5 Ways to Promote a Product Launch with Influencer Marketing
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you already know that influencer marketing is an effective way to build brand awareness, boost customer loyalty, and increase conversions.
But did you know that influencers are also a powerful way to promote new products? A Nielsen survey found that 83% of consumers trust recommendations from people they know more than any other type of advertising. Clearly, influencers should be included in your product launch marketing plan.
Here are 5 ways to successfully promote your product launch with influencer marketing:
1. Give Influencers Early Access For A Product Review
Influencer marketing is a great way to raise awareness and excitement, build a fan base, and develop interest in your product before it even hits the shelves.
It’s important that you take the time to find the right influencers for your product launch marketing campaign. Then give those influencers early access to your new product or service before launch, and ask them to help you spread the word and create buzz.
Influencers have the ability to add trustworthiness and credibility to your reputation, especially when you are launching a new product. When you partner with the right influencers, they can also help you create a strong relationship with your target customers.
In return for early access, you can have influencers create an unboxing video, write a product review, or share their feedback about your product in some other way.
Recommendations from trusted sources have always been a successful marketing strategy. Influencers have thousands, and sometimes even millions of loyal followers who already trust their opinions and endorsements. So a recommendation from an influencer in your niche is a great way to introduce your new product to a large, relevant audience.
Prior to the release of iPhone 7, Apple sent prototypes to top YouTube influencers like Unbox Therapy, which has more than 6.8 million subscribers. The channel’s unboxing video of the device received more than 7 million views before product launch.
2. Have Influencers Share Their Unique Experiences
In order for your new product to be successful, it needs to make a strong first impression, and connect with your target consumers in a genuine, and lasting way. Some of the most effective and influential marketing is done when it is honest, real, and authentic.
Have influencers share their real, unique experiences with your product with their followers. And allow them to do so in their own style and voice. Influencers already know what type of content will resonate most with their audience. So let them do what they do best.
Send them your product, and ask them to share their honest, authentic experiences with it. If you have a specific message you want them to communicate, like product details, launch date, price, etc., be sure to let them know. Then give them creative freedom to share their reactions to your product with their audience in their own way.
World class footballer, Cristiano Ronaldo has one of the most popular Instagram accounts, with 84.4 million followers. He often uses the platform to share stunning images and his personal experiences with products to promote them in an engaging, relevant, and accessible way.
Recently, he shared a photo of himself using Sixpad. In the caption, he told his followers that he brought the training gear to Japan with him because it helps him perform his best. As you can see below, the post got more than 441K likes, and 5,200 comments in the first two days.
3. Have Them Create Content for Your Product Launch
Many influencers are exceptionally creative, and they already know how to create content that will engage their audience. Take advantage of their experience, and harness their creative superpowers to create content for your product launch.
MDG Advertising reported that 70% of internet users prefer to learn about products through content instead of traditional ads. Partner with influencers to create explainer videos, product images, informative blog posts, or other types of content to make sure that your product launch is successful.
College Inn recently partnered up with ChefsFeed to promote their one of their products. The food and cooking YouTube channel created a sponsored video with 4 tips for using the product.
4. Contests, Giveaways, and Promo Codes
Giving stuff away is a great way to attract new customers.
For some people, a video review, personal experience, or blog post from their favorite influencer about your new product may not be enough to convince them to buy it. Have influencers promote a contest, giveaway, or promo code to further encourage their followers to make a purchase.
Create a sense of urgency by having influencers mention that the discount code is only valid for a limited time. For giveaways and contests, make sure influencers mention the deadline for participation.
Daniel Wellington, a watchmaker, successfully used influencer marketing to grow his brand from a $15,000 startup into a thriving business worth $220 million. He partnered with top influencers on Instagram, who posted images of his watches along with discount codes for 15% off his products.
5. Email Marketing
You already know that email marketing can be a very effective tool for converting large audiences into customers. But what many brands overlook is the potential of influencers to boost their email marketing efforts, including the promotion of new products.
Influencers have already built strong relationships with their followers, with whom they communicate regularly. Many of them have established large email lists. When you partner with influencers who are relevant to your niche, their email lists are likely full of your target customers. So why not have them promote your product launch via email?
But don’t just send influencers the same email templates your brand is using to promote your product launch, and ask them to send those out to their subscribers. Make sure all email content is customized for each influencer’s audience. It should match their regular email content in style, tone, and length as much as possible.
As part of their regular email newsletters, you could ask influencers to mention (and link to) your product launch landing page, or other content related to the launch, like an unboxing video, explainer video, or blog post. Just don’t forget to include a strong call-to-action.
To ensure this successfully promotes your new product, make sure the influencer and product are a strong fit. For example, A hiker promoting warmer sleeping bags for mountain treks is better suited than a hiker promoting tennis racquets.
Conclusion
Now you know several ways to promote your product launch with influencer marketing. Don’t forget to measure the reach, engagement, and conversions driven by each influencer so that you can adjust the campaign quickly for maximum effectiveness and ROI.
Have you used any of the influencer marketing strategies above? Do you have any more ideas for harnessing the power of influencers to promote a new product? Please share your suggestions and stories in the comments below. And if you need help integrating influencers into your product launch marketing plan, feel free to contact me.
Lead/Featured images: Copyright: ‘http://www.123rf.com/profile_emojoez‘ / 123RF Stock Photo
Shane Barker
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