How to Measure the ROI of Your Fashion Influencer Marketing Campaigns

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By Fiza Khan

In the dynamic world of marketing, adapting to the challenges of a cookie-less and privacy-first era demands creativity and resilience. With the surge in advertising costs driven by iOS privacy updates and the demise of third-party cookies, influencer marketing has emerged as a beacon of opportunity. As avenues to reach customers become more limited and expensive, brands are rediscovering the effectiveness of old-school strategies combined with first-party data. The marriage of authentic influencer marketing and valuable first-party data seems poised to stand the test of time.

In this era of generational shifts, it's fascinating to note that around 50% of Gen Z shoppers make purchasing decisions influenced by incentivized endorsements from influencers, as highlighted by YouGov.

Crafting a compelling promotion idea and identifying the right influencers are crucial steps in any successful social media campaign. However, there's an often overlooked yet impactful element that can significantly shape the overall campaign performance and ROI. As you've guessed, I’m talking about the critical aspects of controlling the budget and measuring the ROI from your influencer campaigns.

Decoding Influencer Marketing: Beyond Definitions

"Influencer – someone who affects or changes the way that other people behave, for example through their use of social media." (Cambridge)

At its core, influencer marketing is a dynamic form of paid advertising that harnesses the influential power of individuals on social media. These influencers, categorized into three main types – micro (1k – 100k followers), macro (100k – 500k followers), and mega influencers (500k – 1mln+ followers) – play a pivotal role in endorsing products and services through their social media channels.

However, influencer marketing is not just about numbers; it's about the unique connection influencers forge with their audiences. It goes beyond the realm of traditional targeted ads, delving into the authentic territory of trust and affection influencers cultivate with their followers.

Reflecting on the journey of influencer marketing, around 2018, the landscape witnessed a downturn. This decline was attributed to the surge in fake followers, dwindling customer interest, and the challenge of ineffective Return on Investment (ROI) tracking. During this period, influencer campaigns were often criticized for prioritizing brand awareness and loyalty over direct sales.

As we navigate the evolution of influencer marketing, it's crucial to recognize its transformative potential when executed with authenticity and purpose. The landscape has matured, and the pitfalls of the past have become stepping stones toward crafting more meaningful and result-oriented influencer campaigns. In this ever-changing landscape, OFFPRICE Show encourages businesses to not only embrace influencer marketing but to understand and harness its unique power for lasting success. It's not just about endorsements; it's about building genuine connections that resonate with audiences in a way no targeted ad ever could.

Setting the Stage for Success

1. Define Your Campaign Goal:

• Establish clear Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to measure success, such as increased sales, loyalty program memberships, trial accounts, clicks, and impressions.

• Potential KPIs to track: Engagement (views, clicks), Likes & Shares, Followers, Backlinks, Sales (conversions), and Referrals.

2. Seek Alternatives:

• Explore diverse avenues to achieve your campaign goals, considering options beyond influencers. Calculate the cost of alternative methods (reverse ROI) to evaluate their feasibility.

3. Set the Budget:

• Determine a budget, considering standard commissions based on metrics like sales. Introduce additional incentives, such as a permanent discount for affiliates, to elevate your influencer campaign into a sophisticated ambassador program.

• Be mindful of the time of the year, as influencer costs may surge during peak seasons, potentially impacting ROI.

4. Double-Check Your Funnel:

• Review your style guide, tone of voice, message, and vision. Simultaneously, assess your sales funnel for potential improvements or streamlining to enhance the overall success of your campaign.

5. Select Influencers:

• Choose influencers that align with your brand identity and have your target audience within their follower base.

• Prioritize influencers with a high engagement ratio, ensuring that comments are genuine and not automated bot responses.

• Consider the influencer's reach, validating that it aligns with your investment goals. While follower count matters, a smaller but engaged audience can be effective.

• Avoid influencers with fake followers or excessive sponsored posts. A healthy 1/1 ratio of sponsored to normal posts is ideal.

6. Communicate Your Needs:

• Reach out to selected influencers, clearly articulating your expectations, offers, and how your product or service can seamlessly integrate into their digital presence.

• Emphasize the importance of natural and genuine content creation to maintain authenticity and resonance with their audience.

7. Get Down to Measuring:

• Plan robust measurement strategies for campaign objectives (sales, engagement, awareness) using your tracking tools.

• Enhance conversion tracking by incorporating discount codes. Provide influencers with unique codes for added incentives, utilizing tools like a Promotion Engine.

8. Compare Results:

• Evaluate the outcomes of your influencer promotion against results from alternative channels. If influencer marketing falls short, consider optimizing or exploring different strategies.

• Regularly assess campaign performance and make data-driven adjustments to enhance overall effectiveness.

Measuring ROI – The Heart of Success

Measuring the success of influencer marketing can be challenging, but employing the right tracking tools can provide valuable insights into campaign performance. Let's explore various methods to measure influencer marketing ROI:

1. Affiliate Links:

• Generate unique affiliate links for influencers to track online sales originating from their social channels.

• Consider the 30-day validity period of link cookies. Shopping posts on platforms like Instagram offer direct purchase options, streamlining the user journey.

2. UTMs (Urchin Tracking Modules):

• Easily implement UTMs by adding structured parameters to links for tracking in tools like Google Analytics.

• Use link shorteners to maintain link credibility and overcome potential trust issues with long URLs.

3. Dedicated Landing Pages:

• Use branded links or dedicated landing pages with unique URLs for each influencer to avoid link shortening skepticism.

• Leverage landing page software with integrated analytics for comprehensive tracking.

4. Unique Discount Codes:

• Assign influencers personalized discount codes for audience transactions, providing a basis for commission structures.

• Transform coupon codes into unique links for auto-applied discounts, enhancing customer experience.

5. Brand Engagement:

• Request influencers to direct traffic to your website, tracking engagement rates, and follower changes.

• Create unique hashtags for influencers to use, facilitating measurement of contest participation and engagement over time.

6. Brand Awareness:

• Measure post visibility but beware of fake followers distorting data.

• Analyze traffic from influencer channels or isolate marketing activities for accurate ROI assessment.

7. Share of Voice & Mentions:

• Use social tracking tools like Brandwatch or Social Mention to qualitatively assess brand conversations and mentions.

• Consider sponsoring influencers' posts as a controversial yet potentially impactful strategy for increased reach.

8. Earned Media Value (EMV):

• Calculate the total exposure gained from influencer campaigns by assessing average cost per engagement, impression, and click.

• Place a monetary value on campaigns based on the calculated EMV.

9. Referrals:

• Implement single or double-sided referral programs for influencers using personalized referral codes.

• Reward influencers based on successful referrals, potentially offering incentives to customers using the influencer's code.

10. Backlinks:

• Measure the number of backlinks to sponsored content created by influencers, suitable for link-building campaigns and B2B collaborations.

11. Calculating ROI:

• Use the formula (Revenue/Cost) x 100 to determine ROI.

• For example, if a $5000 influencer payment yields an estimated $10,000 in profit, the ROI is 200%.

In conclusion, influencer marketing holds immense potential for brands, requiring careful analysis, goal-setting, and strategic planning. By experimenting with various tracking tools and staying aligned with predefined KPIs, businesses can unlock the full potential of influencer marketing. OFFPRICE Show encourages brands to leverage these tools and strategies for impactful and data-driven influencer campaigns.