Let’s talk about Facebook—influencer marketing’s veteran platform that’s now been around longer than many popular TikTok creators have been alive. Although users aren’t flocking to Facebook like they were in the late aughts, it’s still the most-used platform in the world, and there are still plenty of opportunities to succeed with influencer marketing. The key is finding the right Facebook influencers to help you do it.
We’ll talk about all of that and more in this blog, but first, let’s get to some basics.
Why Facebook influencer marketing still matters
Although Instagram and TikTok tend to get mentioned first in the influencer marketing discussion, there is still plenty of room for Facebook. In fact, there is an argument to be made that Facebook is still critical to success. Here’s why:
Facebook still gets the most traffic.
Facebook still quietly has the most users in the world by a decent margin. Here’s a breakdown of the most trafficked social media platforms worldwide as of 2022:
- Facebook – 2.9 billion users
- YouTube – 2.6 billion users
- WhatsApp – 2 billion users
- Instagram – 1.5 billion users
- WeChat – 1.3 billion users
Still a pretty comfortable lead. But it’s not all roses. Facebook interest has decayed over the past several years, and in 2022 the platform actually lost users for the first time in its 19-year history.
Time will tell whether Facebook can hold on to the crown. But for now, if you want eyeballs, Facebook is as good a bet as any.
Reach an older audience.
Facebook has the highest population of users over 35, with 114.2 million. That’s 22.9 million more than Instagram and TikTok combined.
It’s familiar.
As we mentioned above, Facebook has been around for nearly two decades. Navigating to the app or URL has simply become muscle memory for many users and, for better or for worse, a part of daily life. That means leveraging Facebook influencers is a great way to reach people where they feel comfortable online.
Facebook has prioritized creators on the platform.
Meta made its commitment to creators clear in 2022 with a pledge to invest $1 billion in programs that give creators new ways to earn money from the content they create on Instagram and Facebook.
The Reels Play bonus program offers creators up to $35,000 based on how many views they could get from Facebook Reels. Jason the Great is just one example of the many creators taking advantage of Meta’s offer and producing engaging, high-quality content on the platform.
That said, there is still work to be done to improve creator quality on Facebook to the level of platforms like Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok. However, Facebook’s dedication to creator success proves there is an opportunity to succeed now and in the future.
7 steps for finding the perfect Facebook influencers and keeping relationships strong
1. Determine your goals.
First things first: What do you want your Facebook influencers to accomplish? Some common goals include:
- Brand awareness.
- Sales and revenue.
- Website traffic and lead generation.
- Content production.
- Brand perception and sentiment.
- Building a community.
Your goals will serve as your roadmap for success, so be sure to take your time and ensure they are detailed and specific. From there, you can start to dial in on creators.
2. Develop your ideal creator profile.
Your ideal Facebook influencer should be nearly identical to your target customer in most cases. When the two align, you’re getting more authentic content that resonates with those you need to reach to be successful.
Consider the following when developing your ideal creator profile:
Demographics
The most important demographics for finding your next Facebook influencer include:
- Age
- Gender
- Cultural background
- Income
- Education
- Occupation
- Family structure
Audience size
There are pros and cons for every size of Facebook influencer.
For example, a creator with a few thousand followers might not have a long reach, but they likely have a high engagement rate and a hyper-targeted audience. On the other hand, a creator with millions of followers will be great for brand awareness but probably won’t have as strong of a connection with their audience as the smaller, more relatable creators.
That said, the ideal solution is to have a solid mix of small and large creators on your roster.
Here is how creators are generally categorized:
- Nano creators – 1,000 to 10,000 followers
- Micro creators – 10,000 to 100,000 followers
- Macro creators – 100,000 to 1 million followers
- Celebrity creators – 1 million+ followers
Engagement rate
Follower count is important, but a creator’s engagement rate will help you better understand the quality of their content and how well it resonates with their audience.
As a general rule, the fewer followers a creator has, the higher their engagement rate should be. Here is an idea of the ideal minimum engagement rate for Facebook influencers by follower count.
- Nano creators – 2%
- Micro creators – 1.5%
- Macro creators – 1.25%
- Celebrity creators – 1%
Credibility
Once you’ve found a Facebook influencer who checks all the boxes for demographics, follower size, and engagement rate, you have to ensure their credibility.
In recent years, Facebook has gained a reputation for spreading “fake news” faster than any other platform. The last thing your brand needs is to contribute to this trend, so make sure to educate creators on your brand and product and only choose those qualified to speak about your specific industry.
Aesthetic
On paper, your prospect might seem perfect. But you have to be certain their aesthetic matches your brand’s. If it doesn’t, both of your audiences will be thrown off by posts coming from the collaboration, and it could seem like a big red flag that the partnership is inauthentic.
3. Find your creators.
Search relevant hashtags.
Though less popular than on Instagram and TikTok, hashtags are still an excellent tool for finding influencers on Facebook.
Use niche, location, and demographic-based hashtags, like #StyleBlogger, #NYStyle, and #GenZFashion, to find potential partners.
You might also take a look at what posts are already happening in your niche, and if there is a trend, don’t be afraid to hop on it.
Ask your existing followers.
People already following you are bound to be fans, so look through their profiles to see if they’re particularly influential. If they seem like a good fit, send them a quick message to see if they’d be interested in collaborating on your next Facebook campaign.
Check your site’s purchase history.
If you see specific people consistently shopping on your site,
reach out! They clearly already love your products, and that brand love will shine through on any content they post on your behalf.
Google some keywords.
Did you know you can ask Google to only show you content that has appeared on a social media platform?
Here’s how it works for Facebook:
Type site:facebook.com into Google, then enter some keywords related to your industry.
For example:
site:facebook.com [athletes] AND [supplements] AND [new york]
You can even narrow your search to a specific date range. Like this:
site:facebook.com [athletes] AND [supplements] AND [new york] after:2022-11-01 before:2022-11-30
Beware of influencer databases.
Influencer databases are spaces where creators make themselves available for partnerships. But brands leveraging these databases only have access to creators who have opted in, giving them a limited (and competitive talent pool to choose from.
For example, say you’re looking for creators who identify as male, live in Pennsylvania, love fashion, and are between 18 and 25. You add the qualifications into the search bar, cutting your influencer database of over 50 million down to a tiny chunk of creators from which every other brand in your space is selecting.
Essentially, influencer databases are often useless for brands looking to target consumers in niche audiences. And to avoid the stress, many marketers have already begun to ditch the strategy entirely and replace it with more organic creator discovery methods.
4. Introduce the creators to your brand and products.
Ideally, you’ll want to find Facebook influencers who are already familiar with your brand and products. But if that’s not possible, you’ll need to take some time to familiarize them before asking them to endorse you.
Start by sending your prospect some free merchandise and asking for their honest feedback. If they love it, ask them if they’re willing to collaborate on a future campaign. Communication is the key to lasting relationships, so be sure to establish early on that your collaboration is a partnership, not a transaction.
5. Activate creators in a campaign.
You have your Facebook influencers, now it’s time to activate them in your next campaign. By this point, they should have detailed briefs that outline what success looks like and grant you access to all the content rights you’ll need to get the most mileage out of the content they produce.
6. Evaluate creator success.
Keep a close eye on how your creator content performs, and keep your partners in the loop. If their content is doing great, make sure they know they’re crushing it and that you appreciate all the effort. If their content isn’t living up to expectations, politely let them know and work with them on ways they can improve.
7. Optimize your approach.
Take a close look at what worked well and what didn’t at the end of each campaign. If you’ve fallen in love with a creator, do whatever it takes within your budget to keep them long-term. If a creator doesn’t live up to expectations, don’t be afraid to cut them loose and restart your search.
Key takeaway: Facebook influencers still have plenty of influence to get the job done for your brand.
It appears for now that the talk of Facebook’s demise might be premature—at least for now. There are still plenty of creators on the world’s most-used platform ready to go to bat for your brand and do so with plenty of success. Hopefully, after reading, you’ll have a much better idea of how to find the ones who can drive the most returns for your brand. Good luck!
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