With the rise of social media, influencer marketing has become an efficient way of leveraging other people’s following to increase exposure for your products or services. With so many influencers spread across multiple platforms, how do you figure out which ones can actually help you grow your business? For influencer marketing to be successful, you have to know how to select the right influencers for your brand. Here are a few factors you should consider.

The Niche

You want to be promoting your business through individuals who fit your niche and resonate with your brand. If you choose to work with influencers in different niches simply because they are more affordable or have huge followings, it may come off as inauthentic. At best, this would be ineffective marketing. At worst, it could damage your brand’s reputation. As a general rule of thumb, only work with influencers who would buy your product or service without being paid to do so.

Engagement

If an influencer has a huge fan base and no engagement, you’d be accomplishing nothing by working with them. With available technology, some pseudo-influencers have grown their following with bots, meaning they don’t actually have real, engaging fans. These are people you don’t want to work with. Before working with someone who claims to be an influencer, be sure to examine their follower to engagement ratio, looking closely at likes and comments on their posts. After all, if someone has 100,000 followers and an average of only 50 likes per post, something is fishy.

The Size of the Following

Naturally, you should look at follower count when choosing an influencer to work with. This doesn’t mean you need to work with someone with millions of followers - instead, you should take into account the audience you’re trying to target, how much the influencer will charge you to promote your product or service, and what type of person you want associated with your brand. Perhaps you might want to work with someone who has a following or 50,000 or even 10,000 people instead 5 million. They may even do promotions in exchange for free product.

Do What's Right for You

At the end of the day, influencer marketing can be a great way to build your business and grow your brand. Just be sure to do your research, look out for fakes, and choose to work with people who fit your brand. Remember, follower count isn’t everything. Aim to work with authentic, engaging individuals. All that glitters is not gold.