Working with influencers can be an incredibly financially reward experience for some brands, and a frustrating nightmare for others. A great brand-influencer relationship can thrust your business into the international spotlight and near overnight success for pennies on the dollar of what a traditional promotional campaign would cost. Meanwhile a mismanaged or ill-planned promotional campaign can devour promotional budgets, distance already invested customers and leave you picking up the pieces of your brands identity.

How do you avoid making rookie mistakes and get the most out of your influencers? Taylor Lagace, co-founder of Kynship, shows you what brands need to have to enjoy a happy and successful business-influencer relationship.

Put your best foot forward

Some inexperienced brands will presume that dealing with influencers is entirely transactional; you hire them to promote your product, they mention it X amount of times, they get content, free merch and/or money, thus completing the contract.

This is the number one major mistake you can make, says Lagace. 

These promoters get flooded with such requests constantly, and are often in a position to pick and choose who they want to work with. if you don't grab their attention, make your brand engaging for them personally, and get them invested in your brand culture, you'll never land  a major personality. 

• Get to know them a little better. Don't just contact influencers because you've heard of them and they're available, look for those who share your outlook, or have an interest in what you can offer. Show that you bothered to get to know them, and can offer something they would actually enjoy.
• Cast a wide net. There are untold thousands of influencers across the world, and in every field. Even with a super-specific product, you may be looking at potentially hundreds of would partners, of which you can expect a 20-30% response rate. The more you snare, the better your product will do in the market, so try to entice as many as you can while retaining strict quality and content control.
• Treat them as your best customer. You want your influencers to be as excited about your products are your customers, so everything you have them promote must first appeal to them before they can make it appealing to others. Give them the best unboxing experience, send them surprise items, and get them to identify with your company as a personal choice, not a business decision. Sell yourself, sell your brand, sell your product, and they'll amplify your message to the world.
• Let them get hands on. Involve them in product roll-outs and give-aways for items they're not even promoting but would likely enjoy. Allow their natural curiosity and showmanship to do the rest, and enjoy the essentially free positive press.
• No restrictions, just suggestions. Don't tell an influencer what you specifically don't want them to post, this can create a sense of negativity and suspicion about the quality of your product. Instead, focus on the messages you do want them to pass along, and listen to how they respond.
• Always follow up. Your relationship doesn't have to end after they've posted your promotional content. Let them know how happy you are they enjoyed the product and shared it with their audience, and request if you can  have usage rights to the content involved for future publishing, with additional residuals for the influencer. This will incentivize them to continue promoting your brand even if you no longer send them any products to post about.

Start your relationship off on the right foot, and influencers will carry your brand far.

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