How to Use Influencer Marketing to Grow Your Brand
Is your brand talking to the right crowd or just talking into the void?
If you’ve ever felt like your posts are performing to crickets, you’re not alone. Here’s a closer look at how to use influencer marketing to grow your brand – from setting goals to building smart, long-term partnerships. One way brands are cutting through the noise is by working with people who already have their audience’s attention: influencers.
Let’s talk about how to make that work for you.
Why Influencer Marketing Works (When Done Right)
Influencer marketing isn’t about paying someone with a ring light to hold your product. It’s about building trust by reaching people through someone they already know and listen to.
According to Business.com, consumers are more likely to try a brand when it’s recommended by someone they follow regularly. It’s word-of-mouth, upgraded for the digital age.
But beyond visibility, the real payoff is in credibility. A solid influencer partnership can make your brand feel more familiar, reliable, and worth paying attention to – and that’s half the battle.
Step 1: Set Goals to Grow Your Brand with Influencers
Before picking anyone to promote your brand, know what your goal is.
- Are you trying to get clicks to a landing page?
- Want people to buy something specific?
- Need more social media followers?
The goal shapes the approach. If you’re looking for conversions, a promo code campaign might make more sense than just a shoutout.
Tip: GRIN’s guide emphasizes defining KPIs early. Don’t skip this – it keeps everything focused and measurable.
Step 2: Choose the Right Influencers (Not Just the Popular Ones)
Bigger isn’t always better. Micro-influencers (those with 10K–50K followers) often have higher engagement rates and feel more relatable to their followers.
Here’s what to look for:
- Audience match – Do their followers overlap with your target customer?
- Engagement rate – Are people commenting, not just liking?
- Past brand collabs – Have they worked with competitors?
Use tools like Upfluence or even Instagram’s own analytics to do a basic audience scan.
Step 3: Build the Relationship, Don’t Just Send a Script
People can smell copy-paste captions from a mile away. Collaborate. Give your influencer room to put their own spin on the message. It performs better and feels authentic.
Campaigns that convert often come from true collaboration, not strict direction. It works best when your brand sets the tone, but gives the influencer space to speak in a way that feels natural to their audience. You’re not handing them a teleprompter, you’re handing them a role in the brand story.
Step 4: Measure What Matters
Avoid vanity metrics. It’s easy to focus on surface stats like impressions, but they don’t always reflect impact. What counts more are:
- Clicks
- Conversions
- Cost per acquisition (CPA)
- Revenue per influencer
Plan to track results across several posts or campaigns, not just one-time shoutouts. This gives a more realistic picture of impact.
Use unique promo codes, affiliate links, or even UTMs to track.
Step 5: Think Long-Term
The best influencer relationships aren’t one-off gigs. When an influencer becomes a familiar face with your brand, it builds consistency and trust over time.
Consider mapping out long-term collaborations or ambassador programs. Think product previews, co-created content, or takeovers. You’re building familiarity, not just reach.
Influencer marketing isn’t magic – but when done with purpose and the right people, it can pull your brand out of obscurity and into the right feeds.
It’s not about being everywhere. It’s about being in the right place with the right voice.
More…
- What Is Influencer Marketing: A Strategy Guide for 2025 | Sprout Social
- How Influencers Help Your Brand Grow
- Use Influencer Marketing to Grow Your Business in 2024
- Influencer-Marketing_National-Positions.pdf
- eBook_A-Complete-Influencer-Marketing-Guide.pdf
- Is Influencer Marketing Worth It? Evaluating the Costs Versus Benefits for Small Businesses – AMW
