BEST INSTAGRAM GROWTH TOOLS
Are you aware of how much an Instagram influencer costs now?
It’s no secret that marketing is based around attitudes and playing into people’s wants and needs. Celebrity endorsements have been a thing for decades, and some of the most lucrative of all time include:
- Michael Jackson and Pepsi
- George Clooney and Nespresso
- Jennifer Aniston and Emirates
- Charlize Theron and Dior
- Travis Scott, Justin Timberlake, and J Balvin for McDonalds
- Brad Pitt and Nicole Kidman for Chanel
- Snoop Dogg and Corona
- Serena Williams, Drake, and Cristiano Ronaldo for Nike
The list goes on and on! This has been happening before social media, but there’s no doubt about the fact that social media now offers endorsement partnerships a whole new way to reach their target audience.
The whole influencer marketing strategy has stemmed from years of creating brand personas and partnership deals that work as endorsements that build interest and authority for brands.
Whether or not you work with a mega-celebrity like the ones on the list above, influencer marketing works the same way. You reach potential buyers through a large amount of reach and trust that an influencer has built with their following.
49% of people rely on influencers for product recommendations and a whopping 86% of marketers have used influencer marketing in some way in the past year. The industry as a whole grew by almost 10 billion dollars in 2020 alone.
Since content marketing and influencer marketing is taking over the whole marketing industry in a big way, it’s important to know how to implement these marketing tactics in your own business and what you can expect in terms of investment dollars.
Some influencers such as Kylie Jenner have earned upwards of a million dollars for one single Instagram post. If your brand doesn’t have a million to blow on a star-studded Instagram post, there are still options.
If you’re curious about how much you can expect to pay for an effective Instagram influencer marketing campaign, you’ll find that rates vary greatly according to a variety of factors. We’re going to discuss:
- Your campaign vision
- Six factors that affect Instagram Influencer marketing cost
- How much you should pay an Instagram influencer
Once you read, you’ll have a much better idea about how to approach influencer marketing on Instagram and how much you can expect to invest, as well as the dos and don’ts of negotiating.
You don’t have to work with a mega-celebrity to get results— there are plenty of ways you can make influencer marketing work for you and your budget.
Let’s get started.
Have a Vision: What are You Looking to Get Out of Your Campaign? What’s Your Media Value Per Post?
The first thing you must establish for yourself is your particular campaign vision; if you don’t, you won’t be able to effectively select the best influencer for your niche and brand image.
Keep your end goal in mind and understand what you want to accomplish. Are you looking to:
- Generate interest in your brand
- Gain more Instagram followers
- Promote a new product or service
- Increase conversion rate
- Etc.
You have to know what you’re going to measure as success in your campaign, and having a specific goal will ensure that you’re not simply shooting at all targets and hoping one sticks.
There are three tried-and-true goals that most businesses have in mind when using influencer marketing:
- Engagement increase
- High-quality content creation
- Drive direct sales, ROI, and conversions
Take time to reflect on your current market position and what you’d like to improve. What’s the ultimate vision for your Instagram influencer campaign? How will they help you? Where will your account be when the campaign is finished?
After you have established your vision, you can then begin to seek out influencers that may be a potential fit for your brand and the ones that probably won’t be able to provide the results you’re looking for.
For instance, if your vision is to increase your engagement on Instagram, you’ll want to consider how engaged the Instagram influencer’s following is and how they can use strategic content to direct that engagement to your profile.
If you want help with content creation, you want to find someone who has a matching brand aesthetic, jives with your brand identity, and also is a pro at creating attractive Instagram content.
If you want sales to bump up, focus on influencers that have shown this type of success in prior campaigns and have experience working with similar products or services in your niche.
Of course, if an influencer can check multiple or all of these boxes, great. Know your primary metrics and know what you expect the results of the campaign to be.
In terms of how much an Instagram influencer costs, let’s check out six different factors that will impact how much you’ll pay for influencer marketing.
Six Factors that Determine How Much an Instagram Influencer Costs
Due to the versatility of Instagram and the incredible diversity in what influencers offer on a personal level, there are many variants that affect the cost of influencer marketing.
You’ll want to keep your vision in mind, but you should also consider the following six elements when assessing your influencer marketing budget.
Instagram Influencer Cost Factor 1: Follower Count
One of the most obvious factors is the number of followers an influencer has and the size of their overall follower base.
It makes sense— you’d probably be willing to pay more for an influencer that has 20k followers as opposed to 2,000.
Follower counts in the thousands or millions are no doubt attractive, but it shouldn’t be the only thing you consider when choosing an influencer; here’s why:
The Instagram algorithm has changed the way that users consume media on Instagram, making it more difficult for even the biggest accounts to get their content seen like it was in the past.
While big numbers create a wow factor, in terms of practicality, you may see higher levels of success with a micro-influencer who has between 1k to 10k followers on Instagram; their content will be seen by a larger percent of their following.
You could, therefore, potentially reach more users in your target audience through a campaign with a smaller influencer instead of a high-dollar arrangement with a mega influencer.
Instagram Influencer Cost Factor 2: Engagement Rate
Engagement has emerged as the driving factor of Instagram growth and success. Businesses want connection and they want people to do more than simply view their content.
We need our audience to like, comment, share, and click on our content. Getting a response is now the true indicator of real results on Instagram.
Instagram has presented the best chance of gaining this engagement, with an average 3.21% engagement rate in comparison with other networks delivering only 1.5%. This is why Instagram influencer marketing has taken off at the level it has.
Logically, then, you should look for influencers that have high engagement rates so that it can translate to real results for your campaign. The target should be a 2-3% engagement rate.
If you find higher levels such as 4%-6%, you’re off to the races— get them on board immediately.
You can calculate the engagement rate of an influencer by adding together the likes and comments on the influencer’s IG posts (you can choose perhaps 10 of their most recent). Then, divide the total number by their follower count.
Take that number and divide it by 10 (or the number of posts you’re evaluating). This will give you an accurate per-post average in terms of engagement.
Instagram Influencer Cost Factor 3: Type of IG Content
When Instagram first started, it was focused on photo-sharing only.
Now, with content like Instagram stories, Instagram carousel posts, IGTV, Instagram Live, Reels, and more, you want your influencer to be well-versed in a variety of content creation.
Not only that, users want to feel a connection through content and want to see content that is authentic and relatable.
The type of content and main themes of the content will depend on your niche as well as on your campaign vision. Videos typically perform better in terms of engagement on Instagram than photos do, so keep that in mind when deciding on content types for your influencer.
You can work together with your influencer to come to an agreement on what type of content will be included in the campaign; with the incredible popularity of Instagram stories, you should definitely include them in the agreement if you want to reach the maximum level of followers possible.
Instagram Influencer Cost Factor 4: Post Quantity
With over a billion users on Instagram, it’s impossible for all posted content to get seen. That’s right— some content posted to Instagram never gets seen at all.
For this reason, it’s a good idea to consider going for a range of posts or an ongoing relationship with your influencer instead of putting all your eggs in the basket of a single content feature.
This way, you’ll get your product and brand in the feed of your influencer regularly, being able to then leverage the power of their follower base.
The more content that you seek from an influencer, the more likely you’ll be able to get a bulk discount for the partnership.
Instagram Influencer Cost Factor 5: Industry and Niche
Instagram is a very visual platform, and some niches, particularly modeling, photography, beauty, fashion, and fitness have soared to new heights thanks to Instagram.
These days, however, they are not the only ones with millions of people trying to make it in that niche— virtually all niches will find market saturation on the platform.
When you are working in a niche that only has a few key influencers on Instagram, however, you may expect to pay more because their audiences are more exclusive.
If you’re curious about the breakdown per niche, take a look at the cost of Instagram influencers according to industry.
Instagram Influencer Cost Factor 6: Quality of Photo and Video Content
The nature of Instagram is ultimately a visual content-sharing network that allows its users to make connections through visual content media.
It’s an absolute must that your influencer understands the principles of Instagram content creation and that they can produce content that aligns with your brand image and aesthetic.
The last thing you want is to sign up with an Instagram influencer that promises you the world and ends up damaging your brand reputation through content that you didn’t expect.
The better an influencer is at creating high-quality, engaging content, the higher you should expect to pay. Look closely at the influencer’s content before reaching out to them so that you feel confident in their ability to meet your needs.
Can You Negotiate on Instagram Influencer Cost?
Now that you know the main things that will impact how much you pay for an Instagram influencer campaign, you may be wondering if it’s possible to bargain with the influencer and negotiate on different agreement points.
The good news is that influencers understand the game and they are open to negotiating on their offerings, allowing you to meet an agreement that works for both of you.
Maybe you found a great influencer with perfect content but lacking follower count. Perhaps you found an influencer with a solid follower count but lower engagement than you’d like to see.
You can use those different points to base your negotiation on, which is why doing your research can help you along the way. It’s especially useful if you’re looking to work with a few different influencers instead of just one.
The following section will cover some common price points for influencer marketing.
How Much Should You Pay an Instagram Influencer?
It’s important that you know a bit about the price ranges that influencers are used to dealing with. That way, you can avoid getting ripped off or taking for a ride due to a lack of experience. It’ll also help you to put together competitive offerings that are likely to result in a partnership.
The range of cost for influencer marketing was noted by State of Instagram Marketing as between $250 and $10,000, which is still a pretty large range.
The most common price points actually fell between $250-$1,000 for average sized influencers; this wouldn’t cover more prominent influencers or mega-influencers.
Understand Averages and Common Pricing Traps
Even if you work directly with influencers to come to a mutual agreement, it’s a good idea to have a general understanding of the industry averages as well as common traps that you could fall victim to.
Look to your industry specifically and find out what the average cost for Instagram influencers is. The average price range will still depend on the 6 factors that we listed in the above sections.
You can also use an online calculator tool to find a general estimate of what you may be looking to pay. Having a ballpark figure can make you more adept when going into an influencer negotiation.
Get quotes from different influencers to see what the average charge is; if you find one that is astronomically high, find out if there’s a reason for that or they’re simply trying to take advantage.
Influencers may try to promise big results without having the numbers to back it up; always see that the influencer is knowledgeable about their metrics and they have the proof to support their claims.
Final Thoughts: Instagram Influencer Marketing Cost
Instagram influencer marketing isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, with forecasts having more brands using it and more billions made.
Influencer marketing allows you to get closer to your target audience through authentic content that helps fortify your brand image and reputation.
Look to the key influencers in your industry and consider using various micro-influencers to spread your content reach across Instagram.
Have you ever run an Instagram influencer campaign? Did it meet your vision?
What was your investment cost? How much Instagram influencer costs did you have to pay?
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Written by Eddie Hurst
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