Influencer marketing has witnessed unprecedented growth in recent years and is showing no signs of slowing down! The use of influencer marketing is a sure-fire way to expand the reach, follower count, and engagement of any brand on social media – and it is expected to become more than an £11 billion industry by 2022.

There’s no one size fits all approach to making this strategy work, but with the right planning and research, there’s no doubt that your business will be able to see the benefit. BR is here to help break down how to get the most out of a social media influencer.

But before we jump to why influencers are a necessity to your brand, let’s brush up on the basics.

Why are influencers a hot topic in the property world?

With the pandemic forcing us to spend more time in our homes, our obsession with all things interiors continues to soar. We have taken to swooning over dreamy interior images on social media and striving for envy-inducing shots. Thanks to the so-called ‘influencer effect’, social media platforms are now playing a bigger role than ever before on the home buying and selling journey.

For instance, if you look at #newbuild on Instagram, it populates around 3 million posts – from impeccably styled interiors and step-by-step guides to conveyancing, to IGTV’s on how to save for a deposit.

Instead of hosting open houses and scheduling multiple viewings, agents are now carrying out much more work behind the screen. Whether you are a real estate agent with multi-million pound homes like the cast of Selling Sunset, or if you are trying to target first time buyers who are glued to their phones, social media can help secure sales faster and diversify the pool of prospective buyers.

Types of influencers

All brand influencers exist because of their social media presence but they differ from one another based on their follower range, niche, and content presentation style. Influencers can be categorised in the following way:

  • Nano influencers: between 1,000 and 5,000 followers
  • Micro influencers: between 5,000 and 20,000 followers
  • Power or mid-tier: between 20,000 and 100,000 followers
  • Mega influencers: between 100,000 and 1 million followers
  • Celebrities: more than 1 million followers

The type of influencer chosen will vary depending on what type of campaign your brand is implementing and the budget, for example a geographical location campaign might work best with micro influencers.

With this in mind, let’s find out why your brand needs social media influencers now more than ever.

Trustworthy

Influencers are often seen as credible sources who offer advice to their followers on what products or services to buy or use. Hence, influencer marketing is a simple yet effective way to drive patronage to your business.

Consumers have moved onto digital

Gone are the days that brands only use traditional advertisements. Consumers now want valuable digital content from reliable and trendsetting influencers.

Gen Z – a demographic aged 16-26 – now makes up 40% of consumers and are known as the most ‘plugged in’ generation to date, spending an average of three hours a day on social media creating and consuming content. The use of influencers can therefore be an efficient way of conveying your brand’s voice to your target audience i.e. first time buyers who are looking for tips and advice on how to get onto the property ladder.

Frame brand perception

Influencer marketing can help communicate your brand’s identity to the right audience. In addition to this, working in collaboration with an influencer can help shape brand perception – from targeting a new audience to making your brand more relatable.

We are continuing to push clients further into the digital sphere:

Last month BR worked with SO Resi to help educate Gen Z and millennials by offering financial advice for those looking to buy a shared ownership home. SO Resi teamed up with experienced Mortgage Broker, Property Expert, Blogger, and Investor – Tayo Oguntonade (@brickzwithtipz). Aligning with SO Resi’s brand voice, Tayo published three pieces of content – 1 x story, 1 grid post and 1 reel – about shared ownership to help reach a wider target audience than possible simply through SO Resi’s social media platforms. The overall campaign was a huge success, with both the grid post and reel reaching over 4,500 people. SO Resi also witnessed an increase in website traffic that in turned helps enhance brand awareness of the shared ownership brand.

If you’re wondering how an influencer could support your brand but don’t know where to start, our team at Building Relations are happy to help discuss suitable influencers for your next campaign.