6 COMMON CHARACTERISTICS OF TOP PERFORMING INFLUENCERS
What’s the secret sauce of success in influencer marketing?
This is a recurring question we get from both brands and creators.
Brands want to find creators that will drive results--and creators want to be able to drive those results for their sponsors.
So how does this work?
In this article, I’ll unpack the themes we’ve noticed across campaigns with our best-performing creators.
Especially the creators that kept brands coming back again and again.
SIX KEY CHARACTERISTICS OF TOP-PERFORMING CREATORS
1. THEY DON’T JUMP FROM BRAND TO BRAND
When a creator is willing to promote one brand this month and a competing brand the next month, it can erode their audience’s trust.
Demonstrating loyalty by promoting a brand repeatedly shows that a creator truly values the brand and its products and helps the audience trust the creator’s promotion.
2. THEY SAY NO TO POOR-FIT BRANDS
Top performers are selective about the brands they work with.
They think about their audience and their own feelings about the brand and whether they could sincerely advocate for it.
If a brand doesn’t authentically fit with a creator’s content, top performers will pass on the opportunity.
3. THEY PRODUCE HIGH-QUALITY CONTENT
It’s not enough to have a lot of followers.
Clickbait might garner tons of views, but it won’t likely attract a loyal and trusted fanbase.
Top performers focus on creating top-quality content, staying true to themselves and their audience.
4. THEIR RATE IS BASED ON AUDIENCE LOYALTY, NOT VOLUME
Top-performing creators base their pricing on their steady and solid audience rather than the occasional viral video.
Brands and agencies want to target the consistent and loyal audience that creators can offer--rather than being asked to pay for viewership that may or may not come through.
It’s the core audience that’s likely to take action based on a creator’s promotion, not the one-off viewer who stumbled on the video because it’s trending.
5. THEY PUT A PERSONAL SPIN ON BRAND REQUIREMENTS
We say this all the time, but the majority of audiences would rather watch an authentic product review than an infomercial.
That means that the brand endorsements that perform best are those that allow the most freedom and flexibility with their language.
We know it can feel a little risky for brands, but it’s important to remember that creators know their audiences extremely well and know what will best resonate with them.
6. THEY LEAD WITH AUTHENTICITY
If there’s one thing that we believe is the foundation of all the others, it’s authenticity.
No consumer is going to act on the advice of their favorite creator if they don’t believe the endorsement is sincere.
TAKEAWAYS
So, what is the key lesson from all of this?
In our experience, the takeaway is that top-performing creators care deeply about their audience and the brands that they work with.
At Outloud, we believe in maintaining a strong client focus, and we’ve been incredibly fortunate to work with many creators over the last 15+ years that share that focus.