What does influencer relations actually mean?

In diesem Blogpost erklären wir Ihnen alles Wissenswerte zum Thema Influencer und Blogger Relations.

What does influencer relations mean? 

Influencer marketing or influencer relations: anyone who is on the internet and on social media has heard of these terms. The expression stands for marketing and communication strategies by a company or its F&B PR agency that uses relevant opinion leaders to bring their brand messages to a target group. Relevant content and exciting storytelling are very important 

The topic is indispensable in the media landscape. Especially in the manner of food PR, wine PR, hotel PR and restaurant PR. According to a survey in 2018, 59 percent of the questioned German companies stated to practice influencer marketing. As maintained by a forecast, the market volume for influencer relations in the DACH region should amount to around 990 million euros in 2020. But what is this actually about? And how does a food & beverage and lifestyle PR agency deal with this topic? 

How are influencers defined? 

The term is not registered, basically anyone can be an influencer. And it is not only bound to social media. For instance, influencers and multipliers are the celebrity from television, the friend with her wine recommendation or a reviewer on Amazon. As a communication agency in the food & beverage sector, we of course define classic social media influencers who operate in the food or tourism industry for our PR work. 

The most common channels are blogs, which is why until recently it was primarily called blogger relations, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn or Xing. That’s what we specialize in. For mostly all of our food and lifestyle clients we already have successfully worked with influencers ranging from small cooperation up to big content marketing campaigns. You can find more about this in our F&B and Travel PR case studies.  

How does my company benefit from influencer relations? 

This is quite simple since influencers draw attention to brands or even whole companies when they are testing, evaluating and presenting their products. Usually, influencers enjoy their community’s trust, are close to their followers. And they can convey products in a particularly authentic way as part of a cooperation. Thus, influencers become brand ambassadors working with the word-to-mouth-principle. Where contents should be conveyed authentically, they are the perfect choice for public relations in the food, wine, hotel and restaurant sector.  

When are micro influencers the better choice? 

In our marketing mix we rely on so called micro influencers, who are multipliers with about 5,000 to 50,000 fans on their channels. Large influencers might have a huge coverage, but also often a low engagement rate. Besides, smaller channels are mostly specialized in a specific topic. And they do not advertise products from A to Z. This enables you to reach potential (new) customers in a much more targeted manner. The community has usually grown together with the influencer, is actually interested in their topics and values ​​their authenticity. 

How do I find an influencer who fits my food product? 

The campaign’s topic and the product are set, but how do you find a suitable channel now? There are diverse reference points for this:  

  • Who is the target group and does it fit the product, the brand or the company? 
  • How large is the influencer’s coverage? Does that tell a lot about them or are other factors like the community’s loyalty or long-term partnerships more determining? 
  • In which subject area is the person moving? Is the food, hotel or restaurant client optimally placed? 
  • Does the other content, style and wording fit? 

As a PR agency for food & beverages, lifestyle, hotel and travel, these are just some questions that we ask ourselves before starting with the selection of a campaign for our food, wine and travel clients. Then it goes into the details: Are the fans actually “real” or is the interaction rate wrong at the back and front? Does our client’s product bite with the influencer’s previous collaborations? Are there any special features, such as, does the person also drink wine or eat meat? 

Conclusion 

If the client decides for influencer relations in the manner of a food, travel or lifestyle PR campaign, we first check how the topic can be integrated into the marketing mix. Which channels are worth considering? Which are not? What content do we need? Then it comes to the specific selection, approach and implementation. Get in touch with us!

By the way, we are introducing some of our favorite cooperation partners in our “Blog of the Month” section. 

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