Finding & Choosing Influencers | Social Media Branding by Mishu & Dad

Feedback Influencers for Walmart.com and Amazon Vendors

Hire niche SMI* with the sole objective of getting feedback for samples received from the factory before placing a minimum quantity order with your manufacturer, and definitely before sending a new product to the Amazon (or Walmart) warehouse.

I have been there. I was an Amazon Vendor and really enjoyed it. What a journey it is! It’s exciting to build a small empire, your own legacy, with your own brand and various products and creations that you have envisioned.

There is so much competition on both the Walmart.com and Amazon (or eBay) marketplaces, and their tools have their limits in terms of showing you which new product will do well.

Before you hit the market with a new product (a brand, or a concept) for your Amazon store. Before you put so many hours sourcing something new. Before you invest in a trip to China (and unlimited different time zone hours on WeChat, Skype and Alibaba interviewing partners). Before you invest your money in hundreds of sample fees, and then on minimum quantity orders. Before all that… make a reliable, stable, conservative test, to eliminate some of the risks. It will save you a lot. And here is my advice:

I. Hire SMI with the sole objective of getting feedback.

Social Media Influencer (SMI) is:
(1) Someone who owns a social media account (min. 50 followers), such as on Tiktok, IG, YouTube, etc.

And – very important too –

(2) Uses it for great – no, amazing – relationship building AND/OR content sharing with their followers.

So you know by now the boost you can get by hiring a good SMI, right? You can get instant gratification – people visit your website, you get attention, you get access to new communities you haven’t dream of, gain recognition, etc. Today though we will focus on you hiring the Influencers with a different goal: getting feedback.

From interviews we’ve conducted with various pets suppliers, the most interesting revelation was that most brands got really surprising, unexpected feedback from SMIs. Here are some examples:

The treat is too big, with low moisture. It’s hard to chew for small dogs, and so the focus should only be on dogs above 10 pounds.
—
The treat is intellectually stimulating (!!) for the dog because he spent 40 mins on the treat. He was intrigued about how to best eat the treat!
—
Yes, pet SMI are cute but unless a human is involved, we don’t look for for advice…
—
One influencer had dachshunds and we found out that they can chew only half the size of our desserts!
—
An SMI said that he is seeing more poop bags left on trails, possibly because people are walking more often. Unlike before when it was annoying and inconsiderate, it’s now an actual threat to health as well as the environment.
Source: Interviews with Dog Brands: How They Work with Influencers

Ok so – how you do it…?

II. Ask the SMI for all kinds of feedback that you need

The feedback can be on your new product idea, new logo, new slogan, web-page, packaging, etc.

Real an example from my DearMishu, where she found that there was an issue with closing the package of the sample she received. That saved a lot of money for the brand before mass market launching.

Ask the SMI to give you feedback on ANYTHING YOU NEED OR MAY NEED to make your product decision. Here are some ideas:

Yes/No Questions

Did you find any missing components?
Does it speak the language (some products with Chinese language only…)?
Is it “foreign” to understand? If yes, why?
Could you use it < x times/days (the idea is to find out if it’s getting ruined easily or not)?
Will your community love it? Why?
Is it Instagramable/Ticktokble (today that’s how new products sell – if they fit well into Instagram or Tiktok video/picture/visuals or not)?
Do you think you should add something to it, such as new features, colors, logo, attitude, plastics, etc? If yes, what?
Etc.

Rank 1-5

Perhaps ask the infuencer or their followers to rank the product 1-5 (or 1-10…), and leave space for notes:

Package look & feel
Shipment time or arrival
Unboxing experience
Installation/assembly experience
Do they like the logo?
How much did they LOVE it?
Etc.

Open questions:

Many don’t get it but SMI can be the best consultants! They know your community the best, they know how to tell a story, they know how to convince, they know how TO INFLUENCE, they really do. They’ve done so much A/B testing, and tried so many methods in marketing, publishing, UX, human behavior, emotional triggering, and unbelievable creative out-of-the-box of CTAs (Call-to-Actions), that you’d be kind of a fool not to take advantage of their experience. Their knowledge of your target audience is priceless and… real.

So, ask them:

If it was them, would THEY have sold this product to their community?

What would be THEIR strategy if they were you to bring the message of this new product/idea/etc?

If you hire them to recommend this to their followers, can they tell you how they plan to do it (and their costs)?

IIII. Who’s a good SMI for feedback giving?

Of course, not every SMI can- deliver such feedback. Hire those that are:

RELATED: Find SMI that are related to what you do – if you want them to give feedback on dog collars, they should own at least one dog. Someone that has cats only might not be suitable.
PS/sometimes there are surprises in terms of relevancy that you haven’t thought about – read about the Orange People…
LOVE: this is really important – make 100% sure that the SMI is someone who is CRAZY about what you do. Otherwise, it will be apparent and it won’t come truthful.
RESPECTED by their community – go over past few months of the SMI social media post. Look at their followers’ comments – how involved are they? How much they care about the SMI requests and opinions? If not at all, then that’s not your candidate.
SIZE: from research I’ve done, a repeated complaint is that big account SMIs don’t share feedback and that “all they want is more contracts, from all possible vendors.” i.e. greedy…. It is therefore recommended to work with SMI that are not too large if you are looking for feedback.
REPORTING: Will the SMI be able to report well?

Find their qualifications via referrals and direct interview questions. Make sure you signed a contract that cements all milestones and commitments!!

Good luck my heroes, you CAN do it!!

I strongly recommend using a contract for any sponsorship to protect yourself and your business, such as my Brand-Influencer Contract

Why does everyone want to be an influencer?

Everyone wants to be an influencer because they confuse influencers with the beautiful celebs who sail on beautiful yachts… It’s not the same thing though. Most SMI* are unknown to the public and yet they influence. The job requires so many working hours a day of content creation, photography, editing, re-editing, publishing, marketing and – yes – engaging all day long…

Brands: DM is the new ‘phone number’ for social media!

Brands: So we know by now that not having a presence on social media is like you… do not exist, since that’s where your audience is. Your social media account is your business card, your face, your talking point, your front-line, your border, your mom and pop, your puppy too.

Once you choose the right social media platform for the audience you want to reach, and you activate it, it’s…YOU. Make sure that from then on it reflects … YOU indeed.

Your communication with your audience should now be via social media. And so – for example – if someone sends you a DM instead of calling your phone, it means that they want a response via DM (= direct messages) and they most definitely do not want to call you. So make sure you address that.

Brands: create an Instagram account only if you can handle it – use direct messaging as your new phone.

Or alternatively:

Branding Your #SocialMedia Profile Series No. 10: Your BSMP Influencer

Branding Your Social Media Profile (BSMP) is a new 1-on-1 program that helps brands bring their social media profile and presence to the next level.

This series of articles is an introduction to some of the techniques and experiments that have been proven to make this underutilized real estate work for you.

Brands and others looking for customized analysis and guidance specific to their profile(s) can register for 1:1 coaching here.

In past BSMP* series article I explained how you can optimize YOUR story-telling through your profile photos, extended name, update line, profile description, hashtags, CTA and URL. Today I will show you something new, related to SMI* on – yes – your profile.

*BSMP = branded social media profile, a term that was coined by… me.

Powerpoint (Mobile Growth Virtual Summit 3.0 – “How to Transform Your Social Media Branded Profile to a Sales Funnel Machine, by Dear Mishu’s Dad”)!

Branding Your Social Media Profile (BSMP) is a new 1-on-1 program that helps brands bring their social media profile and presence to the next level.

This series of articles is an introduction to some of the techniques and experiments that have been proven to make this underutilized real estate work for you.

Brands and others looking for customized analysis and guidance specific to their profile(s) can register for 1:1 coaching here.

On February 10th, 6:15PM ET, I shared my tips on building a sales funnel with your BSMP (Branded Social Media Profile) with the awesome community of the Mobile Growth Summit 3.0.

*BSMP = branded social media profile, a term that was coined by… me.

Are Influencers Good for B2B too, or Only B2C?

They are good for EVERYTHING, even for Government agencies (G2C).

Social Media Influencers (also called “SMI”):

Influencer Marketing & BSMP Tips of the Day – Collection

Hi guys – I decided to collect my “Tip of the Day” post here, so you don’t need to hunt all over DearMishuDad.com to find them. Enjoy…!

How much to pay Influencers (recommended rates included)?

It’s super popular to hire SMI* these days — for many good reasons (if done the right way): they bring attention, awareness, trust, influence, change opinions, and offer advice on turning your business around to meet the needs of relevant communities as never before. But how much should you pay influencers?

What Influencers Bring to the Table: dialogue, attention, community building, category leading, positive bias, high level story-telling, etc.

So, how much should a brand pay influencers, one might ask?

Should brands pay Influencers (SMI)?

For sure yes, you/we should pay them. Their social media accounts are the way they making a living, and if you find a good SMI, make them even better by taking them seriously.

How many posts should I hire an influencer to create for me?

At least 2 if not 3 posts per year because… like all marketing, Influencer Marketing is not a switch you flip on or off when it suits. If an influencer has nothing to say about your brand 364 days a year and then suddenly starts singing your praises… would you trust that? It’s best to find ways to work with an influencer year-round to support your branding and have them post frequently on your behalf (all that should be included in the contract).

Bonus:

Which Influencers NOT to Hire, no Matter What (and The Power of ♥)

I strongly recommend using a contract for any sponsorship to protect yourself and your business, such as my Brand-Influencer Contract

Two Case Studies: Asking #Influencers for Their Rates (Doing it The Right Way)

What is the best way to ask SMI* for their pay rate? Like this!

Yes that’s the RIGHT way – just DM a short message to your potential SMI, and ask for their rates.

The answer in this example is great – straight to the point and showing authenticity (it’s a good sign when SMI will not agree to promote just any product).

Tip: if the SMI’s answer is not very clear or sincere, or they don’t ask you about your product, they might not be a Pro

Here is another good example of how to write to SMI. This is the right way when you are approaching SMI to HIRE them, rather than with the typical “I love you so much, I am a fan, please recommend my product and I’ll give you a sample for free” B.S..:

I like to keep it real, which some people consider contrarian… well, so be it: check out my articles that have been tagged “contrarian”