Over the past couple of years the social media marketing world has seen some big changes ranging from YouTube’s algorithms and policies causing a ruckus to marketing dollars moving more towards influencer marketing campaigns. And with tons of companies throughout the world jumping on the influencer bandwagon, there’s a lot of talk about social media influencer marketing consultants and if they’re actually needed. We’ll touch on that today.

To kick things off for those that aren’t in the know, influencer marketing is essentially working with (either collaborating or paying) people with influence on various social networks with the goal of getting more exposure and ideally sales for your product or service. Influencers have strong, targeted followings and the power to significantly grow your presence on social media in a short period of time, but connecting with them isn’t a walk in the park.

Think back to your days in middle and high school where there were groups of cool kids that usually set the trends, people looked up to and wanted to be around. The odds of starting school the first day and being accepted into such a close-knit group is unrealistic, though if you have connections the door is wide open – exactly how I would look at working with a savvy social media influencer marketing consultant as opposed to diving in head first.

With the big question being whether your company needs a consultant for influencer marketing, it really comes down to your internal resources and experience as well as your budget. Something interesting we’ve found is that the larger companies are and higher budgets they have the more out of touch they are with the social media influencer world, which often leads to campaigns that go over budget and underperform.

As a large organization (Fortune 500, Global 2000, etc.) looking to get into social media influencer marketing hiring a consulting firm is critical to ensure you not only see results, but also preserve your image – social media is a wild place. For small to mid-sized companies, a consultant can also be beneficial, especially when starting off to ensure you’re headed in the right direction.

If you have any questions about social media influencer marketing or would simply like to say hello, shoot us a call or message!