Micro influencers are influencers who have anywhere between 1,000 – 10,000 followers, and though these numbers seem small in comparison to influencers with millions of followers, marketers have noticed that these accounts give their brands a much higher ROI than their more popular counterparts.
If you are planning to leverage influencer marketing in order to get your brand more customers, then we suggest that you stick to micro influencers! You’ll get more bang for your buck, and may even end up with a following of loyal, passionate consumers.
Here are some reasons why brands that use micro influencers are more successful.
Micro influencers see better engagement
Simply posting a picture about a brand experience is not enough – the audience must interact with the micro-influencer in order to be truly persuaded into buying the product.
Studies conducted by Markerly have shown that accounts that have 1,000 – 10,000 followers generate more likes and comments than accounts with higher followers.
Researchers have noticed that these accounts generate likes at a 4% rate, which, when compared to the 1.7% rate generated by influencers who have 1-10 million followers is a huge amount.
The likes and engagement begin to peak around 10,000 followers, with the rate dropping to 2.7% for accounts that have 10,000 – 100,000 followers.
Micro Influencer’s often have targeted audiences
Think of a gourmet potato chip brand looking to use influencer marketing.
They can either choose to work with a huge celebrity influencer like Kylie Jenner and gain exposure to millions of people, or they can work with a micro influencer who is a chef, like Honeysuckle on Instagram.
Whose audience members are more likely to be interested in this product?
Of course, it’s the latter because Honeysuckle’s audience is made up of people who are genuinely interested in food, snack options, and cooking tips, while Kylie Jenner’s audience is made of people who are only interested in her.
Micro influencers are more affordable
Here’s another huge advantage of using micro influencers over celebrities – they don’t cost as much! So, you end up getting high engagement in the form of likes and comments, a targeted audience that’s bound to buy your product, and improved sales for a much lower price point. And, we’re talking significantly lower!
Most influencers with an upward of 1 million followers charge a minimum of $ 50,000 for a single post. On the other hand, these micro influencers are known to charge a minimum of $ 500 for a brand endorsement.
Sure, at the end of the day, the brand may just have to reach out to more micro influencers to have greater exposure, but with all the added advantages of these accounts, it’s still more value for your money.
Micro influencers are trusted by their audience
Domus, a social media agency in Philadelphia, believes this is key, micro influencers garner more trust than major celebrity influencers do.
As micro influencers come across as regular people, their audiences are more likely to trust their opinions as opposed to the opinion of a celebrity and her social media team.
So, when a micro influencer recommends a product or a brand, they are more likely to try it out than when a celebrity does.
If your brand is looking to get into this space to market itself, then it makes sense to start with these micro influencers, take stock of the kind of engagement you receive, and then plan your future strategies accordingly. All of this requires micro influencer marketing expertise and industry knowledge, for which you can always get in touch with an external agency.