How To Find Outstanding Influencers To Help You Grow

Finding the most best people to represent your business can be overwhelming,. But it doesn’t have to be. With the right strategies and tools, you can unlock the power of social influence, know how to find influencers, and get the most out of influencer marketing.

In this blog, you’ll discover the secrets to finding the perfect influencers for your brand. We’ll walk you through the basics of influencer marketing and what makes an influencer, as well as tips for connecting with influencers, evaluating them, and finding the ones that best fit your target audience and company goals. We’ll also show you how to undertake social listening and identify influencers without breaking the bank on pricey discovery software.

Ready to get started? Let’s dive in!

Why Finding Influencers Matters 

In today’s digital age, influencer marketing has become one of the most powerful marketing strategies. 

What exactly is influencer marketing? Influencer marketing is a form of marketing in which companies partner with influential people in their industry to promote their products or services. Influencers are usually well-known people with a lot of followers on social media. They can be athletes, bloggers, celebrities, professionals, or social media personalities.

Influencer marketing can be a good way for a business to reach and connect with its target audience and new communities. Also, it can cut through the endless noise of ads. You get your message out to a large number of people in a genuine and credible way.

It’s also an effective way to build relationships with influencers and increase brand visibility. By working with influencers, you can make authentic, exciting content that speaks to your target audience and makes them want to take action.

Later we’ll get into the benefits of working with influencers. And help you capture the potential. But for now, let’s get right to how to find the right influencers.

How to Find Influencers

There are multiple methods for identifying spokespeople for your brand. We will cover the six most effective ways how to find influencers. They include social media platforms, influencer software, directories, referrals, live events, and customers.

Social Media Platforms

One of the most popular and common ways to find influencers for marketing is through social media platforms, such as Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. These platforms allow you to search for users by keywords, hashtags, and location. Social platforms also provide information such as the number of followers and engagement rate. 

For example, on Instagram, you can use the search bar and type in keywords related to your brand or industry, then filter the results by accounts with a certain number of followers, specific locations, etc. You can also look at the hashtags used by your competitors or similar brands and see who frequently uses these hashtags.

Similarly, on Twitter, you can use the search bar and type in keywords and hashtags to find users who are tweeting about your industry or niche. You can also use the Twitter advanced search feature to narrow your search.

On TikTok, you can use the search bar and type in keywords, hashtags, or sounds to find users that create and post content related to your brand or industry. You can also use TikTok’s own tools like Creator Fundamentals, Creator Fundamentals Report, and Creator Fundamentals Dashboard to find influencers.

Influencer Marketing Platforms

Influencer marketing platforms are an excellent way for brands to see influencers who align with their values, target audience, and goals. These platforms provide brands with a wide range of tools and features to help them discover, research, and connect with influencers.

There are a few steps. Here is how to find influencers using influencer marketing platforms for brands.

Discovery 

Influencer marketing platforms typically have search functions that let brands discover influencers based on the defined demographics, location, niche, or other criteria. Search filters make finding influencers that align with their target audience easier.

Research

Once brands have discovered influencers, they can research them further to understand their audience and engagement rates. 

Some platforms provide data on influencers’ past campaigns and performance metrics. This data can help brands make better decisions about the best potential marketing partners. It gives them insight into the influencer’s past performance, allowing them to pick the right people to represent them.

Connect 

Influencer marketing platforms allow brands to connect with influencers and start a conversation about potential collaborations. Some platforms also have built-in messaging or email features that make it easy for brands to communicate with influencers.

Automation

Many platforms have automation features that help brands streamline the process of finding and working with influencers. For example, some platforms like Roster allow brands to create campaigns, send proposals, and track performance metrics in one place. (Roster 

Advanced Features

Influencer platforms often offer advanced features such as analytics, campaign management, and tools to optimize your campaign. With these tools, brands can measure and monitor the performance of their marketing. Armed with data, brands can make adjustments as needed to achieve better results.

Our 2023 social media campaign ideas and templates can help you harness the impact of influencers.

Overall, influencer marketing platforms offer a convenient and efficient way for brands to find influencers who align with their brand goals and make the process of working with influencers much more manageable.

Influencer Directories

Although some free influencer directories exist, they may provide less useful data or tools than their paid counterparts.

Searching for influencers by keywords and hashtags on social media sites like Instagram and YouTube allows you to browse their public profiles to get a feel for their following and engagement.

You may use Google to look for bloggers, websites, and social media profiles related to your company, as well as for influencers in your sector or specialty.

However, these free options may not offer as detailed data and analytics as paid platforms do.

Referrals

Referrals can be a powerful means for locating influencers to collaborate with. Instead of relying on online research alone, referrals give that word-of-mouth recommendation from someone you already know and trust. 

Here are a few ways how to find influencers using referrals. It may require effort, but word-of-mouth might actually be the best option.

Personal Connections

Reach out to your network of friends, colleagues, and industry professionals for recommendations. Some might know how to find influencers. Do they have connections any influential people who may be a good fit for your brand? These people may have previously worked with influencers or have personal connections to influencers in your niche.

Referral Programs 

Occasionally influencer marketing platforms and agencies offer referral programs where you can earn rewards or discounts for referring other brands to their services.

Peer-To-Peer Referrals

Influencers you are interested in working with may also be able to refer you to other influencers they have worked with or know in the industry.

By getting a referral, you can save time and resources by working with an influencer that has already been vetted by someone you trust.

Attend Events 

It can be helpful to attend events and conferences and connect with people who may know some suitable influencers. After you have a list of potential candidates, you must look closely to ensure they would be a good fit for your brand. 

You need to ensure their audience is a good fit for your business. And their material reflects your company’s ethos before you agree to collaborate. 

You can tell a lot about a person’s audience by evaluating the number of people who follow them. Look at how their followers interact with their postings and the content they share. Doing so will give you an idea if the influencer is compatible with your brand.

Influential Customers

It’s possible to find influencers from your current customers. One way to do this is by identifying customers who are particularly active on social media and have a large following. You can also look for customers who frequently post about your products or services and seem to be passionate about your brand. Once you’ve identified potential influencers, you can reach out to them to see if they would be interested in working with your brand as an influencer.

Many companies are discovering the Benefits of Using Customers for Influencer Marketing.

Additionally, you can also use social listening tools to identify customers who are already talking about your brand and their audience size, you can also use survey or feedback form in order to find out who are the most satisfied and engaged customers and approach them to be your influencer.

Benefits of Working With Influencers

In many ways, marketing via influencers is superior to traditional methods. It’s a cost-effective way to reach tons of people, build relationships, and increase brand visibility. Some of the main benefits of influencer marketing include the following:

 Increase Reach & Brand Awareness

Working with influencers can help you reach a bigger, more engaged audience and increase your brand’s visibility. Usually, influencers reach a more diverse audience quickly and effectively. Because of this, they can disseminate the brand’s message to those who would not have been exposed to it in any other way.

Boost Website Traffic

Influencers can be a great way to bring more people to your website and get more leads. By leveraging their platform and established audience, influencers can share content related to your business or website, helping to drive more visitors to your page and increase the chances of conversions.

Influencers can help bring more people to a website by talking about products on their social media accounts. If visitors like what they see, they may decide to buy the product or tell their friends about it. Similar to advertisements, companies can also use influencers to let people know about sales or other deals.

Establish Trust & Credibility

Working with influencers can help build trust and credibility for your business, as influencers are seen as experts and trusted sources.

Second, influencer marketing has the potential to increase brand awareness and trust. When they endorse a product or service, followers are more likely to trust the recommendation than if the company itself promotes it.

“Influencers serve as trusted voices for consumers and have built lifestyles online that many people want to mimic. Brands can tap into that.” (Forbes)

Enhance Customer Loyalty

Influencers can enhance customer loyalty.  They promote products and services that align with their values. Create an emotional connection with their audience. And lastly, provide real-time feedback and advice.

Brands leverage this benefit by having influencers create content that resonates with customers. When done right, influencers advertise products customers need and want through helpful advice and reviews. They also engage with potential customers through social media.

All this helps create a sense of trust and loyalty. The end result is more sales and lower customer acquisition costs (CAC).

Additionally, influencers help introduce customers to new products, services, and promotions. This drives even more sales and, in turn, helps lower CAC.

Developing an influencer strategy that includes these activities can help to build trust and loyalty between the brand and its customers, leading to increased sales and repeat business.

Save Money

Influencer marketing is becoming increasingly popular among businesses due to its cost-effectiveness. Not only does it have the potential to reach a huge, targeted audience.

Working with influencers can be cost effective for brands, as it allows them to reach a specific target audience through a trusted source. Also, the marketing approach is often less expensive than traditional forms of advertising like television or print ads. However, it depends on the specific campaign, the influencer being used, and the target audience.

On average, brands have reduced their content spend by 52% by leveraging community-generated content. (The State of Influencer Marketing).

With influencer marketing, businesses can leverage the power of influencers to reach their target audience at a fraction of the cost. Furthermore, influencers often provide unique insight into their industry and can provide feedback on products and services, which can be invaluable in helping businesses refine their strategies.

All in all, influencer marketing is a great, cost-effective way to help companies to grow and reach their target customers. We’re happy to help you find influencers to represent your brand, run campaigns, and manage influencer programs. It’s what we do. Schedule a demo!