Not all social media influencers are equal. Just because someone has a ton of followers doesn’t mean they actually have any influence on their audience. It’s important that we learn to be critical thinkers that do research and not just believe what we hear and read. Whether you’re a business looking to use an influencer to promote your product, or you’re interested in becoming an influencer yourself, this is the episode for you.
Today’s guest is Neal Schaffer. Neal is an authority on helping innovative businesses digitally transform their sales and marketing. He’s the founder of the digital marketing consultancy PDCA Social and currently serves as a fractional CMO to several companies. He teaches at Rutgers Business School and the Irish Management Institute and is fluent in Japanese and Mandarin Chinese. Neal is a popular keynote speaker internationally and has also authored four sales and marketing books including his latest, The Age of Influence.
Show Notes:
- [1:34] - Neal shares his background and how he began working with social media influencers around 2017.
- [2:29] - It is a huge industry with a lot of money being thrown at it and it is very easy to dupe people.
- [2:55] - Neal shares the statistic that there’s more than a billion dollars in fraud in the industry.
- [3:15] - There’s no real way to tell if someone’s followers and engagement are real or fake because you don’t have access to their account.
- [4:03] - Influencers have to deliver. Neal explains how social media really works and what questions he asks when looking deeply at influencer profiles.
- [5:30] - People have to be smart enough and to have a critical mind and analyze what they see. Don’t take anything at face value.
- [6:37] - Neal compares looking into a social media influencer or someone who seems to be an influencer to shopping on Amazon.
- [7:30] - The book The Age of Influence by Neal Schaffer answers a lot of questions for business owners looking to potentially hire an influencer.
- [8:09] - Neal describes how influencer marketing works and what a lot of business owners assume it is like.
- [9:21] - If you are going to reach out to someone to promote your product, ask them honestly if they’ve used your product. If they don’t care about your product, why would you want them to promote it? Reach out to the right people.
- [10:39] - Chris shares “influencer fails.” If you treat an influencer like you are hiring them for a project with specific details and restrictions, the worse and less genuine the content is going to be.
- [11:29] - Influencers can create better content that any business so restricting them is counterproductive.
- [12:41] - When it is a cut and paste, people can see that. You would be introducing a foreign element into their community.
- [13:51] - Neal and Chris discuss government involvement in influencer marketing and the potential future in regulations.
- [14:52] - Neal shares that as a content creator himself, he has been approached by businesses who say they want to work with him but they do not want him to use the term “sponsored.”
- [15:47] - Disclosures are required but the post can still be genuine.
- [16:31] - Neal suggests some ways to engage with and develop genuine relationships with influencers that will help in the long run.
- [17:42] - Good influencers turn down the sponsorships and product promotions that don’t make sense for their own brand.
- [19:49] - Becoming an influencer is a long haul. Becoming more influential as a side hustle is more realistic. You’re not going to become a millionaire overnight. Because it is a long haul, it needs to be something you are passionate about.
- [21:14] - Because you are passionate about your niche, you draw people who are also passionate about it and over time you will influence them.
- [22:46] - As an influencer, keep a short list of brands that you would love to have sponsor you and work to keep your passion clear to draw the followers that will connect with you.
- [24:26] - There’s no shortcut to the process of becoming an influencer. It is hard work but with strategy it can happen.
- [25:50] - There are going to be people that push back. Part of building fans is standing up for your niche.
- [27:04] - Your profile is your space. If someone is invading your space with negative comments, it is totally okay to delete and block. Your community will likely support you.
- [27:48] - Neal tells a story about a game he plays on his phone and how it is similar to taking care of your community of followers.
- [29:26] - If you are a business owner, influencers are an excellent opportunity. If you are a consumer, treat influencers like Amazon product reviews. If you want to become an influencer, don’t do it for the money. Do it for the passion.
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