a relationship with your influencers and your customers.  The measurement is more qualitative than quantitative.  For the long-term success and growth of your brand, implementing a few micro-influencers could make a difference in how successful your business becomes.

V Eight Marketing

At V Eight Marketing, our goal is to bring relevant information to our clients and assist them in attaining their goals.  What do you think about having a micro-influencer?  We would love to connect with you and learn about your business.

Dawson, Corie, et al. “Facebook Advertising Cost by Industry 2018.” Fit Small Business, 22 Apr. 2019, fitsmallbusiness.com/how-much-does-facebook-advertising-cost/.

“How Much Do Ads Cost On Instagram, Facebook, Twitter & LinkedIn? | Falcon. Io”. Falcon. Io, 2019, https://www.falcon.io/insights-hub/topics/social-media-roi/how-much-do-ads-cost-on-facebook-instagram-twitter-and-linkedin-in-2018/.

Stelzner, Michael. “2019 Social Media Marketing Industry Report”. Social Media Marketing | Social Media Examiner, 2019, https://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/social-media-marketing-industry-report-2019/.