How to Choose Influencers to Work with to Promote Your Tech Business

Figuring out the right marketing strategies to use for your business can sometimes be overwhelming. When it comes to influencer marketing and collaboration with tech business companies, the precise choice of partnerships is essential for success. Different brands have different needs, and learning which master plan will work for your company is vital.

What Exactly Is Influencer Marketing?

Influencer marketing is defined as the process of reaching out to (online) personalities or people who have a large number of followers to help you endorse your brand.

These people are called “influencers”, as their audience heavily relies on their opinions and thoughts when it comes to certain topics, products, services, or brands. They are well-known and trusted in their own communities, which is why companies tend to reach out to them for partnerships.

Influencers can help increase your sales and conversions. Exposing your brand to a wide group of people will help bring about brand awareness, which can then lead to an influx of new customers. Celebrities and popular content creators are also considered influencers.

According to Forbes, influencer marketing has been around since the 1930s. However, the industry has since flourished and grown into a bigger marketing strategy. Today, even tech companies collaborate with influencers that are in the same niche as them.

Why Should Tech Companies Collaborate with Influencers?

The tech industry often uses jargon and words that are not always familiar to non-tech people. The content that they put out can sometimes get lost in translation, which is not a great thing when it comes to marketing your brand.

Influencers make it easier for the audience to understand these technical terms. They can define the market space by creating new terminology and buzzwords that people can easily understand. This makes it easier for others to relate to the brand.

Take a look at this collaboration between LG and @unboxtherapy, which is one of the most successful tech influencers:

 

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A post shared by Lewis Hilsenteger (@unboxtherapy)

The post has over 20,000 likes from @unboxtherapy’s 2.2m followers on Instagram.

Here is another collaboration between Marques Brownlee and Tesla:

This YouTube video has over 5.6m views, 214k likes, and 13k comments. Tesla is one of the biggest tech companies to date, but they still collaborate with tech influencers to market their new products and services.

Lastly, tech influencers help redefine who the market leaders are. Their audience trusts them and thus, tends to follow their actions. Their followers undoubtedly respect the opinions and views of these tech influencers, and they often look up to them.

What Are the Four Types of Tech Influencers?

Just like with other types of bloggers, tech influencers are also divided into different classifications. Read on to see which type of tech influencer you might want to partner up with:

1. Independent Analysts and Firms. These types of tech influencers usually focus on a very specific market segment. For example, Dan Shey from ABI Research highlights the industry trade, while Sharmila Annaswamy from Frost & Sullivan specializes in industrial technology. Their audiences consider them credible because they have dedicated their time studying and researching a specific field in the tech industry.Also included in this category are analyst firms, which are some of the biggest influencers in the tech industry. Some of the biggest analyst firms include the Forrester Research, the Everest Group, Gartner, and the IHS Markit. Analyst firms use a direct approach, meaning that they work with key people in your company such as your CEO, CTO, and senior product managers. Getting a collaboration with them is not exactly easy, but it’s well worth it since they usually have thousands, if not millions, of followers.
2. Tech Bloggers and Writers. Tech bloggers can either work independently or for a firm. They are considered experts in their field, which is why they have a massive following.Some of the most popular tech bloggers include Marques Brownlee (13.9m YouTube subscribers), Austin Evans (4.9m YouTube subscribers), and Arun Maini (Mrwhosetheboss, 6.7m YouTube subscribers).Additionally, tech writers from the trade press are also considered tech influencers. Newspapers and IT-related websites have their own group of writers that you can collaborate with as well. You could have your website linked to some of their articles and write-ups, but of course, your content has to be top-notch to be considered for such a partnership.

   Some of the most respected tech media publications include TechCrunch, CNET, Wired, USA Today, and Financial Times.

3. Innovators and Early Adopters. These people are well-known for defining a niche in the tech industry, making them some of the most respected influencers in the market. Industry analysts listen to them since they have the knowledge that other tech influencers do not.Some of the most respected CIOs include Cynthia Stoddard of Adobe, Stephen Schmidt of Amazon, Jon Summers of AT&T, and Jacqueline Guichelaar of Cisco.
4. Tech Companies. Partnering with huge IT companies can totally change the way people perceive your brand. Even though it can be quite difficult to score a collaboration with them, it’s always worth a shot. Afterward, you’ll have people clicking on your website link and searching for you on Google once you partner up with these massive brands. Some of the most successful IT companies include IBM, Microsoft, DXC, Amazon, Accenture, and more.Determine which type of influencer you’d like to work with and start planning how you are going to reach out to them. Decide what you want to achieve and carefully think about what your long-term goals are.

Here’s how you can choose the right tech influencer to work with:

Know Your Main Objectives

Defining the project’s main objective is vital to influencer marketing because it lets you and your partner know how to go about the campaign. To determine your goals, you should consider the following questions:

1. Do I want to reach a bigger audience?
2. How do I want to market to these people and what platforms do I want to use?
3. Am I looking to promote new tech products and services?
4. Do I need to generate new leads and drive sales?

Considering these details can help you determine which influencer to work with. Some influencers use Instagram for their collaborations, while some use YouTube. The campaign will heavily depend on what you want to achieve and who you are working with.

Track Your KPIs

Relevant key performance indicators such as the reach, impressions, sales, engagements, views, and number of followers should be tracked. Brand awareness should also be included, and this can be tracked through the increase in your followers, the number of likes on you or your partner’s posts, and the number of shares.

You need to be aware of which influencer program you are getting positive feedback from. This will help you decide whether you want to continue working with them or look for new ones that have goals similar to yours.

Be Consistent with Your Values

Being consistent with tech values and setting the tone for the campaign can help leverage influencer marketing. Look for an influencer who produces content that’s similar to yours, so your audience won’t get confused with the things that you are putting out.

Talk with the tech influencer beforehand and have them review some of your work. This will give them a good idea of how you write and reach out to your audience. You should also take the initiative to check out your potential partner’s content and see if their tone and values align with yours.

Specify Your Budget

Different influencers have different rates, and it is mostly based on how popular they are and how many followers they have. Some tech influencers will ask for a per-post payment, while some of them prefer a one-time payment. Alternatively, you can also try offering your products and services to them for free in exchange for a video, Instagram post, or write-up.

Ask the influencer about their rates and preferences. These things should be included in the contract and should be clearly stated to avoid confusion in the future. Payments and rates can also depend on the project scope, length of the partnership, and specific collaboration terms.

Stick to Tech Influencers

Working with non-tech influencers will not only be ineffective, but it can also hurt your business. Your name will forever be associated with these influencers, and working with people outside of the tech industry will confuse your audience.

Additionally, you will only be wasting your time and money if you work with non-tech bloggers. You are aiming to reach a specific audience, which is why you should only work with influencers who are in the same niche as you are.

Here are some tools that you can use to find t tech influencers that you can work with:

• Hootsuite
• Followerwonk

Understand the Influencer’s Authority

Collaborate with a tech influencer that has enough authority to help you leverage your business. See how many followers or subscribers they have, how often they post, what type of content they put out, their engagement rate, and their past and current partnerships.

Understanding how the influencer influences and how they are seen within the community will give you a clear idea of how they can help build brand awareness for your business.

Join Influencer Communities

Communicate with different tech influencers by joining different influencer marketing communities. Engage with the influencers to get a better understanding of their work and how they are seen. This will give you a sneak peek of what you can expect if you ever decide to go onboard with them.

Here are some online tech influencer communities that you can consider joining:

1. Influence.co – This website can help you communicate with bloggers in the tech industry. It houses different influencers from varied niches, and you can certainly find some that specialize in tech.
2. Upfluence – Just like Influence.co, Upfluence consists of influencers from different niches. Here, you can also find brands and agencies to work with.
3. Acorn – Here you can find influencers to work with by going to the “influencers” tab and looking for people that you’d be interested in working with. You can send interview them and send them brand offers if you feel they can bring something new to your business.

Conclusion

Marketers and business owners should dedicate time to finding the right tech influencer to work with. Talking to them, reading their blogs, watching their videos, and viewing their partnerships helps you understand what they have to offer. Let them know what you are looking for, create the right pitch, start with the collaboration, and see your leads and conversions grow in no time.