The world of influencer marketing is constantly evolving and finding the right influencers for your brand can be challenging. There are more and more creators with fake followers and bought interactions, which is why we're bringing you a guide to help you navigate the world of influencer marketing and choose the right partners for your brand.

The Importance of Authentic Influencers

Authentic influencers are important because they have established a connection with their followers; they trust and engage with their content. If the audience trusts the influencer, there is a high probability that they will also trust the brand they are promoting, which means a better return on investment (ROI) for the brand. Working with influencers who have fake metrics can lead to unnecessary campaign spend and minimal impact.

How Do You Know an Authentic Influencer?

1. Engagement: The most important trait is follower engagement. Look to see if the influencer has likes, comments, and saves on the post that match their follower count. Also, look at the quality of interactions, i.e., whether the comments under their posts are meaningful.

2. Consistency: Authentic influencers are consistent in their schedule, style, and area of interest in their posts.

3. Transparency: Honest reviews and proper labeling of collaborations is another point by which influencers build trust and integrity with their audience.

4. Expertise: A proper influencer should be knowledgeable in their area of interest. Expertise adds credibility to their recommendations.

5. Organicity: An authentic influencer's audience grows gradually and organically, not suddenly. How do you know how to determine this? Read on.

If you're not sure if the influencer you've chosen has reached their follower count organically, use tools to help you do that. HypeAuditor, Social Blade, and Sprout Social are tools that provide in-depth analysis of influencer metrics. They can help you identify fake followers and analyze interactions. Although the tools are useful, you shouldn't forget manual analysis. Scroll through the influencer's profile, look at the comments under their posts, the quality of the content, and the frequency of the posts. Manual analysis will capture human factors that tools may not.

Find the Right Influencer with These 5 Steps

1. Define Your Goals: Define your campaign goals and key performance indicators (KPIs). Knowing what you want to achieve and the audience you want to reach will help you choose the right influencer.

2. Research: Make a list of influencers and, based on the aforementioned tools and your goals, choose the ones that are closest to your values.

3. Engage: If you're still not sure which influencer to choose, engage with their posts. Like, comment, share, start a conversation, and follow their style of engagement. Building relationships can lead to more authentic partnerships.

4. Data: Request media kits from influencers or data from their previous campaigns.

5. Interviews: Direct conversations with influencers are the best way to get to know their communication style, enthusiasm for the campaign, and professionalism. Don't be afraid to reach out to an influencer for an online call or in-person meeting.

Red Flags!

The red flags you should look out for are basically the opposite of the points that identify an authentic influencer. Watch out for influencers who have sudden and unexplained spikes in follower counts, low engagement rates, and generic, repetitive comments. This may indicate a fake audience.

Be Hard on Yourself Too, Not Just Influencers

Authentic partnerships are based on mutual respect and understanding, so it's important to be able to show support for the influencer you're interested in working with.

Choose an influencer that reflects your brand values so you can give them the freedom to be creative and craft their ads. To ensure the influencer delivers the performance you expect, understand the market rates and reward them fairly for their work.

Educate yourself and be curious. Look at specific successful campaigns in your industry or with influencers you've sought out and analyze why they were successful. We wish you the best of luck!