What You Need to Know when Negotiating with the Best Instagram Influencers
There are millions of consumers who make buying decisions through online research. Yet, over 20% of these consumers use ad blockers to block digital ads on their computers.
One solution for reaching the consumer base is to partner with social media influencers.
In many aspects, Instagram is dominating the influencer market.
The platform hosts a strong community of social influencers engaging with over 1 billion active users.
There are four factors to bear in mind when building a profitable relationship with influencers.
Outline Deliverables
Instagram influencers can boost your PR campaigns, brand image and sales. You will need to work closely with influencers so that they understand the goals of your business and your campaign.
If working with multiple influencers, a short seminar can streamline everyone’s efforts.
You may need to negotiate to find the right content and deliverables. These factors are influenced by your business goals and finding the right fit for the influencer’s brand and audience.
You may agree upon deliverables in a meeting. Deliverables can also be part of a briefing document attached to a marketing proposal.
Attending the best negotiation seminars can sharpen your focus in creating a clear contract. An outline of deliverables answers why you’re running the campaign and how you’re implementing it.
The outline may include:
- Campaign goals
- Key messages aligning with the brand
- Types of content
- Timelines and deadlines
- Social tags, hashtags, and links
- Calls to action
- Discount codes
- Landing pages
For instance, a deliverable on the briefing document may look like this:
One Instagram video featuring product X with #hashtag and branded @tag. Mention main call to action ‘JOIN LIST’ and promo code ‘ABC’ in the middle and at end of the video. Post on Dec 8th at peak time, 10 am.
Decide on Metrics to Measure
Your Instagram influencer campaign should have clear goals to optimize the campaign’s chance at success.
Hold short seminars with influencers to negotiate key performance indicators (KPI), as these can make or break your campaign. Here are seven main metrics you can use in setting performance expectations:
Engagement Rate
This is the ratio of total engagements to the number of followers.
Follower Count
Agree on an intended follower spike to aim for within the promotion period.
Comments
Set expectations on direct engagements with users in the comments sections.
Reach
The number of people seeing the influencer’s content about your brand.
Hashtag Performance
Outline expectations on what hashtags to use, and measure usage and engagement.
Referral Traffic
How many landing page visits are you aiming for? Measure visits to determine the influencer marketing impact.
Instagram Stories Engagement
Keep track of story impressions, tap backs and forward, and story replies.
Agree on Compensation
An influencer’s social media post can provide an ROI (return on investment) comparable to or even better than ad placement.
While there are no set standards for influencer rates, pricing takes into account:
- The influencer’s follower numbers.
- The amount and level of engagement the influencer’s posts generally attract.
- How the message fits with the brand and audience.
- The type of content (image, video, IGTV, IG stories, etc.)
- The number of posts and number/types of deliverables.
- Who produces the content (the influencer or the brand?)
- Where the post appears (on the influencer’s account, the brand’s account, a third-party account, etc.)
Negotiate on Perks
Instagram influencers often receive some perks beyond promotion fees. The perks an influencer benefits from depend on industry and length of influencer promotion.
The best influencers know the importance of perks when accepting a deal. If your influencer can show a favorable ROI, your business may benefit from extra value by offering perks.
Some monetary and non-monetary perks you may include in the contract are:
- Affiliate commissions
- Travel for promotions
- Hotels during marketing campaigns
- Meals and drinks
- Free merchandise
- VIP access to seminars and high-profile events
- Photo and video shoots
- Free memberships and subscriptions
Working with the Best Instagram Influencers
The right Instagram influencer can support your brand message and attract a new market, which can lead to more sales. To ensure you gain from the collaboration, negotiate a written working agreement.
Outlining deliverables provides a clear agenda for your influencer marketing campaign.
Deciding on the metrics most relevant to your collaboration gives direction to the campaign.
Perks reward the influencer’s efforts while adding an incentive for better cooperation.
Agreeing on terms can lead to a fruitful long-term relationship.
Do you have other insightful advice for negotiating with the best Instagram influencers? Please share them in the comments.