5 Common Traits of a Social Influencer

Whenever a customer enters an online retailer, they are not only met with information regarding the product or service they want to purchase but also information created by other customers. Usually, this information is shared on the social media pages in the form of reviews.

However, there is another form of opinion information that’s not generated by real customers, but the brand itself with the purpose of endorsing a product or service. According to the study done by One Productions, 94% of marketers who use influencer marketing find it an effective practice, and influencer marketing can generate up to 11x the ROI of traditional advertising.

Image source: oneproductions.com

A good entrepreneur who wishes to also be an influencer for their brand needs to have the following 5 traits:

Relevance

An authoritative influencer will always occupy a clearly defined niche and will always stay on topic. Relevance matters for influencing others since there is a direct correlation between the relevance of information and audience engagement. The more relevant your content, the more comments, shares and likes it can generate, and that’s a good thing for promoting your brand.

Consistency

To build influence in the digital ecosystem, you must keep at it. That is what influencers do and are good at. A successful entrepreneur who wants to influence others will always maintain a level of effort that will allow them to publish quality content on a regular basis. Thought leaders who have been in the game for a while know all too well the importance of staying in the game and feeding the audience with fresh content and so must you.

Originality

Always offer something the audience won’t find any place else. Influencers know the importance of expanding their content beyond what’s traditionally accepted and creating content such as industry insights or insider tips on a product or service that’s informative and unique. Since business owners will be operating in a particular niche, it’s time to use their experience and knowledge and share the love.

Authenticity

Having years of experience in a particular niche will validate your thought leadership. This is because those following you will know that your information is based on truth. Business leaders able to share their personality, differentiate themselves from the rest, they appear more authentic when trying to influence others.

Trust

One reason why an audience will look to you for information is that they trust the information you must offer. While the audience will always follow an influencer who they can trust, it pays to be transparent. Always be honest with the information you provide. There’s nothing wrong with blowing your own trumpet, as long as the music you create is bearable. Being transparent and not trying to pose as someone you are not will help to secure the trust of your audience.

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