Why Are Micro-Influencers A Hot Commodity?

Smaller-scale influencers have a 60% higher engagement rate than most celebrities and are 6.7x more efficient at engaging audiences than bigger influencers according to influencer agency HelloSociety (now part of New York Times).

Why are micro-influencers a hot commodity? Besides costing up to 10x cheaper than macro-influencers, micro-influencers have a high demand due to a 6.7x better engagement rates with a relevant audiences in the niche. Micro-influencers might also work closely to discuss the needs of the company due to their time.

Qualities of micro-influencers that make them highly sought-after recently (Source:https://medium.com/swlh/why-micro-influencer-marketing-is-the-game-in-2018-fdeda0993c36)

First of all, the smaller-sized audience creates more loyalty and trust between the influencer and their followers.  A.T. Kearney's 2017 “ Global Future Consumer Study ” discovered that the number of consumers with little to no confidence in corporations rose from 36% in 2012 to 55% in 2017.

• A micro-influencer frequent engagement with their followers has made them able to connect with their followers on a more personal level. People tend to trust and take advice from influencers who seem more relatable. 
• A macro-influencer, however, may lack time to interact with their audience frequently and thus miss out on this vital personal connection. 

This difference in engagement levels then means that micro-influencers may take time to actively advocate for your brand on a more long-term basis as opposed to macro-influencers. Rather than uploading just one post which disappears into their feeds and archives over time, micro-influencers may be more willing to share about the brand and why they want to recommend it to their followers through replies and comments. 

This carries even greater possibility if it were the micro-influencer who approached the business first. A micro-influencer has a limited following and perhaps business networks, so they would likely approach businesses they want to work with and support. 

Businesses can then be reassured of the value they can bring to the table in terms of boosting sales as this micro-influencer would probably spend even more time and effort to share the product with their audience if successfully engaged. 

Besides, their loyal followers would be more interested to learn more about products shared by their favorite influencer on their social media content as opposed to products advertised on ordinary television commercials or billboards. Therefore, businesses can tap on the relationship already formed between the influencer and their tight-knit community of followers and can be assured of a higher conversion rate.

To add on, there is usually a natural fit that businesses look for while engaging micro-influencers. Businesses that specialize in certain products would make sure that the influencer they work with is someone who already enjoys using these types of products, and as mentioned, micro-influencers usually approach businesses they want to work with and support. 

• Take for example, for micro-influencers who have expertise in fields such as fashion and beauty, clothing businesses could get in touch with these micro-influencers (or vice versa) and if there is mutual agreement to work together, the businesses could send them clothes or accessories curated to their taste for them to try out. 
• More often than not, the interests of the followers also align with those of the influencer, and this makes it even more beneficial for the business. So if the clothes are to the influencer’s liking and they are willing to promote the clothes on their social media platforms, their community, likely avid followers of fashion themselves, would surely express interest and be more inclined to tap on the ‘click’ button and purchase the products. 
• These matching interests, coupled with the frequent interaction that builds rapport and trust between the influencer and their followers, then provide the business more accessible to audiences who are curious and intrigued by the products. To put it quite simply, micro-influencers are such a hot commodity because of their sheer ability to help provide the business more accessible to target audiences, unlike macro-influencers.

More importantly, these micro-influencers are much cheaper to work with and easier to contact. 

• Engaging one of them could already be minimally ten times cheaper than engaging their big counterparts and this lower cost gives businesses the budget to engage multiple micro-influencers to promote either one of their products or a range of their products, which reaches a wider audience. 
• Moreover, products used by the ultimate influencers are typically sponsored by luxury brands who can afford to give their products away to many mega-influencers. 
• Businesses that do not wish to blow their budget can then consider this more cost-effective alternative and perhaps reap greater benefits from the micro-influencers authentic connection with their followers. 

Additionally, micro-influencers have more time and energy to communicate with both businesses and their followers, as compared to macro and mega-influencers. 

A micro-influencer has a more limited follower count, usually anywhere from 1k to 10k followers, and the term ‘micro’ may worry you, especially in contrast to the terms ‘macro’ or ‘mega’ used to describe the top influencers. 

However, micro-influencers can still advocate for your brand successfully! Despite the varying characteristics across the different types of social media influencers, certain qualities stand out, which is why businesses may want to engage them instead of their big counterparts.

Image: The varying characteristics of different social media influencers (Source: https://www.socialbakers.com/blog/micro-influencers-vs-macro-influencers)

• Businesses and influencers can thus schedule a time to align goals or share progress. 
• They can review the feedback in social media comments under the influencer’s content which shares about the products or ask the influencers to share their honest opinions on the products. 
• These would serve as constructive and valuable feedback to help businesses improve on their products. As with other engagements, this may be an easier task if businesses ensure that influencers they engage with from the start have personal values that align with the brand’s, as it ensures that both parties are more likely to understand each other’s perspectives. 
• Therefore, partnering with micro-influencers can be an extremely smooth collaboration as there are comparably fewer financial and time concerns.

The bottom line for why micro-influencers are such a hot commodity is that they boast certain advantages over macro ones. After all, their fresh perspectives, drive to succeed and creativity would prove useful in the partnership, so businesses can learn a lot from these partners too.