Understanding the ROI of Influencer Marketing

Whether they’re touting skincare products or sports nutrition services, companies across industries have started scouring social media platforms in search of influencers who pair perfectly with their brands. The goal?

To take part in a lucrative marketing strategy called influencer marketing—and since this marketing strategy reached 16.4 billion dollars in 2022, we’d say it’s well worth the effort.¹

You can improve website traffic, brand visibility, and revenue when you employ influencer marketing. However, for you to accurately assess the productivity and performance of your influencer marketing endeavors, you must track your return on investment (ROI) track your return on investment (ROI). So, grab your calculators—we’re about to break down how to measure influencer marketing ROI and give you some pointers on best practices for future success.

The Basics of Influencer Marketing

Before you start thinking too hard about your potential ROI, it’s helpful to understand the basics of influencer marketing—a strategy that 92% of marketers believe is an effective form of marketing.²

In short, influencer marketing occurs when a company (we’ll call it Cookie Co., for this example) partners with one or more influencers who have grown a sizable audience. These could include:³

• Nano influencers with under 1,000 followers but high levels of engagement
• Micro-influencers with a following of 1,000 to 100,000
• Macro influencers with a following of more than 100,000

Cookie Co. then provides its influencers with samples of their cookies, a paycheck, and any other agreed-upon commissions. In return, the influencers promote those cookies to their followers on social media to increase Cookie Co.’s brand awareness and boost revenue.

To help you further understand what influencer marketing is, here are a few fundamental factors you should know.

Key Metrics for Your Influencer Campaign

Before you hit “go” on your first influencer campaign, think about the metrics (values) you want to track. Some of the key metrics companies often track include:⁴

• ROI – With steep competition in the creator economy, ROI is one of the most important metrics to track as it helps you determine how much profit you’ve made from a marketing campaign (in this case—an influencer campaign). If you’re using multiple influencers to tout your products, tracking your influencer marketing ROI can show you which influencers are responsible for boosting your sales.

• Brand awareness – One of the benefits of incorporating influencer marketing into your marketing strategy is the ability to increase brand awareness by attracting a larger audience. You can measure and track your brand awareness by comparing your web traffic statistics on Google Trends and consumer insights before and after launching your influencer campaign.

Best Practices for Influencer Marketing

Even if these aren’t your only options, following these best practices can help you run a successful influencer marketing campaign include:

• Working with multiple influencers – By increasing the number of influencers you work with, you can likewise increase your reach and social media engagement.

• Targeting micro-influencers with tight-knit groups of followers – In addition to having the ideal number of followers, micro-influencers often have excellent user engagement. This means their audience trusts them enough to purchase the products they’re raving about.

• Letting influencers create authentic content – 90% of millennials believe that authenticity is important when deciding what products to buy.⁵ So instead of filming a pre-scripted ad, allow them to create influencer content that’s more genuine, like a short day-in-the-life video that shows them feasting on Cookie Co. cookies when they’re in the mood for a tasty treat.

Common Challenges of Influencer Marketing

Of course, with every success, comes a potential hurdle, and influencer marketing is no different. Here are some challenges to be on the lookout for (and avoid):⁶

• Not knowing your target audience
• Assuming more followers means more influence
• Lacking an understanding of the campaign’s ROI (and how to make improvements)

How to Track Influencer ROI

There are a handful of ways to track the ROI of influencer marketing. You can choose to use one or several different tracking methods depending on what’s right for your business:⁷

• Affiliate links – Affiliate links allow you to track online sales that customers make through the influencers’ digital marketing channel.

• Discount codes – By giving each social media influencer a unique discount code to share with their audience, you’re able to easily track any purchases made with that code.

• Urchin Traffic Monitors (UTMs) – UTMs allow you to add snippet codes to the end of your URLs. Each influencer then receives their own UTM so you can track whether consumers found you via a certain social media influencer.

How to Optimize Influencer Marketing Campaign Performance

If you really want to maximize your influencer campaign to boost your brand awareness and revenue growth, there’s a general process you can follow to help you get the ball rolling in the right direction:

• Step 1 – Decide who your target audience is.
• Step 2 – Set your campaign goal.
• Step 3 – Determine your budget.
• Step 4 – Find relevant influencers for your brand.
• Step 5 – Measure marketing ROI and make improvements as needed.

Take Your Influence to the Next Level with Curastory

There’s a lot involved in launching an influencer marketing campaign that hits the mark. Fortunately, Curastory has all the programmatic media buying tools you need to take advantage of this effective influencer marketing strategy.

From pairing you with the right creators for your brand to offering integrated Ad Reads (which have the highest ROI in digital marketing) and more, we’re here to help you develop and manage influencer marketing campaigns that can take your brand to the next level.

Sign up today to learn more.

Sources:

1. Influencer Marketing Hub. Key Influencer Marketing Statistics to Drive Your Strategy in 2023. https://influencermarketinghub.com/influencer-marketing-statistics/
2. HubSpot. 31 Influencer Marketing Stats to Know in 2023. https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/influencer-marketing-stats
3. Influencer Marketing Hub. 12 Types of Influencers You Can Use to Improve Your Marketing. https://influencermarketinghub.com/types-of-influencers/
4. SuperMetrics. Influencer Marketing Metrics You Should Be Tracking. https://supermetrics.com/blog/influencer-marketing-metrics
5. Idea Rocket Animation. Authenticity Vs. Production Quality, What Wins? https://idearocketanimation.com/20601-authenticity-versus-production-quality-a-losing-battle/
6. Unbox Social. Influencer Marketing Challenges Brands Must Know About. https://www.unboxsocial.com/blog/influencer-marketing-challenges/
7. Voucherify. 10 Ways to Measure ROI from Influencer Marketing Campaigns. https://www.voucherify.io/blog/10-ways-to-measure-roi-from-influencer-marketing