Working with bloggers to drive brand awareness and build relationships can be an effective way to increase your reach and expand your audience. However, many businesses jump into a one-off blogger campaign without really understanding the potential long-term effects on their brand’s reputation. Let’s take a look at why one-off campaigns are damaging and what you can do instead to get the most out of your investments.
The risks of one-off blogger campaigns
When it comes to working with bloggers, there is a risk that comes with one-off campaigns. Without taking the time to develop a relationship or understand the blogger’s content style, brands run the risk of having their campaigns come across as inauthentic or even offensive. This lack of understanding can sometimes lead to lacklustre or even negative reviews from influencers, which can damage a brand’s reputation in the long run.
One-off campaigns often fail to deliver results
In addition, one-off campaigns often fail to deliver results because they lack consistency and continuity. When brands simply reach out for one post without building an ongoing relationship, there is no guarantee that the results will be positive or lasting. You could end up spending money on a campaign that yields few tangible benefits for your business.
It’s difficult to accurately calculate ROI
Finally, if you use too many different influencers for one-off campaigns, you may struggle to keep track of who you have worked with and what results in each campaign produced. This means that when it is time to review how successful your influencer marketing efforts have been, it will be difficult (or impossible) to accurately calculate ROI and make informed decisions about future strategies.
The solution: 3 long-term strategies
If you truly want to get value from blogger collaborations and make sure that your investment pays off in the long run, then it is better to focus on longer-term strategies such as building an influencer community or running an ongoing blog campaign series rather than relying on single posts from individual bloggers.
Strategy 1. Form long-lasting relationships with bloggers and influencers
By taking the time to form relationships with key influencers and create content that resonates with their audiences over time, you will be able to build trust between yourself and influencers while also driving consistent results from each collaboration effort.
This type of approach allows you to track performance over time so that you can assess ROI more accurately and make informed decisions about future investment in influencer marketing efforts.
As for all relationships, creating a successful and long-lasting partnership with influencers and bloggers does take effort and dedication, but the return on investment can be tremendous.
To ensure that both parties are getting the most out of the relationship, brands should remember to work with objectives and strategies in mind and set the milestones clearly.
Strategy 2: Only source bloggers that fit your brand values and ethos
Working with bloggers and influencers is a great way to gain exposure for your brand, but if you want to maximize the ROI, it’s important that you carefully source those who share the same values and ethos as your business.
Finding the right blogger means that not only are they effective in reaching people who will be interested in your product or service, but they will also act as ambassadors for your brand which yields greater long-term benefits.
So when you consider blogger collaborations, be sure to look into not just reach, engagement, traffic and follower numbers, but also themes and values they discuss to ensure the optimal effectiveness of your campaigns.
Strategy 3: Employ effective communication strategies
Additionally, effective communication and collaboration between a brand and blogger/influencer is paramount in ensuring that both parties are up-to-date with their individual roles in achieving the desired outcome.
Without clear lines of communication and a thorough understanding of roles, companies risk missing out on the potential ROI that blogging partnerships can offer. It’s also important to make sure expectations are clarified beforehand, as well as how results will be measured. Both parties should take ownership of their role in the process, keeping each other informed about progress along the way.
Ultimately, effective communication and collaboration will increase efficiency at every stage of the blogger/ influencer relationship, which is key to guaranteeing a successful outcome.
Drive long-term success with long-term blogger collaborations
Overall, one-off blogger campaigns may seem like an easy option for brands looking for quick wins but they are rarely effective in driving long-term success or providing value for money invested in them.
Instead, brands should focus on longer-term strategies such as forming relationships with key influencers or creating ongoing blog series which will ultimately yield better results while helping protect their reputation in the process. By doing this, brands are much more likely to reap rewards from their collaboration efforts both now and well into the future!