A Definitive Guide to Find & Onboard The Best Event Influencers

Apr 24, 2024 Praggya Joshi

Influencers have a significant impact on people's purchasing choices due to the strong emotional connection they have with their followers. As a result, brands often use influencers to promote their events and offerings in addition to traditional marketing strategies. An excellent example is the L'Oréal meet-and-greet event at the Essence Festival in 2023. The company invited influencers Nasteha and Nuni Yusuf, the creators behind the @theyusufs Instagram account, which has an impressive 142,000 follower base. Their participation greatly expanded L'Oréal's reach among Black women. 

Today, brands find event influencers to promote their messages, attract media attention, and generate buzz. This practice is growing given the rising number of social media users who turn to these influential figures before engaging with a brand. Selecting the right influencers for your next event can be a highly effective marketing strategy. But how do you approach it?  

Find a detailed answer in this blog.

Steps to Find Event Influencers
Finding the right event influencers entails being very clear about your brand message and their expectations. Follow these steps to uncover the best options.

1. Understand Influencers' Expectations
Influencers won't readily accept the role of being the star attraction at your event unless they believe it aligns with their objectives. Therefore, before reaching out to a renowned creator, it's crucial to grasp their expectations. This may encompass: 

• Increased Visibility: One of the primary motivations for influencers to partner with a brand is to enhance their visibility. This is especially crucial for micro or nano influencers. Just as you aim to broaden your event's exposure, influencers anticipate expanding the reach of their channel and content to your established customer base. 
• Recognition: Influencers seek acknowledgment for their contributions. Why would they commit to participating in your event and advocating for your brand in a distinctive manner if they believe their efforts will only be rewarded with a simple gift? Therefore, it's essential to devise methods to acknowledge the creator's work. 
• Competitive Advantage: While there's no direct competition among social media personalities, it's important to recognize that numerous equally prominent creators generate content on similar topics. Through brand collaborations, influencers aim to solidify their followers' confidence in their expertise and enhance their credibility as thought leaders. 
• Valuable Content: Offering valuable content to their followers is important for influencers. By participating in your event, they anticipate crafting compelling narratives that resonate with their audience.

2. Set Clear Goals
Clearly define what you want to achieve with your event, as this will shape your relationship with the influencer. To do this, you need a thorough understanding of your current and potential customer base. Learn about their demographics and interests. Try to gauge their perception of brands like yours. This knowledge will help you develop a clear agenda for your event and identify the right influencer to partner with. 

You can gain insight into your audience by tracking specific keywords related to your brand and industry, as well as monitoring brand mentions across different platforms. Additionally, utilize surveys, polls, and social media posts to engage with your audience and gather feedback. All of these methods will help you set goals for your event and effectively communicate them to the influencer.

3. Conduct Thorough Research
The next step is researching event influencers with relevant and loyal following in your industry. By finding those who have attended or promoted events similar to what you are planning, you can tap into their established audience base and boost your event's visibility. Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube are some common platforms to uncover your options. Use these tips while researching event influencers.  

• Find local influencers if you are hosting an event for a service like a restaurant that is mainly for people in your locality. Use location-specific hashtags on social media or browse the follower base of other event influencers you have worked with previously.  
• Leverage Google search. Type [country/state name] + influencers on the web to get a list of influencers and sort out relevant ones.  
• To find relevant LinkedIn influencers for an event, search a relevant keyword and set the filter to ‘Posts.’ Find posts with high level of engagement to discover influencers with a wide audience base.  
• Check out your competitors' posts and see who they are collaborating with. 
• Attend industry events and conferences in your industry to find the right event influencers to collaborate with.

4. Determine Incentives for Influencers
Depending on your goals and the message you wish to convey, you can offer various incentives to influencers. For instance, providing generous store credit or gift cards can be appealing to influencers. Credit or rebate-based partnerships are especially valuable if the store offers high-value items or addresses the influencer's personal needs. 

Some influencers also appreciate the opportunity to earn a commission on the sales they generate. This fosters a mutually beneficial relationship where influencers are motivated to promote your brand because their earnings are directly tied to their performance. Another option is to offer personalized referral purchase links or discount codes. Influencers can share these codes with their followers and earn compensation whenever their followers use them to purchase your products. 

Sponsoring events, arranging travel to specific destinations, or offering participation in unique brand-related experiences can attract many influencers. Brand-sponsored trips to exotic locations are particularly enticing for many influencers. Co-hosting virtual events with influencers is another effective strategy. You can express gratitude to the influencer by giving them a personalized gift as a token of appreciation for partnering with you.

5. Make Your Pitch Powerful
Once you've narrowed down your options, it's time to make a pitch. To do this, draft an outreach email that includes an overview of your brand, the reasons for choosing them, and details about incentives. Here are some tips for effective outreach. 

• Describe your brand briefly in an engaging way and explain why you chose them. Reference their past work or experiences that make them a great fit to represent your brand's message. 
• You can make your invitation stand out by delivering an actual (ideally hand-written) letter instead of an email. 
• In addition to email or letter, you could also share details about their travel and accommodation plan (if it’s required) in the email. 
• Ensure the compensation is fair. You can compensate influencers in a variety of ways, such as gifts, camped events, rebates, and content licensing fees (user-generated content). 
• Maintain a conversational tone in your outreach email. It should be concise and to the point. 
• Close your invitation with a clear and compelling call to action.

Steps to Onboard Influencers
Once you have finalized a deal with the right influencer, it’s time to onboard them. Follow these steps to ensure smooth onboarding.

1. Provide an Immersive Brand Experience
Effective event influencer onboarding practices can help foster a deeper appreciation for your brand. Start the onboarding process by inviting influencers to your headquarters. If that's not feasible, take them to places where you produce goods or to locations that relate to your business in some way. This will give them a firsthand understanding of your work. Additionally, share the principles and practices you follow and explain why they matter to your brand. Discuss your brand objectives, target demographic, expected outcomes, and the tone of your messaging.  

If you're looking to bring an influencer on board virtually, provide them with digital brand kits. These kits contain details about your campaigns, products, and brand values. Use video conferencing tools to introduce the influencer to your products or services in real-time. Be sure to address any questions they may have. Additionally, consider hosting Q&A sessions or workshops tailored to offer influencers a comprehensive brand experience. These sessions will not only provide valuable insights into your brand but also strengthen your relationship with them.

2. Prepare Event Influencer Contracts  

If you are partnering with a micro or nano influencer, a legal contract may not be needed. But if you have onboarded a big influencer and the collaboration involves higher fee, a contract becomes essential. If you are hosting a virtual event, have a holistic plan that leaves no ambiguity about what needs to be done.  

Event influencer contracts should have the following elements: 

• The number and types of posts that the influencer will share about your brand and the event. 
• Social networks where the content will be posted. 
• Posting deadlines for different social media channels. 
• Duration of the post on the influencer's profile.  
• Specific hashtags to be used.  
• Mentions of your brand in the posts. 
• Disclosure requirements (for honest and truthful recommendations).

3. Add the Influencer to Your CRM
If everything is settled between you and the event influencer, add them to your database. Include their as well as your event’s details in your CRM. To ensure accurate monitoring, you can attribute their activity to a particular promo code. Overall, the following information about your influencer should be included in your CRM:  

• Influencer name or handle  
• Promo code 
• Contact information 
• Category (health beauty, automotive, etc.)

Summing up
When searching for influencers for your event, seek out genuine opinion leaders within your industry who directly address the pain points of their followers. Partnering with influencers who resonate with your audience and are admired by them can significantly enhance the impact of your event. This approach allows you to expand your reach to new people within the influencer's network, promoting your services and ultimately boosting your event ROI.  

Are you ready to partner with an influencer for your event? Let Eventcombo assist you with managing the entire experience. Get in touch with our experts at https://bit.ly/498PjBV