The entertainment industry is changing. Dead celebrities are performing at concerts, cliffhangers only cause few seconds of despair while Netflix loads the next season, festivals look like fashion shows, and a person can be famous for nothing more than the contents of their Instagram feed. Not to mention the endless social apps popping up, inviting users and businesses alike to share ever more of their lives and likes. Entertainment entities are hard-pressed to stay relevant and stand out in this shifting landscape. Luckily, there’s a sure-fire way to stay on top of consumer feeds no matter what filter, feature or social app is next to come out: social media influencers.
In our last blog post (Part 1 of this series), we discussed innovative ways to use ever-changing digital media in your omnichannel marketing strategy. In this post, we’re discussing the most important aspect of an omnichannel marketing plan in any industry: social media influencers.
You Talkin’ to Me?
Yes.
YOU get some influencers
and YOU get some influencers
EVERYBODY gets some influencersssss!
Everything from small local festivals to mega concerts to sports teams can benefit from social media features and influencer marketing.
The entertainment industry inherently reaps the benefit of being something people want to share and participate in on social media. Average users are blowing up feeds daily with posts of their extracurricular activities, bringing awareness and interest to their new favorite artist, their team’s big win, or their latest Hulu binge. With so much chatter around events, are entertainment entities making the most of this exposure? Mmm, probs not.
Enter: The influencer. The personable, popular, trusted extension of your marketing team.
Social media influencers take that chatter your event/brand/whatever is getting and maximize it! Fan and consumer sharing can only go so far, and is extremely hard to track. Social media influencers bring not only results, but trackable results and some siiiiick ROI. In fact, the average business earns $6.50 for every $1 spent on a social media influencer. Cha-ching! Getting back to their audience-enhancing abilities, though, turns out 49% of consumers depend on influencer recommendations to inform their purchasing decisions. If you think that only applies to which shade of lipstick to buy, you’re sorely mistaken. Influencers can sell tickets and fill seats just as easily as they fill carts.
Influencer: “Jump” Consumer: “How High?”
If you’re in marketing, you can likely attest that any work you’re doing with influencers (if you’re doing it right) is out performing any of the other ‘ish you do. They kill it. They are essential. If you aren’t using them, climb out from under the rock that’s been blocking all your business and let’s get down and dirty with some influencer marketing.
Though we’re focusing on the entertainment industry, let’s be clear: all of these ideas and tips can be applied to any business, anywhere, and honestly, on any budget. (Wanna know how? Shoot us a line.)
I Wanna Be Where the People Are
**Up where they walk, up where they run, up where they stay all day on their phooones!**
First consider your current audience and your target audience. Are they the same? (be honest) Are you going after different generations? Demographics? Interests?
Next, think about how you can be part of their world (without the help of a handy-dandy lobster sidekick). If you’re targeting Millennials or Generation Z, as many industries are, their world is kinda obvious. It’s the internet. Brick and mortar stores, physical papers and magazines, even billboards and signage are becoming relics of the past. Today’s consumers are consumed, eyes-glazed, heads down, ruled by their phones. To get their attention, you’ve gotta go where they are, and you’d be surprised how many “places” can exist inside a little hand-held device.
Choosing the appropriate platforms to represent your brand on can be a challenge, but when in doubt, join ‘em all (or give us a call). Different platforms have different audiences and features that can be utilized to your event’s benefit. Younger generations are all about all things video. Consider working with influencers to create fun, short form videos about the event. Think content like behind the scenes, special insights, interviews with the talent, etc. This type of content would perform well on any platform, but especially YouTube, IGTV, Instagram Stories and Facebook Live. Leading up to your event, share influencer content on every possible medium. Keep in mind that social media influencers are not one size fits all. Their following and engagement varies by platform, so you’ll need to find appropriate influencers for each.
Consider the level of influencer who would speak well to your audience. If you’re hosting a local concert, festival or fundraiser, nano or micro influencers may be your best bet. Their audiences are smaller, but usually more locally-focused and highly engaged. For mega events, super influencers can help spread the word nationally, while more local nano and micro influencers can get the word out at home. Not sure who to call a nano-whosy-whatsitt-fluencer? We’re just a phone call away!
Location, Location, Location
We’ve all watched enough House Hunters to know that location is important. While you want to be around the corner from the best hybrid preschool genius-making childcare service and walking distance from your job, you’ll settle for being able to see your kids from the kitchen #openconcept4ever.
Anyway. In addition to all those digital “places”, think about how you can reach consumers in your event’s physical location. When it comes to entertainment events, leaning into your host location can be an immense opportunity to attract new audiences. Whether you’re in a big city or out in the boonies, there’s got to be a consumer draw. Find it and flex it using…you guessed it: Influencers! Tap into local social media influencers and have them share and advertise the event. Offer them VIP access or invite them to the event in another location so they can speak to how amazing it is ahead of coming to their town. Collaborate with the influencer for giveaways specific to their followers and location. For example, make a night of it for lucky winners by offering a gift card to a local restaurant your target demographic would love, a private ride to the event with the influencer and, of course, tickets to the event.
If your event isn’t in an inherently cool or well-known spot, take advantage of influencers of your target audience that aren’t in your event’s location. Invite them out, give them a tour, feed them information and experiences that will draw their followers to the area and interest them in the event. Don’t sleep on out-of-market influencers, too. If you’re looking to expand your audience for, say a NASCAR race, be bold and reach out to local fashion bloggers to show them how much fun they could have at the tracks.
How You Doin’?
Don’t flub the first impression.
If you are reaching out to influencers outside of your traditional consumer demographic, you’ve got to make a great first impression. First, do your research. Look into who they are, not just how many followers they have. What kind of audience do they bring to the table? How will their interests and their followers interests correlate to your event? Present the opportunity to work with you in a way that is undeniably appealing.
Second, get them excited! Ahead of the event, send over a fun kit full of things they’ll need to enjoy your event to the max. Using the example of NASCAR again, perhaps send a branded or personalized soft cooler filled with grand stand essentials like sunglasses, earplugs, a cooling neck buff and sunscreen. Sending clever, easy to digest information about the sport/talent/event is also beneficial so they can speak to their audiences from a more educated standpoint.
Hosts with the Most(s)
Influencers, much like their followers, love to feel special. Treating your chosen collaborators to an exclusive opportunity will create an amazing relationship and spur tons of great content to promote your event. If applicable, treat your social influencers to a VIP experience, allowing them backstage (or the equivalent), giving them swag, inviting them to box seats or hospitality tents and the like. If they’re having a good time, you better believe they’re going to be sharing it!
Pre- or Post events can also be a great opportunity to engage and connect with influencers and their audiences. At LMS we’ve worked with brands to create completely customized and ‘gramable influencer parties. Alternatively, we’ve produced influencer and brand co-hosted parties, inviting the influencer’s followers to engage and learn about a brand in an exciting, intimate environment.
Give ‘em a Boost
When you’re good to mama, she’ll be good to you.
Finally, be a great brand partner and think about how your relationship can benefit the influencer, too. Just like you’re looking to grow your audience, influencers are as well. Boosted social media posts are one of the easiest ways to add a little ‘umph’ to your offer. The idea is to simply put pay in the platform to allow their post to be seen by more people. This is extremely beneficial to a brand, as well, so it’s a total win-win. Similar to boosting posts, Instagram announced that brands can now take sponsored influencer posts and use them to create in-platform ads with just a few clicks. We’ve detailed how that works here. One last way to sweeten the pot is to share influencer content on your feed. Your feed will benefit from fresh new content, the influencer will be introduced to your following and consumers will love it. In fact, 51% of consumers said that seeing UCG (user generated content) would increase their chances of buying product. Moral of the story: Be a good partner, get some good business.
LMS has over 10 years of experience managing influencer marketing, event production and talent partnerships in the entertainment industry. No matter your event size, market or needs, we’re confident that our expertise and a little creative thinking can take your brand from open mic nights to sold out stadium tours. Contact us today at imgame@wearelms.com and check out our work at www.wearelms.com. You’ll be an LMS groupie in no time.