Influencer Marketing is the industry that has been through a lot of innovation & evolution — that too in just a last couple of years.
The opportunist Industry remains the most debatable battleground on the Internet; with people debating upon the legitimacy of its operations.
Time & again veil is being lifted from fake influencers boasting Millions of followers & engagement.
You may wonder; why am I contemplating what’s well-known?
Think of it as building the foundation upon which I will justify the emergence & existence of Micro & Nano Influencers.
Micro & Nano, as the name suggests are set of influencers not boasting millions of followers; i.e they are not Mega Influencers. Think of them as breakout influencers who are growing in the plain sight — exposing their vulnerabilities; while making sure that they seem relevant to the niche.
These aren’t the influencers who are on the hunt to tap multiple niches at once. Instead, these influencers focus exclusively on a single niche; at times even on a micro niche.
Your brand can go to unfathomable lengths by leveraging Micro influencers & Nano Influencers in the ongoing Social Media Marketing Strategy.
Let’s first dive into Micro Influencers.
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Who are Micro Influencers?
There’s not an industry accepted number. But it is usually presumed that they have followers from around 10,000–50,000.
Under ideal circumstances; i.e if we factor-in the superficial understanding of Social Media Influencers; we can’t help but flag them as people trying to become influencers, who are in pursuit.
But data states otherwise. \_(ツ)_/
Welcome to the new age of Influencer Marketing. The influencers having followers under the bracket of 10–15/50K are accounted as Micro Influencers. These influencers are capable of acquiring brand endorsements from bigger brands like Dunkin’ Donuts.
You don’t have to take my word for it, just check out this screenshot.
In the above image, you can see an Influencer endorsing Dunkin’Donuts. The username of this Instagram Influencer is @josheatsphilly. It’s 2019, and now he has 13.7K followers on his Instagram. Which doesn’t seem like a lot; but managing Brand Endorsement from a brand like Dunkin’Donuts is an incredible feat to achieve.
Everything is Sunshine & Rainbows; but the question begs, why to hire Micro Influencers in the first place??
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The #1 reason why Micro Influencers are being leveraged lies in the Unique Value Proposition they entail.
- Authenticity:
Micro Influencer as I have explained; don’t have a ridiculous number of followers. They have a very minuscule following; if you are to compare & contrast with the Industry leading Mega Influencers. The Authenticity lies in the fact that they have very likely earned their followers. They have grown in the plain sight where everyone was observing them grow. They didn’t just appear out of nowhere. - Engagement:
The average engagement rate on Micro Influencer’s content is exceptionally higher than that of Mega Influencers. Just to make the point; let’s calculate the engagement rate of Food & Lifestyle Influencer @josheatsphilly against @ThisisInsiderFood; who is Mega Influencer in the same niche. The calculus to calculate the engagement rate is
Total engagement (Likes + Comments) / Total Followers X 100
Just look at the stark difference. Food Insider despite boasting 2.2M Followers couldn’t get even 1% engagement rate; & yet this Micro Influencer with 13.7K followers gets a 3.11% engagement rate. That’s the piece that brands are after. The engagement rate symbolizes ROI brands expects having paid to influencers. in case of Micro Influencers; it is very likely that Micro Influencers are connected on a deeper level with the followers. Their followers consist of people they often cross paths with; they could be their friends & peers. The higher engagement rate they receive then only makes sense.
Side note: The aim of this blog post is not to diss Mega Influencers, or imply that all of them are fake.
List of well-known Brands using Micro-Influencers
- Dunkin’Donuts
- Coca Cola
- Mercedes Benz
- Fiji Water
- Sperry
- Audible
- Glosier
Now, let’s take a look at Nano Influencers; the newer breed of Influencers.
Who are Nano Influencers?
The numbers would startle you, but get this — Nano Influencers has 1000–5,000 Followers.
Today, we are finally addressing the age of authenticity where the number of followers is inconsequential.
The Superpower of Nano Influencers is that; brands get to reach the everyday regular people because of them.
As you can imagine, the authenticity level of Nano Influencers will be shooting off the roof.
A Nano Influencer could be someone who is popular is School/College and attracts a massive following because of that.
To name a few, these would be the 6 crucial benefits of leveraging Nano Influencers.
Now let’s take a look at Nano Influencers being leveraged by Saas Solution Providers
Saas Solution Providers are people who have built a digital product that makes life convenient. To drive their product they require people to opt-in for their premium plans.
Recommended: Nano Influencer: Next Big Thing in Influencer Marketing
Some examples of Saas Providers in Digital Marketing Niche
- SEMRush
- MobileMonkey
- Ahrefs
- MailChimp
- ConvertKit
- Unmetric
Their best bet at driving the product via influencer marketing are Bloggers. Bloggers who are blogging exclusively in a niche to which their product caters.
Saas Solution Providers attract Niche Specific Influencers actively as well as passively.
Most of the Saas Solutions in the market have its affiliate programs that pay handsomely.
SEMRush has its affiliate program called “BERush” which pays 40% Commission. The basic plan of SEMRush costs $99.95/ Month. I.e $39.98 per order.
Even the bloggers that are still in infancy stage; whose blog hasn’t grown disproportionately, can enroll for these affiliate programs.
They can create review posts; where they review these tools & suggest users purchase the product. Every resulting purchase pays them bountifully.
Nano Influencers earning as a result of Affiliate Programs or adding blog posts is an example of passive influencer marketing.
Larry Kim is great at leveraging Nano Influencers/Bloggers to drive MobileMonkey which is a Facebook Messenger Chatbot Product.
Bloggers at the infancy stage aren’t quite looking for monetary rewards; they seek acknowledgment, approval & appreciation. When titans like Larry Kim share their content on Twitter; it does make a lasting impact.
Larry Kim is leveraging bloggers to drive MobileMonkey his latest Product. Bloggers who are already blogging good content about MobileMonkey or chatbots, Larry shares their articles over Twitter.
That is Twitter Marketing 101 right there. Twitter is a place where brands thrive & articles make a good choice of content to be shared. In fact, if you just tap search to hover over the news; you will find that articles are enlisted as a way to consume news-based content.
Aspiring bloggers get enormous exposure because their blog content is shared by Titans like Larry, SEMRush & more.
Leveraging Nano Influencers via blogging is one the most cost-effective way to push product & arrive at a win-win situation. Bloggers get exposure & appreciation; whereas the brand enjoys a share of voice, brand recall, brand conversations.
How can Nano Influencers be roped in for Social Media Contests? And Why?
The KPI of any Social Media Contest in measured by the number of participation & the reach which the contest manages to achieve.
Nano Influencers though having the meager following; still has the influence. If they are roped in for leading an ongoing social media contest; then chances are that more people will join them in the pursuit. People following Nano Influencers include friends, peers, family & relatives along with the additional tribe they have attracted.
Nano Influencers tend to attract brands that aren’t large or are its infancy; this includes Startups.
Another set of Brands that Nano Influencers attract are Saas Solution Providers. These Saas Solution Providers include small & large.
Smaller brands securing a brand endorsement from Nano Influencers is a Win-Win situation for both the parties.
Why it’s a big deal for smaller brands or emerging brands to secure Nano Influencers?
Here’s the deal, Nano Influencers aren’t gonna ask for million dollars to endorse a particular product. The fee they charge is minuscule.
A brand at its infancy that wants to grow big can factor-in 20 Nano Influencers for its ongoing Influencer Marketing Campaign. Despite having to pay 20 Nano Influencer would be much reasonable than having to pay a Mega Influencer.
What would be the results?
- Share of voice
- Branded Hashtag Proliferation
- Massive Participation by both Influencers & Target Customers
- Brand Awareness
- Insane post engagement
- Brand Recall
Now let’s take a look at Nano Influencers being leveraged by Saas Solution Providers
Saas Solution Providers are people who have built a digital product that makes life convenient. To drive their product they require people to opt-in for their premium plans.
Some examples of Saas Providers in Digital Marketing Niche
- SEMRush
- MobileMonkey
- Ahrefs
- MailChimp
- ConvertKit
- Unmetric
Their best bet at driving the product via influencer marketing are Bloggers. Bloggers who are blogging exclusively in a niche to which their product caters.
Saas Solution Providers attract Niche Specific Influencers actively as well as passively.
Most of the Saas Solutions in the market have its affiliate programs that pay handsomely.
SEMRush has its affiliate program called “BERush” which pays 40% Commission. The basic plan of SEMRush costs $99.95/ Month. I.e $39.98 per order.
Even the bloggers that are still in infancy stage; whose blog hasn’t grown disproportionately, can enroll for these affiliate programs.
They can create review posts; where they review these tools & suggest users purchase the product. Every resulting purchase pays them bountifully.
Nano Influencers earning as a result of Affiliate Programs or adding blog posts is an example of passive influencer marketing.
Larry Kim is great at leveraging Nano Influencers/Bloggers to drive MobileMonkey which is a Facebook Messenger Chatbot Product.
Bloggers at the infancy stage aren’t quite looking for monetary rewards; they seek acknowledgment, approval & appreciation. When titans like Larry Kim share their content on Twitter; it does make a lasting impact.
Larry Kim is leveraging bloggers to drive MobileMonkey his latest Product. Bloggers who are already blogging good content about MobileMonkey or chatbots, Larry shares their articles over Twitter.
That is Twitter Marketing 101 right there. Twitter is a place where brands thrive & articles make a good choice of content to be shared. In fact, if you just tap search to hover over the news; you will find that articles are enlisted as a way to consume news-based content.
Aspiring bloggers get enormous exposure because their blog content is shared by Titans like Larry, SEMRush & more.
Leveraging Nano Influencers via blogging is one the most cost-effective way to push product & arrive at a win-win situation. Bloggers get exposure & appreciation; whereas the brand enjoys a share of voice, brand recall, brand conversations.
If you have come across a Nano or Micro Influencer Marketing Campaign that intrigued you, then do share in the comment section.
If this article has in any way changed your perspective about Influencer Marketing then do share it with your tribe on Twitter & LinkedIn
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Kunjal Chawhan founder of Decode Digital Market, a Digital Marketer by profession, and a Digital Marketing Niche Blogger by passion, here to share my knowledge