The Evil Marketer

In part 1 I set forth a basic argument that word of mouth or influencer marketing (or open source or citizen marketing or any number of related terms), while always the most powerful marketing technique has thus far been an off-grid activity usually unmeasurable (and thus unmanageable as far as ROI is concerned) by us evil marketers. Because the internet and associated technologies now enable the tracking and management (to a limited degree) of influencers, the time has come for an organized influencer network that should behave in much the same way as an ad or affiliate network.

There is one major reason such a thing has not yet been created — as soon as you create a system to reward people for promoting brands it’s going to devolve into a situation where the “recommendations” carry just as much weight (and sometimes less) as a normal advertisement. In other words, open up an influencer program to anyone and any brands, and you end up with a basic affiliate network. Affiliate networks are great, but they inherently suffer from the same problem as other traditional online advertising in that ads may be convincing, but we don’t inherently trust them. There are few exceptions to this, and those fall into the realm of affiliate links disguised as blog posts or other such “stealth” endorsements (with a small percentage of those being legitimate recommendations that simply run through an affiliate link).
The influencer network would have as its publisher base those select people from each vertical who command enough respect and trust that they can act in the same role as a “paid” or “celebrity” endorsement. These marketing relationships occupy the one, most valuable niche in all of advertising — obvious advertisements that consumers still inherently trust (at least when compared to normal advertising).

The influencers in the network would choose the brands they wish to endorse (at least initially), based on genuine respect and love for the brand, but would be compensated for that endorsement. The method of endorsement and compensation for it could vary widely based on vertical and influencer “level”; a rating and/or trust system would be in place for users (both inside and outside the network) to vote in various ways to change that level.

The devil’s in the details of course, and here are a few of them:

• The influencer would need to promote products or brands in a mostly measurable way, via tracked links, coupon codes, printable coupons, or email subscriptions; they would also need to brand their site/sites in a way that is agreeable to both influencer and advertiser
• The influencer could set desired rates and promise a certain level of traffic; these rates would generally be a paid contract over a certain term, but could include bonuses based on CPA or CPC
• The influencer must agree to never promote rival products or brands while under contract
• A rigid approval and vetting process would need to be in place for entry as an influencer; applicants would need to show proof of influence as well as traffic and/or previous affiliate commission numbers, and the applicant would need to concentrate on one vertical
• A network managed by one individual but consisting of several sites and blogs could apply as an influencer and thus use its aggregate influence under one influencer account

You have questions, I’m sure. Here are answers to some of them:

Isn’t this the same as traditional sponsorship or endorsement deals available in offline advertising?

Yes, but with a crucial difference: offline endorsements and sponsorships are always celebrities or media with a mass appeal and almost always concentrate on pure brand marketing. An online influencer network would allow advertisers to get endorsements from very niche markets, and could even target local markets just as easily, all in an open marketplace that had the full weight of ROI measurement behind it and thus turn endorsements into direct marketing.

How will an advertiser know to trust the impact of an influencer?

The network’s main concern will be managing the value of influencers, and can do this with metrics from previous relationships as well as ratings from other inflluencers and consumers. Advertisers can always sign short term contracts to “test” the influencer, and the results of that test will be a part of the influencer’s value moving forward.

How will the influencer network make money?

By charging a percentage of each contract to the advertiser, as is common in affiliate networks.

How is this different from an affiliate network?

There is some crossover, but affiliate relationships are almost always CPA and put the burden of risk on the publisher despite what potential influence they bring to the table. An influencer network puts the burden of risk back on the advertiser but softens it via the metrics that online advertising gathers. It creates a much more formal relationship between publisher and advertiser as well.

Aren’t there sites and blogs already doing this?

Yes, of course. The problem is that the advertiser is responsible for finding these sites, working out the contract, and managing the relationship, and publishers don’t have a central place to go to find all of these advertisers. There are a handful of existing ad networks that claim to do sponsorship deals, but they are usually with their own properties. Furthermore, offline mass marketing endorsements are easy in the sense that the advertiser already knows who to approach; online verticals are made up of hundreds of niches, all of which may need a certain “spin” on the marketing effort, and it would be nearly impossible for any agency to find and rate all of them. A standard as well as a network is needed to coordinate this.

Do these endorsements always need to be online?

No, and that’s where things get really exciting. Online advertising is finding ways to move offline, via mobile phones, GPS, instore linkups with online content, and more. And that’s just the beginning.

To discover more about the potential future of influencer networks, stay tuned.

Love,

The Evil Marketer

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 25th, 2007 at 12:24 am and is filed under influencers, web 2.0, CGM, influencer network, marketing future, marketing, affiliate marketing, mobile, social networks, networks, Evil. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.