We all know that having success on social really rides on the confidence of others. Knowing who the key players are in your social game is critical for it’s success. It really isn’t rocket science and you should already know when you are active on social media. The truth is many people don’t know how to identify who the key influencers are in their niche.
Influencers run the show when it comes to organic social signals. For example if John Snow ( Who is a big fan of the band White Walker ) comments on your White Walker post Jon’s friends including the Targaryen clan will see it too. Jon always seems to be commenting on anything White Walker. We all know that John Snow always seems to be in the picture in different communities because he mentions White Walkers all the time and this simply makes him a perfect influence candidate. There is no magic involved, just common logic. I always say that the only way you can create the perfect breeding ground for influencers is by good old fashioned communications and product handouts. Help them tell the world how AMAZING you are.
Usually if there is an influencer that is involved with your product they will use the right signals to let you know. On Twitter they will retweet and mention the heck out of you and follow your hashtags. It doesn’t take big expensive tools but a little sleuthing though tools can help organize the data and save you tons of time. Some top Tools are Buzzsumo, Hootsuite and Rignite. If you have money to spend there are many tools out there but always use the one that works for you.
If you don’t have big money to spend I recommend Klout, Kred, but most importantly the gift of communication and verbal exchange. The more engaged you are in the land of social the bigger the ROI you will reap. Remember to not talk at your people but talk with them. Keep an ear out for what they want or are excited about and the influence will begin to pop out. Keep a journal list off the people that you communicate well with and involve them with your content plan. Showcase them as your number one fan. When people start seeing all the goodies they are getting you soon will have a colony of influencers.
Don’t forget to be an influence yourself and be a thought leader. Be the one that is always bringing up cutting edge material giving your people the “ah ha” moments and it’s in those moments that bring out influence.
But getting in touch with the influencers & even before that finding the influencers with the right set of audience for a business is very difficult. Social signals itself plays important role as ranking factors but reaching the right set of audience should also be the goal, which gets really difficult most of the times.