The Influencer Marketing Currency

August 22, 2019

If you’re new to the digital marketing world (or not) you know how influencer marketing is becoming one of the largest channels of promotion, endorsement, advertising- whatever  you want to call it, it is becoming the channel to have your product be seen, be heard, and if you do it right- be trusted. Because the reason why influencers are so popular is that they’re regular people (well, minus the ones with upwards of 500,000 followers).  They aren’t actors in a commercial smiling and holding a tube of toothpaste while a narrator talks about how white it’ll make your teeth. Instead they’re using it, reviewing it, putting up tutorials with it- it’s the equivalent of going to your neighbors and asking how did they like their new so and so? 

There are three tiers of influencers out there- nano, micro, and macro. Let’s break them down, and who best benefits from partnership: 


Nano influencers are influencers who have less than 10,000 followers. They’re considered an “everyday” consumer, which means they have a loyal following, higher engagement rates, and their trust factor with their audience when promoting or endorsing a product is high. Small or local business in a city might find this influencer valuable, because these influencers know a majority of their followers and they could have a more localized effect on their brand. Therefore, the authenticity is there and there is a greater likelihood of driving in-house traffic and direct purchases.


The micro influencer is rising in popularity with a range of between 10,000-100,000 followers, they’re sort of a celebrity, but also not. This is the largest group of paid influencers because of their large following, coupled with their audience loyalty and past experience with brands makes them “industry experts.” Most of these bloggers/vloggers/Instagram influencers have a specific industry they’re passionate about or knowledgeable about, thus collaborating with them to hit a niche market is ideal.  While they don’t have as large of a following as our next category, another pro is that they have one of the highest engagement rates – so you’re truly getting what you paid for. 


Macro influencers have amassed a following of 100,000 – 1 million; think of the YouTube stars of today who got onto the platform way back when the 90’s babies were all in high school or middle school. They’re the final type of influencer before you hit, like, actual celebrities, or “mega-influencers.” While their engagement rates are lower than micro or nano, they give you the advantage of having a somewhat global following and having your product/service be seen across numerous channels. However, working with them is not as direct as working with micro influencers, because with such a large following you’ll have to go through an agent first — oh, and they’ll cost you some $$$. 

What you pay your influencer is ultimately your decision, but this is a handy tool to estimate how much they’re worth versus some of the internet’s highest paid influencers. Remember, keep in mind what audience you’re marketing too, who would be a good fit for your brand, and who’s going to give you a good ROI. And if you want to work with one, but don’t know how to start or what to do, we can def help you out. After all, one of our most successful case studies includes an influencer event! 

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