Influencers are everywhere. We see them on their platforms, we see them on the news, we sometimes even see them in real life. Influencers are hard to ignore, and digital marketing data over the past few years has proven how successful they can be at creating awareness and conversions for brands. While influencers mainly influence through their own social media platforms and websites, it’s not completely uncommon to see them publish content on brand channels. Welcome to the world of social media takeovers.
What is a social media takeover?
According to Hootsuite, social media takeovers are “when you grant posting privileges to a person of interest, like an influencer, expert, or professional.”
In this dynamic, an influencer is hired by a brand to talk about their experience or insight on a product or service on the brand’s own social media platforms. Essentially, think of social media takeovers as the talk show guest appearance equivalent of the social media world, except in this case, the special guest essentially takes control over the talk show.
Why should I care about social media takeovers?
1. To reach new audiences: Social media takeovers are a great way to reach new audiences and expand consumer networks. When creating a social media takeover, influencers are not just talking to your current audience, they’re exposing you to their own audiences as well, When doing a social media takeover, it´s important to not just promote the takeover on your own channel, but on the influencer’s channel as well. By doing so, you not only create awareness about your brand to audiences you may not have otherwise reached, but drive views to your page in order for them to access exclusive content by a source they trust that is only obtainable on your channel.
2. To re-engage old audiences: Just because someone follows you, it doesn’t mean that they are actively paying attention to what you’re posting. Often times, if brands aren’t constantly producing noteworthy content, its users’ attention declines after the novelty of following a new account wear off. Brand voices run the risk of becoming boring and getting lost amongst the constant noise that exists on social media. By using social media takeovers, the introduction of a fresh voice and perspective can have the power to disrupt a social media channel and reinvigorate a long-time follower’s attention.
3. To help users identify with your product: Speaking of perspective, one powerful aspect of influencer marketing is that it allows the user to see itself using the product through someone else’s shoes. We all know that representation matters, and when a brand has diverse following or audience it can be hard to cater to every follower’s specific wants and needs. By choosing the right people to represent your brand on your channel, you can connect on a deeper level with niche audiences that otherwise might not be reached through broader marketing efforts. This shows different segments of your audiences that they’re seen, that they’re appreciated, and want them using your product.
4. Add value to your product: Social media takeovers give brands the chance to show their products in a real-life context and through different lenses. By using a variety of influencers to talk about a product through their own perspective, you can expose different sides of your brand, product, or service that users may not be aware about. As Hootsuite explains, a brand that wants to position itself as a sustainable brand can create a social media takeover to shed light on its sustainable practices. By choosing an authoritative figure for sustainability, it gives more credibility to the brand, while also adding additional value to the product and exposing them to a new possible audience.
Source: blog.hootsuite.com/