{"id":799,"date":"2020-11-10T19:58:58","date_gmt":"2020-11-10T19:58:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/salarydistribution.com\/2020\/11\/10\/rising-above-the-influence-interpreting-a-fairly-new-discipline\/"},"modified":"2020-11-10T19:58:58","modified_gmt":"2020-11-10T19:58:58","slug":"rising-above-the-influence-interpreting-a-fairly-new-discipline","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/salarydistribution.com\/affiliate-marketing\/2020\/11\/10\/rising-above-the-influence-interpreting-a-fairly-new-discipline\/","title":{"rendered":"Rising Above the Influence: Interpreting a Fairly New Discipline"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A note from Pepperjam:\u202f<\/span><\/strong>For nearly 20 years, Pepperjam has\u202fstood firmly on\u202fa\u202ffoundation that has been\u202fbuilt on the idea\u202fof strengthening and expanding\u202findustry knowledge, in our category and beyond. It’s in this vein that we invite some of the most esteemed thought leaders in ecommerce to\u202flend us some of their wisdom as guest contributors to the Pepperjam blog. In this installment,\u00a0<\/span>we chatted with\u00a0<\/span>Kevin Ryan<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>Digital marketing and brand positioning strategist<\/span>\u00a0and CEO of Motivity Marketing<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>to discuss all things\u00a0<\/span>influencer and the impact of the pandemic on\u00a0<\/span>marketers.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

P<\/span><\/strong>epperjam<\/span><\/strong>:\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>Thanks for taking the time out to chat with us, Kevin. Let\u2019s get right to it:\u00a0<\/span>What<\/span>\u2019<\/span>s your\u00a0<\/span>opinion\u00a0<\/span>on campaign fees<\/span>, fees for partnerships, that sort of thing?\u00a0<\/span>How\u00a0<\/span>do you think the<\/span>\u00a0options<\/span>\u00a0have<\/span>\u00a0evolved<\/span>\u2013 especially over the past eight months<\/span>\u00a0as a result of the pandemic<\/span>?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

K<\/span><\/strong>evin\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>R<\/span><\/strong>yan<\/span><\/strong>:<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0Ah yes, this is always\u00a0<\/span>a<\/span>\u00a0thing<\/span>. It varies by discipline<\/span>\u00a0\u2013 media, influencer, social<\/span>\u2014<\/span>and<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>whether we are talking about<\/span>\u00a0agency or consulting fees.\u00a0<\/span>Basically, y<\/span>ou get what you can<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0and you get what you<\/span>\u00a0can<\/span>\u00a0negotiate.<\/span>\u00a0Regardless of the shifts or tensions of the past eight months, or what may be the published rate \u2013 it has always been the case that\u00a0<\/span>fees<\/span>\u00a0can be negotiated.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Pepperjam<\/span><\/strong>:<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0Do you think that brands<\/span>, especially those\u00a0<\/span>new to influencer marketing,\u00a0<\/span>get seduced by\u00a0<\/span>bigger influencer names, even though they might not be a right fit for them at all<\/span>\u2014not to mention\u00a0<\/span>outrageously expensive<\/span>\u00a0to work with<\/span>?\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Kevin <\/span><\/strong>Ryan<\/span><\/strong>:<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>I’ve encountered this multiple times<\/span>, brands lured by\u00a0<\/span>\u201c<\/span>celebrity<\/span>\u201d<\/span>\u00a0over\u00a0<\/span>what\u2019s a\u00a0<\/span>proper\u00a0<\/span>fit<\/span>\u00a0for their brand<\/span>. Unless it\u2019s extremely complementary as far as<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>fit<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>say engaging Ashton Kutcher to target the Demi Moore category<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>you may as well be standing on the street corner shouting\u00a0<\/span>about\u00a0<\/span>your product.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Pepperjam<\/span><\/strong>:<\/span><\/strong> That\u2019s an interesting point but what even constitutes a \u201cvaluable influencer\u201d? Or, to rephrase: to get a desired outcome, does the influencer have to be a recognizable household name, or is it more about the value that lies in their niche? It\u2019s easy for a brand to get starstruck thinking about all their influencer options, but marketers ultimately know that at the end of the day, success is measured by achieving the campaign\u2019s KPIs\u2014regardless of who the influencer is. There needs to be a discipline to their selection approach. So, how do brands need to think about this, and go about it the right way, given all the possible directions \u2013 is it more about influencer cache or the right \/ niche fit?\u00a0 <\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Kevin Ryan:<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0I<\/span>nfluencer<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0overall<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0is<\/span>\u00a0essentially a\u00a0<\/span>new\u00a0<\/span>discipline, if one can call it that<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>For brands, or teams charged with<\/span>\u00a0figuring out<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>influencer marketing<\/span>, the first step is often research<\/span>\u00a0\u2013 especially if you<\/span>\u2019<\/span>re no<\/span>t<\/span>\u00a0using a technology platform \u2013 to find<\/span>\u00a0good influencer<\/span>\u00a0fits<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>with<\/span>in\u00a0<\/span>your<\/span>\u00a0category. And\u00a0<\/span>it is here in\u00a0<\/span>this<\/span> research<\/span>\u00a0where <\/span>things can begin<\/span>\u00a0to go south.\u00a0<\/span>Your approach needs\u00a0<\/span>to be methodical. Y<\/span>ou need a very\u00a0<\/span>thoughtful<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>tailored,\u00a0<\/span>often bespoke, approach<\/span>. And to be clear \u2013\u00a0<\/span>a\u00a0<\/span>bespoke\u00a0<\/span>method\u00a0<\/span>is not nearly as expensive as it was in any\u00a0<\/span>other\u00a0<\/span>discipline even a<\/span>\u00a0just<\/span>\u00a0few years ago<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0It essentially means\u00a0<\/span>the process is well\u00a0<\/span>vetted.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Y<\/span>ou build your subject matter analysis, and social media discovery around the specific criteria that you establish.\u00a0<\/span>Y<\/span>ou can use<\/span>\u00a0the same<\/span>\u00a0basic principles that you would use in developing an analytic system or\u00a0<\/span>even\u00a0<\/span>developing a dashboard.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

On a related point<\/span>, I do a lot of work in the entertainment category.\u00a0<\/span>W<\/span>e’re constantly trying to figure out, if somebody is getting tons of criticism in the press, does that mean that people will not pay attention to their work\u00a0<\/span>anymore\u00a0<\/span>or boycott them?\u00a0<\/span>So<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0the question becomes:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>C<\/span><\/i>an I still make money with this person<\/span><\/i>?<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>And it’s<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>ultimately,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>depending on the scale, not all that difficult to figure out<\/span>. It\u2019s about<\/span>\u00a0weighing the types of engagements and the types of responses that you get to a particular subject or to a particular person. Just how deep you can go with understanding the market and understanding the individual.\u00a0<\/span>To give you an example,\u00a0<\/span>take a\u00a0<\/span>Hollywood celebrity\u00a0<\/span>that is<\/span>\u00a0getting huge criticism<\/span>, but<\/span>\u00a0is an up<\/span>–<\/span>and<\/span>–<\/span>coming writer, with a lot of promise, a couple of really good projects<\/span>\u00a0under their belt<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>is\u00a0<\/span>in the Writers Guild<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0has some profitable\u00a0<\/span>work<\/span>, etc<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>But,\u00a0<\/span>say\u00a0<\/span>t<\/span>here’s a<\/span>\u00a0lot\u00a0<\/span>of negative press on the\u00a0<\/span>most recent project<\/span><\/i>, and<\/span>\u00a0so<\/span>\u00a0the task becomes to<\/span>\u00a0separate the\u00a0<\/span>hype, or the\u00a0<\/span>nonsense from the people who will still buy your stuff.\u00a0<\/span>To assist in an endeavor like this, s<\/span>ome companies are<\/span>\u00a0actually<\/span>\u00a0producing these analytics suites that not only provide the<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>overall value of a particular engagement<\/span>\u00a0with a particular individual<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>but\u00a0<\/span>it will tell you exactly what you can expect in some instances from return based on the profiles that you built.\u00a0<\/span>This is<\/span>\u00a0the bespoke aspect of\u00a0<\/span>carefully\u00a0<\/span>building<\/span>\u00a0that<\/span>\u00a0understanding<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I know this wasn\u2019t part of your question, but I think it\u2019s worth sharing<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0There\u00a0<\/span>is the self<\/span>–<\/span>induced mass lockdown thing that’s happening to people on social media\u00a0<\/span>and I<\/span>\u00a0think it’s only gotten worse, since we are both literally and figuratively,\u00a0<\/span>sequestered or\u00a0<\/span>locked away.\u00a0<\/span>If you haven\u2019t watched the Social Dilemma<\/span>, it’s all about how Facebook<\/span>\u00a0and<\/span>\u00a0other companies monetize\u00a0<\/span>from\u00a0<\/span>getting you\u00a0<\/span>\u201c<\/span>hooked on<\/span>\u201d<\/span>\u00a0a device. So<\/span>, the getting hooked part<\/span>\u00a0coupled with people retreating into<\/span>\u00a0their<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u201cf<\/span>ilter bubbles<\/span>\u201d and<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>the\u00a0<\/span>10 million Facebook groups<\/span>\u00a0existing<\/span>\u00a0for every single<\/span>\u00a0one\u00a0<\/span>of life’s<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>great traumas, and you can just\u00a0<\/span>easily\u00a0<\/span>retreat<\/span>\u00a0into that<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>You<\/span>\u00a0can also block people who don’t agree with you.\u00a0<\/span>You<\/span>\u00a0find more people who are who are\u00a0<\/span>part of a\u00a0<\/span>sympathetic audience to\u00a0<\/span>whatever nonsense\u00a0<\/span>is in\u00a0<\/span>your head that day. And suddenly, you’re surrounded by only people who agree with you<\/span>!<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>I think the pandemic has made this worse.\u00a0<\/span>It’s the perfect storm of self<\/span>–<\/span>indulgence.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>If it was bad before<\/span>, it\u2019s\u00a0<\/span>100<\/span>%<\/span>\u00a0worse<\/span>\u00a0now<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We\u2019ve<\/span>\u00a0retreated more<\/span>\u00a0and more<\/span>\u00a0into our corners<\/span>\u00a0and<\/span>\u00a0the problem is, in this country<\/span>\u00a0right now<\/span>, there are only two corners. And if you’re not in one, then you have to be in the other. So<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0the only content you see is going to be empathetic content<\/span>\u00a0to one of the two sides<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>I<\/span>n recent months,\u00a0<\/span>everything that was bad before got worse in the social infrastructure, the\u00a0<\/span>manner of\u00a0<\/span>content consumption, the influencer world<\/span>. M<\/span>arketing in general<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>has had to change.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And I don’t know that it’s necessarily a good thing. But it had to change. You know, at the end of the day, people still need milk and eggs, people need to still buy food for their cats and dogs. People still need to find ways to create. But I think if you’re trying to evaluate potential platforms, or potential engagement points, and this is just like any other aspect of digital or any other aspects of marketing, you now have to look for verticals\u00a0<\/span>or<\/span>\u00a0vertical personalities that meet a specific interest category and factor that into your overall strategy.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

\"Kevin<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Kevin M. Ryan is the Founder and CEO of Motivity Marketing, as well as popular business author and podcast host in the realm of digital marketing and media.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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