Free Influencer Analytics Tool

Find the Right Content Creators

The fact is that not every content creator is equally authentic. And not every authentic creator is right for your brand. 

It may take a few campaigns to get into a good rhythm of identifying those content creators to match your brand and audience perfectly. And when that happens, your program ROI will rise dramatically.

A common misperception about who the “right content creator” is is that it’s all about the follower counts. Unfortunately, a high follower count doesn’t mean creator success. Rather, content creator success is based on authentic content that nurtures online communities of engaged creators. 

“This is the number one question to ask [about influencers] – Do they have a connection to their audience?” – Ethan Frame, Senior Manager, Influencer Marketing at MVMT

Genuine connections between content creators and their followers occur through online conversations. And while some of those conversations occur in direct messages or groups, many of those conversations occur under post comments similar to an online forum.

Celebrity influencers enjoy a massive follower count and can grab the attention of millions of social media users in a single post. This benefit is great for brand awareness. But because of their celebrity status, these content creators nurture online connections through posts that resonate with their audience and are not able to respond to every follower comment. 

Nano and micro influencers, on the other hand, are perfect for new influencer marketing programs. These content creators are more affordable, and they usually curate some of the deepest connections with their audience than most social influencers. In general, it is much easier for nano and micro influencers to produce the kind of authentic content that drives conversions.

That said, each content creator has innate strengths and weaknesses. As such, using a variety of creator types can help you guide customers through the buyer’s journey, being sure to employ different kinds of content creators at every stage.

Which Content Creator Metrics Are Most Important?

The most compelling content creator metric is Engagement. Authentic interactions between creators and their followers usually signal trust and rapport. 

Engagement metrics can include:

Once you onboard your first group of content creators, you’ll be able to access additional engagement metrics, such as coupon code redemptions and link clicks. But when you are recruiting brand new creators, you may not know what these performance metrics will look like until you’ve launched a campaign.

Engagement never guarantees creator success, but it can signal authenticity. And authenticity builds trust and genuine social media connections. These connections are more likely to convert than others. Which is why engagement is your most reliable content creator metric.

Your Marketing Goals

While engagement metrics are important they are only a piece of the story, there are additional metrics you might take into account based on your marketing goals.

If your objective is brand awareness, follower counts and post impressions will also be important to examine when searching for the right content creators. Because web traffic, impressions, and CTRs are critical.

Engagement metrics are your best indicators when it comes to content creator impact. Assured of audience engagement, you can craft your campaigns with greater confidence as you outline your goals and KPIs.

Why Content Creator Analysis Is a Must for Recruiting Creators

You will serve your influencer marketing program well by performing in-depth content creator analysis. Under close scrutiny, you can avoid recruiting fake influencers, make certain that a creator is safe for your brand, and achieve audience alignment.

Avoiding Fake Influencers

Fake influencers manufacture follower counts and engagement. They may accomplish this by literally buying likes, or they might join a group of wanna-be content creators that intentionally provide engagement in a quid-pro-quo arrangement.

Without authenticity, your influencer marketing program will be transactional and convert fewer customers. While initially you may gain a few more followers, the way to achieve ROI for your program is to ensure you know how to spot fake influencers.

When you know what to look for, spotting fake influencers is easy. If a content creator has a ton of “likes” but few to no comments. If these content creators do have comments, those comments lack substance and may include glaring spelling and grammatical errors indicative of a non-native speaker creating engagement artificially.

Genuine content creators are less likely to have suspicious metrics – you’ll see the relationship the creator built with their audience in the way they interact with each other.

Determining Brand Safety

You’ve worked hard to build your brand and establish credibility with your audience. You’ll want to partner with influencers and content creators that showcase your brand and support the reputation that you’ve created.

Determining brand safety involves taking note of a content creator’s tone and posting style. Depending upon your brand and industry, certain post styles may be inappropriate or unnecessarily controversial. 

Additionally, you’ll want to partner with content creators that genuinely love your products. Ideally, you’ve only partnered with a content creator after they’ve given you an unsolicited shout-out to their followers. If they have a strong affinity for your brand, they’re not likely to be partnering with your direct competitors. The best brand-creator relationships generally enjoy a certain level of industry exclusivity. 

Examining Content Creator Audiences

You and your content creator should have significant audience alignment. That means that your products/services appeal to the creator’s audience.

Often, content creators build their online communities around certain hobbies or lifestyles. Your products should be relevant to that creator’s online community. 

It’s appropriate to note the content creator’s audience demographics, social status, and location. These communities may also promote a particular mood or set of values. Each of these factors is significant and can help you achieve audience alignment.

How to Use Influencer Metrics to Decide What to Pay a Creator

“Many influencer marketing managers don’t feel confident in their knowledge of ‘what a fair price is”’when negotiating with influencers. There’s a good reason for this – there’s no standard cost for influencers.”

GRIN, Top 11 Influencer Negotiation Tips for Landing the Perfect Creator Partnership

Because there is no standard cost for content creators figuring out what to pay a creator can be confusing. Knowing how to leverage the influencer metrics you know into an attractive compensation package can make your influencer marketing negotiations more collaborative.

Content creators with a flat fee should be able to demonstrate strong conversion metrics. Without those metrics, you may be taking an unnecessary risk. 

Furthermore, many successful micro-influencers work on product seeding and commissions. This no-upfront-cost model is the perfect fit for young brands on a limited budget. That’s why product seeding is the best place to start your influencer marketing program.

As your program grows, you’ll be able to determine fees based on a creator’s engagement and performance metrics. You’ll also have a good idea of your campaign ROI to determine if a certain fee structure makes sense.

Which Content Creators Are Best for Your Brand Based on Their Analytics?

At the end of the day, your marketing goals and KPIs guide you to know which influencer analytics are the most essential. Your goals establish your long-term or campaign-level objectives, and your KPIs become reasonable milestones to help achieve your objectives.

Based on those goals, certain content creator performance metrics become your KPIs. In most cases, the following metrics contribute to your KPIs:

Conclusion: Use this influencer analysis tool to weed out fake influencers and find the best content creators for your campaigns.

Authentic audience engagement builds brand trust and loyalty among social media audiences. By doing what is required to identify the right content creators for your brand, you’ll achieve more in the way of authentic media than you could on your own branded channels.

Using our free tool above, you can start your content creator search by looking at the most critical creator performance metrics. Once you’ve built a team of content creators and identified your top performers, you can replicate your success by looking for similar creators with new audiences. 

Above all, you should track your program performance and test new techniques. Like most marketing approaches, influencer marketing improves with testing and experience. Mindful trial-and-error tactics refine your program over time.

Frequently Asked Questions