Who would be a better source for travel tips: Anthony Bourdain or Rachel Ray? While Rachel Ray is a seasoned traveler, Mr. Bourdain’s reputation as a travel expert is unmatched. From Spain and China to Seattle and Japan, his extensive journeys, many of which are well-documented, make him the ultimate travel guru.

Picture this: you’re a hotel owner, and Anthony Bourdain raves about your establishment on his social media. The impact on your business would be monumental!

While the odds of such high-profile endorsements are slim, it doesn’t mean you can’t leverage the power of social media influencers to promote your business to a shared target audience. But how do you find these influencers, and who are they? This article addresses these questions and more! Let’s start with the basics.

Defining a Social Media Influencer

A social media influencer shapes opinions and behaviors through their online presence. While figures like Donald Trump and Justin Bieber might come to mind, influencers exist in every industry. This presents a golden opportunity for your business to identify, connect with, and utilize these influencers to boost sales, generate leads, and ultimately, increase revenue.

Done right, this marketing strategy can be incredibly effective. Did you know that word-of-mouth marketing sway 20% to 50% of purchasing decisions? Reflect on your own buying habits. A recommendation from someone you trust likely carries weight, right? A Twitter study revealed that a whopping 40% of Twitter users make purchases directly influenced by influencer tweets.

In a nutshell, social media influencers can help you:

• Expand your brand’s reach
• Enhance your company’s credibility
• Drive sales, generate leads, and increase conversions

These are goals every marketer dreams of achieving! Now that you recognize the power of social media influencers, you’re probably wondering: Who are the key players in my industry, and how do I find them? Don’t worry; we’ve got you covered!

RELATED: 19 PPC Influencers You Need to Follow (& Their Best Advice)

Identifying Social Media Influencers in Your Industry

Finding the right influencers is crucial for success in influencer marketing. However, before diving in, it’s essential to target the right influencers.

Step One: Define Your Target Audience

Who are you trying to reach? You likely have a good grasp of your audience from existing marketing efforts. Now, delve deeper into their interests to understand who they follow and where they consume information.

For instance, if your target market is work-from-home mothers in their 30s, research who they follow online, where they read reviews, their preferred social media platforms, news sources, and so on.

When identifying potential influencers, ensure their audience aligns with yours. For example, if you sell SEO software, don’t assume partnering with SEO guru Rand Fishkin is the answer. Your audience might be new to SEO and unfamiliar with him. Perhaps an influencer specializing in small business advice would be a better fit.

If you cater to multiple audiences, you might need multiple influencers. Focus on your primary audience first and expand from there.

Research is Key!

With a clear understanding of your audience’s influencers, it’s time to track them down. Luckily, several tools can help you uncover these influential figures, including: Buzzsumo Buzzsumo offers an influencer suite for discovering, following, connecting with, and analyzing influencer data. Their robust search engine pinpoints key influencers by topic and location, and additional tools facilitate outreach efforts. Buzzsumo even allows data export for use in other platforms or reports. Whether you’re targeting Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, this tool delivers.

Although Buzzsumo is a paid platform, they offer a free 7-day trial—a fantastic opportunity to experience its power firsthand. Followerwonk (FREE) This completely free tool from Followerwonk (Moz) helps you discover Twitter influencers. Search for Twitter profiles or bios using relevant keywords, and refine your search by location, name, or URL.

Search results display a list of Twitter influencers, including their tweet count, follower count, following count, account age, and social authority.

Followerwonk also allows you to create lists of potential influencers for engagement. Utilize Twitter lists to organize and track these individuals and streamline your outreach efforts.

Hootsuite (FREE!) Hootsuite, my preferred social media management platform, provides a free influencer tool that leverages their search streams to identify social media influencers by monitoring relevant conversations. How cool is that? You can then compile a Twitter list directly within the platform, organizing them into an easily trackable stream for initiating your social media engagement strategy. TrendSpottr If Instagram is your target audience’s go-to platform, look no further! Developed by the brilliant minds at TrendSpottr (Hootsuite), this app helps you spot trends—including trending influencers.

TrendSpottr uncovers photos, videos, and influencers for any tag or topic. It also provides tools to connect with key influencers, track trending hashtags, curate lists of popular tags, and share trending content. At only $4.99 per month, TrendSpottr is a steal! Google This one might seem obvious, but good old-fashioned Google searches can be surprisingly effective for finding influencers in your niche. Researching your audience’s interests often leads to LinkedIn groups, Reddit threads, or popular blogs and websites frequented by your target demographic. Tap into the power of the world’s most popular search engine to unearth these influential figures. Now what? Let’s explore the next step: engaging with these influencers.

5 Tips for Engaging with Social Media Influencers

You’ve identified the right influencers; now, how do you pique their interest? Here are some tips for making a positive impression:

Tip #1: Avoid Aggressive Outreach

Resist the urge to bombard your target influencer with messages, retweets, and shares. Liking 25 of their Instagram posts from 2015 is more likely to be off-putting than flattering.

Instead, adopt a strategic and thoughtful approach to your initial outreach. Let your first message simmer for a while. There’s no need to come across as an overzealous salesperson.

Here’s a less “salesy” way to approach outreach:

Tip #2: Participate in Online Chats Your Influencer Frequents

Countless online conversations happen across various platforms. Active social media influencers participate in many of these discussions. It’s how they maintain their influence! Whether it’s on Reddit, LinkedIn Groups, or niche webinars, you can find where your target influencers hang out online and join the conversation.

Twitter chats are a prime example. These weekly, real-time Twitter conversations revolve around a shared hashtag.

For example, #SmallBizChat occurs every Wednesday at 8 PM EST. Typically, a designated moderator guides the conversation with questions. This strategy allows you to join in, participate casually, and gradually familiarize your target influencers with your Twitter handle. This way, when you do reach out, it won’t seem random, increasing the likelihood of a response.

There’s a Twitter chat for practically every industry. Don’t believe me? Check out this extensive list!

Here’s an even better way to connect with social media influencers:

Tip #3: Establish a Personal Connection (When Possible)

Nothing beats a genuine, face-to-face interaction. You might think, “But these are social media people!” And while we live in a world glued to screens, nothing can replace the impact of personal connection. Study after study confirms that in-person interactions are far more effective than online communication.

This doesn’t mean showing up at your target influencer’s doorstep with a 45-slide PowerPoint presentation. Instead, if they’re local, keep tabs on their social media to identify industry events they’re attending. Register for the same events and aim for a natural, organic interaction.

Prepare a brief introduction and some talking points, but focus on listening and asking questions about their work (people love to talk about themselves!). Keep the initial conversation casual and exchange business cards for future outreach. People are far more receptive to someone they’ve met at a networking event than a random LinkedIn message.

While flying across the country to meet an influencer might be excessive, if they’re attending an event in your vicinity, seize the opportunity for a personal connection.

Tip #4: Leverage Your Network

Approach influencer outreach like job hunting: use your existing network to connect with the people you want to know.

This strategy might seem obvious, but it’s often overlooked. Browse your target influencer’s social media connections to identify any mutual contacts. The world is smaller than you think, especially within the same industry. Reach out to your shared connection and request an introduction. This approach ensures the influencer doesn’t feel ambushed by a random message.

Tip #5: Organize and Track Outreach Efforts

Finally, diligently track and manage your outreach to avoid overwhelming or forgetting about potential influencers. Since you’ll likely connect with influencers at different times, keep track of outreach dates, times, methods, and the outcome of each attempt. This ensures consistent, well-timed efforts without becoming a nuisance. With meticulous planning, attention to detail, and persistent outreach, you’ll capture the attention of your target influencers and encourage engagement. What’s next?

5 Strategies to Leverage Social Media Influencers and Grow Your Audience

Now that you’ve established a rapport with key influencers, it’s time to leverage these relationships for audience growth. Remember: Treat these relationships like your most valued personal connections.

Imagine a colleague invites you for after-work drinks every few weeks, but you never reciprocate. Do you think the friendship would last? Unlikely! They’d eventually stop asking, and the relationship would remain strictly professional.

So, should you invite social media influencers for cocktails? Not necessarily. Instead, offer them something valuable in return for their efforts. For instance, if you want them to write a guest blog post, offer to do the same for their blog. Alternatively, propose a collaboration on a project of mutual interest (a win-win situation).

So, what type of collaborations can you explore with your newfound influencer connections? Here are a few ideas to get you started:

Idea #1: Host a Joint Social Media Contest

Running a joint contest is a fun and effective way to partner with influencers and expand both of your audiences! You’ve probably run promotional giveaways before, perhaps for events like Black Friday. While these are beneficial, partnering with an influencer can significantly reduce your workload and potentially double, triple, or even quadruple your email entries!

As a nutrition enthusiast, I follow numerous nutritional bloggers on Instagram. One recurring theme is their frequent participation in co-marketing campaigns (which often convince me to try new products!).

Consider this Instagram giveaway example from one of my favorite nutrition influencers, Rachael’s Good Eats. She partnered with Perfect Bar, a nut butter bar company, to cross-promote their brands and host a giveaway. To enter, Rachael’s followers had to like, comment on, and follow Perfect Bar. The prize? Three free boxes of Perfect Bars! (And let me tell you, I’m kicking myself for not winning!).

Rachael’s post garnered over 10,000 likes—a resounding success for both parties. Perfect Bar returned the favor by featuring Rachael on their feed.

Idea #2: Collaborate on a Creative Project

Fair warning: This idea requires more strategic planning and effort, but the payoff can be huge. Consider co-creating a product or app! Developing a tangible, marketable item with your influencer strengthens your partnership and ensures ongoing exposure to both of your audiences.

A prime example is beauty brands collaborating with influencers on limited-edition products promoted on platforms like YouTube and Instagram. Take Kathleen Lights, a beauty influencer with 2 million Instagram followers and 3.6 million YouTube subscribers. She collaborated with Colourpop, a smaller makeup brand, to create an eyeshadow palette. As you can see, her audience is loving it!

Idea #3: Co-host an Industry Event

Not ready to dive headfirst into product development? No worries! There are simpler ways to strengthen your influencer relationships before venturing into full-blown revenue-generating partnerships. Co-hosting an industry event is an excellent icebreaker, allowing you to connect, share ideas, and solidify your bond.

Consider “Drunk User Testing,” a recurring tech event in Boston co-hosted by startups Appcues and Wistia. This event brings together Boston tech enthusiasts to enjoy drinks, test new software, and provide candid feedback (fueled by those aforementioned drinks). While not directly focused on lead generation, this event fosters relationships, encourages idea-sharing, and strengthens the bond between the two companies.

Idea #4: Cross-Promote Special Discounts and Offers

Imagine you own a golf course, and you’ve connected with an influencer who sells golf apparel—a match made in marketing heaven! This presents a prime opportunity for a joint discount promotion. Everyone loves a good deal! By incentivizing their website visitors with a 25% discount on a new golf outfit when they book a round at your course, you create a mutually beneficial campaign.

West Elm, a modern furniture retailer, is a pro at this! They partnered with Leesa, a mattress company, to offer a 15% discount on Leesa mattresses and a $50 discount on West Elm purchases. This cross-promotion exposed both brands to a wider audience.

Idea #5: Partner on a Webinar or Video Series

For B2B businesses, product co-creation or large discounts might not make sense. However, a joint webinar or video series can be highly effective. This inbound marketing approach allows for ongoing collaboration with influencers, exchanging ideas and boosting lead generation for both parties.

For instance, nexus-security once partnered with Moz founder Rand Fishkin on a content marketing webinar. Both Larry Kim and Rand Fishkin are prominent figures in the online marketing world, each with their area of expertise. This partnership allowed them to tap into new yet relevant audiences.

Feeling inspired? Go forth and connect with your influencer crushes! The potential for business growth through these relationships is limitless. Use this guide as your roadmap to influencer marketing success!