Aligning influencer partnerships with brand objectives
By Seun Johnson
Influencer partnerships have become a cornerstone of brand strategy especially in today’s digital marketing era. However, the effectiveness of these collaborations often hinges on one critical factor which is alignment.
When a brand’s vision and goals seamlessly integrate with an influencer’s values and audience, the results will not only be impressive but also transformative.
Influencer marketing is not only about leveraging popularity. It is about creating authentic connections that resonate with target audiences. A misaligned influencer partnership can damage a brand’s credibility, while a well-aligned one amplifies its message, builds trust and drives conversions.
Brands that really mean business are expected to articulate their goals before engaging with influencers. Understanding the objectives will enable them to identify influencers whose content and audiences align with these aims.
According to Mr. Lanpe Omoyele, Managing Director, Nitro 121, the choice of influencer needs to align with the brand, the brand essence, the brand ethos and objectives. He said that should be the starting point. The marketing and advertising expert who shared this view with MARKETING EDGE at his GRA office in Ikeja Lagos maintained that once there is a disconnect, there will be a problem for the brand.
“But even when there is an alignment, the point is the execution. Does it actually have impact on the brand objectives? So for influencer marketing, there is a real need for brands to be much more careful in the selection of the influencers that they use and how they implement the influencer marketing strategies. I believe there’s a gap at the moment, but there’s a real opportunity for brands to get better in the utilization of influencer marketing as a strategy.
“A lot of money is being spent on influencer marketing and a lot of it is being wasted because it is not having the impact, but it does appear that brands today, have chosen influencer marketing as a key route to go,” he stated.
Meanwhile, not every collaboration between brands and influencers is a success story. Pairing with influencers who lack relevance to the brand or promote conflicting values, can result in public backlash and wasted resources. Taking a cue from this pitfall will greatly help brands refine their selection processes.
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