Networking with influencers can be a great way to build business relationships and expand your professional network. In addition, you can use influencer networking to take advantage of the Google EAT ranking signal to get more organic search traffic to your website. By including content written by influencers, or quoting them in your content, your articles may get a boost. Here are some tips to help you effectively network and build relationships with influencers:
- Research potential influencers: Start by identifying influencers in your industry or niche. Look for individuals who have a large following and are actively engaged with their audience. If your industry is primarily B2B, then start with LinkedIn. Otherwise, start with Instagram, Twitter, and other social media platforms. Additionally, take a look at popular podcasts, TV shows, articles, and books.
- Reach out to influencers: Once you’ve identified potential influencers, reach out to them through social media, email, or by attending events they are participating in. Introduce yourself and explain how you could potentially work together. If they encourage open communications, then try a direct message or phone call, too.
- Engage with their content: Engage with the influencer’s content by commenting, liking, and sharing their posts. This helps to establish a relationship and shows that you are interested in their work. Just make sure you’re authentic about your feedback, and have a legitimate interest in their content.
- Offer value: When reaching out to influencers, be sure to offer something of value. This could be a valuable resource, an introduction to someone in your network, or a unique collaboration opportunity. It could also be a way to elevate their profile online by giving them access to your own audience.
- Be authentic: It’s important to be genuine and authentic when networking with influencers. Avoid being overly promotional or pushy, as this can turn people off. As above, think win-win in your communications.
- Follow up: After initial contact, be sure to follow up with influencers to maintain the relationship and keep the conversation going. It may take a lot of time, energy, and other resources to build these relationships. So, look to collaborate with them on multiple projects, rather than a one-off. Bring them as much value as you can with each engagement, and they’ll be more apt to collaborate again in the future.
- Network with multiple influencers: Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Build a diverse network and increase your chances of success. Also, don’t be afraid of rejection; it will happen. Think of each rejection as an opportunity to receive useful feedback. Then, use that information to tweak your outreach with other influencers and close more deals.
By following these tips, you can effectively network and build relationships with influencers in your industry. This can help you grow your business and expand your professional network.
I work at Consorte Marketing as a fulltime content strategist, digital marketing and operations consultant for a handful of clients. I am also a digital marketing expert at Digital.com. I often build teams to execute on these strategies, and agile frameworks for workflows, inspired by Scrum. I work to improve my leadership and communication skills, including periodically re-centering myself, and helping others to find purpose in their work. Dennis Consorte
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