Last week I asked the question Do you need influencers? This week I want to share some ways to empower your existing audience to be more influential by creating content worth sharing and I’m going to give you some examples.
Not everyone needs or can benefit from influencer marketing but I want to show some strategies that can give your audience something to talk about and share to a wider audience. An influencer is simply access to a wider audience so by doing any of these 3 things, you can push your message and brand out organically.
1. Create Something Unique
OK, that might sound vague but here are 2 examples from a local restaurant and a local bakery. The first is this caesar that I saw several people in my circle sharing and talking about.
How would you describe this drink? It’s over the top, it’s epic, It’s absurd (in a good way) it just looks crazy good and anyone who orders it is going to want to take a photo of it.
The second one is this pie from Thornbury Bakery that they just shared over the weekend.
It’s called the Mile High Lemon Meringue pie. Again, here is a simple thing that they have done to a normal menu item to make it worth talking about. I don’t just want to talk about it… I want to eat it though. I can see that this photo on their Instagram feed got a lot more likes than most of their other photos and Extra points for getting your brand in the shot. Well done! That way if anyone does share this photo, it is unmistakable where it came from.
2. Create Experiences
This past winter, if you were in the Collingwood area you probably heard about Blumination. That was the light path created at Blue Mountain Village which I’m guessing was a big success. That’s because I saw so many people sharing it and talking about it and I even had to get out to see it myself. It was an experience that was worth taking a photo of. Now obviously that was also a huge expense but what if you could do something similar on a smaller scale. I recently heard about a winery that does grape picking and stomping experiences. Are you kidding? Everyone wants to stomp some grapes. How much fun would that be? And you know you’re going to take a photo of that. It might even be something simple like learn how to make your own pasta or a mural that visitors will want a photo in front of. If you want some inspiration, Google “Nuit Blanche Exhibits” (like this list from Blog TO). That’s the outdoor, all night, art festival in Toronto. I guarantee you will find loads of cool ideas to maybe transform your space or create an experience worth talking about.
3. Name It
Blumination, Mile High Meringue pie, naming your experience or epic creation is an important part of getting people to share it. Instead of having to describe it or trying to name it themselves it provides the social currency needed to latch on and share. Basically it makes it easier. Did you see Blumination? Oh you have to see Blumination. Beats “did you see the path with all the different colored lights at blue mountain? I mean the name just sounds better and for some reason more exciting. Plus it is essential for creating a hashtag that everyone can use if we all know what it’s called and this will help you track that sharing.
So get creative and give your audiences something worth sharing. I hope you found this helpful and actionable to take your digital marketing to the next level.
