Influencer marketing is essential to any brand’s marketing mix – big or small. A decade ago, the usual tendency was to go with the ones with the highest reach or number of followers.
However, this is certainly and rapidly changing for many brands beginning to leverage the power of the nano influencers.
Nano influencers are typically between 0-20k and smaller in numbers than the micro; however, they effectively come across as extremely authentic and target niches.
They are leaders and key opinion formers within their circles and thrive on the ‘authentic’ power of word of mouth.
They can deliver on that aspect more naturally than a few bigger creators. This could be because the wider audience assumes that bigger creators engage with brands on a commercial basis only and, hence, are not sharing their honest reviews about it.
Activations with Sephora
As an agency, we have championed and seen incredible success on 100 per cent nano influencer campaigns. One such campaign was for our client Sephora, a beauty retail giant.
To raise more awareness of their limited edition Sephora Favs box, we invited nano influencers to partake in a digital activity.
The activity required each of them to create a piece of content using the box, and the winner (most engaged post) would be a part of their upcoming fall launch event. It worked wonders, as we received over 100 pieces of quality content.
We researched, identified, and onboarded the influencers in just two weeks, and the campaign secured more than 5.4 million in reach.
Some fantastic content creators don’t succeed because companies fail to look beyond the metrics. Content creation is an art, and this campaign showcased that with the winners selected. Geena George started at 800 followers last summer.
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After we identified her for the Sephora summer campaign, she was recognised by other brands and even worked on more projects with Sephora.
Within the year, she’s moved up the chain to a micro-influencer. Like Geena, we have worked with countless nano influencers, and it always starts with us strategically researching and spending several hours to identify the right nano talent for a client. It’s an investment of time, but it does pay off.
As a result of the campaign, whichever nano influencers were identified had an exceptional engagement rate with Sephora’s audience and business results included product sell out.
We have seen great successes on 100 per cent Nano influencer campaigns and are indeed in favour of them.
If you are an agency figuring out how to persuade your clients to integrate more nano-influencers, below are my top reasons to engage more regularly with nano-influencers:
Targeted niches: Nano influencers often focus on very specific niches, giving targeted reach to brands. For instance, vegan influencers can influence the vegan community in a far more credible way, even if their following may typically be low, compared to a more mass macro food influencer
Cost-effectiveness: Nano influencers typically work for a smaller fee or even on a barter basis due to their small follower base, making them more attractive from a cost perspective
Easier to collaborate: Nano creators are exposed to fewer branded opportunities due to their following. To attract more collaborations, they are more open to working with brands when they start, as they are looking for exposure and opportunities. This leads to a smoother collaboration with creators.
Quality content: Followers cannot be a measure of creativity or the quality of content. Some nano creators do an incredible job at content production and creating a certain aesthetic. Unfortunately, they do not get opportunities simply because of their following. Searching and vetting with a visual design eye is crucial as some incredible quality creators exist but are hidden under the algorithm. You must trust your gut on the aesthetics and not look at this as a numbers game.
Look at the stage of your marketing campaign: Nano and micro-influencers can give good results at any campaign stage. However, macro influencers might be ideal at the very launch. To sustain momentum while being mindful of budget constraints, nano influencers can be used from the second phase of any campaign, which works incredibly well for brand recall. Nano influencers are also great in conversions within their target groups.
Nano influencers are emerging as champions of impactful and genuine content. In several experiences for us as an agency, we have seen nano influencers deliver in terms of quality of content, getting traction and influencing their niche communities.
By Nikita Phulwani, Founder at Niggi Marketing Management
