Source: http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/how-to-connect-with-influencers-on-social-media/
An influencer is someone with a well-developed network of social media contacts. These contacts are the people who follow and hold in esteem the influencer’s activities in a specific field of interest by continuously looking up to him/her and sharing his/her values and views on various topics.
how to connect with influencers
An influencer can help extend your audience reach, build your reputation, boost your credibility and social proof, and be your brand advocate. So how can you find and connect with the right influencers on social media? Below is a simple guide you can follow:
First, identify the right influencers for your niche. People and organizations that are active in or closely identified to your industry should be your first targets. Authors, bloggers, and public speakers that specialize in your area of expertise would be great influencers to work with as well. If you’re having a hard time finding specific influencers, you can use a tool such as Buzzsumo. Simply click on the Influencers tab, type your keywords then click Search. You will then see all of the writers, bloggers, and publications that are talking and writing about your keywords on the results page.
LinkedIn. LinkedIn is one of the key social networks for getting noticed by influencers, particularly if you’re marketing B2B. You can search for the right influencers on this social media site by entering your keywords on LinkedIn’s search box. Once you have shortlisted your influencers, get them to notice you by sending them a LinkedIn connection request, following their company page and liking and sharing their posts, and joining the groups that they belong to.
Facebook. As with LinkedIn, you can find the best influencers on Facebook as well by using the Search tab. After you have identified your target influencers, start by liking their personal profile and/or company page and if they like you back from their personal profile, message them with a call to action. You can also like and comment on their content and share their posts and join a Facebook group they belong to and engage with them.
Twitter. You can use a tool like Topsy to identify influencers who are posting interesting things about your keywords on Twitter. To get influencers on Twitter to notice you, begin by following them. If they follow you back, thank them with their handle. Create a Twitter list for influencers and add all of their Twitter accounts to the list so that when your influencers tweet, you can easily find them and retweet, like or reply to their tweets. Lastly, post your own content often so that they can see that you’re active.
Instagram. Again, use the search button on this site to find influencers with a large and engaged following. To get their attention, follow their accounts, post your own content regularly with the hashtags people search for and the ones influencers frequently use, and when an influencer comments on your post, comment back. When an influencer likes your post, like them back as well.
