™Marketing Magazine Issue 9 | Page 19

INFLUENCER MARKETING THE FUTURE OF INFLUENCER MARKETING AND HOW BRANDS CAN SHIFT INTO INFLUENCER RELATIONS A strategic approach to influencer engagement focuses on the relationship with the brand and community over the long term. Influence is a value exchange between brands and influencers at different stages. Enterprise brands that can scale their ability to connect with influencers will also be able to impart influence on niche influencers, making the brand even more influential. LONG TERM RELATIONSHIPS WITH A SMALL GROUP OF INFLUENCERS VS. WORKING TEMPORARILY WITH A WIDE VARIETY OF TALENT While it is possible to engage creators transactionally for short term projects, it is longer term relationships with influencers that drive the best quality engagement and advocacy. When you pay an influencer for their craft, they care about the brand short term. When you build a relationship with an influencer based on shared values, they care about the brand for the long term. THE BEST WAYS FOR BRANDS TO CO-CREATE WITH INFLUENCERS Virtually any kind of content brands create for their audiences can involve collaboration with influencers including text, images, audio and video online and with offline communications. The best ways brands can co-create with influencers is to find the opportunities where brand values and influencer values intersect for their distinct audiences. When brands collaborate in ways that contribute to furthering the interests of participating influencers while also advancing their own goals, everybody wins, especially the audience. Lee Odden is a marketing strategist, author, speaker and bearded world traveler. He’s also CEO of TopRankMarketing.com, a digital marketing agency that serves top B2B brands with “best answer” marketing strategies that integrate content, search, social, influencer marketing and online advertising. Cited by the Wall Street Journal, The Economist and Forbes for his marketing expertise, Lee has evangelized a customer-centric approach to marketing at over 200 events in 17 different countries, through numerous industry publications and an award winning blog at TopRankBlog.com. ADVICE FOR BRANDS ON HOW TO USE INFLUENCER MARKETING GOING FORWARD It’s important to think strategically about where working with influencers fits in brand content and communications. A holistic and strategic view will bring enterprise marketers out of the depths of short term, transactional influencer engagement and surface it to an always on approach that grows relationships. When influencers genuinely care about the common goals with brands, it inspires a level of advocacy and scalable quality content you can’t buy. TULIPMEDIAGROUP.COM | 19