How To Collaborate With Influencers Without Spending A Fortune

Some would say that brand promotion nowadays has a lot more opportunities than it had decades ago. However, at the same time, the competition between brands and the struggle to catch customer attention is tougher than ever.

Influencer marketing is now one of the most effective and quickly developing tools to use in your social media marketing strategy. It allows you to reach a bigger audience, increase your sales, and deliver your message.

The Influence Of Influencers

Influencer marketing can’t be called a brand-new trend, as it developed from celebrity endorsement. Let’s not forget the times when popular Hollywood actors and actresses were popping up as representatives of various brands or taking part in commercials. Celebrity endorsements have existed since the middle of the 1700s, and were the tool #1 for TV, radio, and printed commercials in the 1900s.

Now, it’s not just Hollywood stars who are considered influencers. Bloggers, models, Instagram beauty gurus, and YouTubers all over the world collaborate with different brands daily – increasing the marketing sphere of the influencer.

Influencer marketing is not the same as celebrity endorsement, as it addresses the audience of a particular influencer, and looks more friendly than a paid commercial itself. Though many social media users can tell if the content is sponsored, such collaborations bring noticeable results and enhance the brand’s sales.

So, how can you use this effective tool while sticking to your limited budget?

#1 Collaborate With Micro-Influencers

Micro-influencers (the ones who have between 1,000 and 1,000,000 followers) have become a real thing in social media marketing campaigns, due to several reasons:

It’s easier to establish contacts with them. Bloggers with millions of followers usually have less time for getting acquainted with every collaboration request they receive. So, your letter can remain unopened.
They are ready for a long-term collaboration. While they don’t have as many offers as bigger influencers do, they appreciate long-term contracts, which allow them to profit from more than one-time campaigns.
They establish a trustworthy relationship with their followers. The average social media user will definitely relate more to a low-income blogger.

While these micro-influencers don’t have many users to advertise your product or services to, choosing them for your marketing campaign is the right choice. Though they might have fewer followers, the percentage of those who will find the content credible and buy your product can be higher, compared to the audiences of larger influencers.

#2 Communicate With More Influencers At Time

The more bloggers you write to with the same offer, the more chances you have to choose the one who will request lower payment.

Let’s say, you have a product that you want to be advertised by Instagram influencers, like lip balm. You can search for beauty gurus, and offer to collaborate with 20, 50 or even 100 of them. Some of them will not respond at all; others will respond to you with the sum that they expect to receive for their service.

The more answers you get, the easier it will be for you to define the average price and find a deal that fits your budget.

#3 Discuss The Price

Many brands don’t like to bargain as it might seem a little indecent. But who will judge you if you try? A simple question won’t harm. So, if you have a tight budget you can discuss the price and the terms of collaboration.

Offer Something More

You can ask for a lower price just like that, or offer something in exchange for a discount. For example, you can offer some free products or services to have a lower price. You can also share discount codes and coupons that both the influencer and the audience can use.

Frank Bradstorm, a social media marketer of Take My Class, says, “If the influencer is interested in your product, or thinks this collaboration is useful to the audience, then you have more chances to have barter a deal. At least, partly. For example, if you can have a contest for the audience, and provide some prizes, it will be beneficial for both parties. An influencer might get more followers or establish a trustworthy relationship with the audience, while the brand will get an increase in sales.”

Wholesale Posts

If you want to save some money, you can discuss an opportunity to collaborate for several posts in a row. This way you can make the price for each of the posts lower than you would pay for a post in a one-time campaign.

#4 Discuss The Compensation Model

Not all influencers require a fixed price for post or video. Some of them might agree to get a payment based on the number of clicks, purchases, or even audience engagement.

Here are a few models that you can use when collaborating with an influencer:

Pay per post — this is the most common model, as it implies paying a fixed price for every piece of content an influencer creates, e.g. posts, videos, tweets, or stories.
Cost per click — pay influencer for every user who follows the link in the post.
Cost per purchase/acquisition — paying an influencer for every purchase made, using the direct link in the post.
Cost per engagement — paying an influencer on the number of likes, shares, comments, or clicks.

So, you can see that there are more options for you, that don’t require paying the total sum at one time. This way you can reduce risk, and pay for particular results, instead of paying for the whole campaign in advance without knowing if it will make you any profit.

Final Thoughts

Social media is one of the most progressive and effective channels to use in your marketing strategy. If you haven’t tried collaborating with influencers before, you should definitely try it to reach a bigger audience and draw attention to your brand.

Even if your budget is limited, you can always find more affordable ways to collaborate with bloggers or Instagram influencers. Planning and researching beforehand will definitely help you find the most suitable option for performing a successful marketing campaign.

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