16
marketing your brand
MARKETING YOUR BRAND
Notes from a PR & Social Media Marketing Specialist
How to connect with influencers this holiday season, and why are influencer partnerships important during the holiday season? By Meghan Sperry - Socialite Media
I
t’s exciting to be in a world where technology and social As the temperature drops, the demand for influencers rise. Companies are leaning more and more on influencers to spread the holiday cheer. If you’re unfamiliar with influencers and the impact they make in digital marketing, let me fill you in on why companies are paying more than a million dollars for a top influencer to promote their product. An influencer is an online personality who impacts their followers’ purchasing decisions based on the type of content they curate. They have established credibility in a specific niche that their followers also have an interest. They use their online presence through Instagram, Facebook, blogs, and other social media platforms. Usually, Influencers will collaborate with different companies that have a similar brand to their own. Influencers have a major influence over their followers for a reason. Whether that be bringing relatable content to their audience or inspiring them, their followers feel like they know them on a personal level and trust their opinion. (This also includes trusting your favorite influencer on what the yummiest platter or cocktail to serve at the Holiday party is!) An influencer can be any online personality, from a YouTuber to a major celebrity. According to Digital Marketing
Institute, “Christiano Ronaldo comes out top on the highest-paid Instagram influencer list, making $1.6 million per sponsored post. His 318 million followers are privy to several of those sponsored posts, including his paid partnerships ranging from Nike to his own underwear line.” Keep in mind that the more followers on a platform influencers have, the more they can charge a company to agree on a collaboration. Now that you know a bit about why influencers are such a big deal in marketing let’s focus specifically on holiday marketing. It’s very well-known that holiday marketing brings immense amounts of revenue for millions of businesses. According to neilpatel.com, “there is a 50% increase in ad impressions during the Holiday season.” This is no surprise, as everyone is gift shopping or planning holiday gatherings. The competition also rises,
