Balancing Affiliate Marketing and Sponsorships During Quarantine: What Content Should I Create?
*Note: This a special one-off article to create conversation and sponsored by Intellifluence. All thoughts and opinions are 100% my own.
Creating content genuinely in your own way is why your audience will keep coming back for more. Does your audience trust you? Keep it honest and continue sharing products you love with them.
During quarantine, content creators are asking themselves, “What content should I create?”
And while the same collaborations may be available, the times are unprecedented with a change in how and what we create and share. This is also impacting the way consumers feel towards content we share as content creators. So how can you still create content with brands and remain true to your core audience? Know your audience and what is important to them.
In my little office here, I brainstorm on what my audience wants and how to present it in my own voice. What are my initial thoughts on a product or service? What can I offer my audience? Can I give them a little something to show my appreciation, while partnering with a brand? Think about if a collaboration offer is right for both you and your audience.
This is nothing new, and it’s great to refresh your followers with your values and what you stand for especially in a transformative year.
(2020 has been intense to say the least!) If you need extra cash, affiliate marketing can help your audience find the products you love, while helping brands tap into your network. Balancing affiliate marketing and sponsorships within your regularly scheduled content is what will carry your audience to see how much you care and value a healthy blend of these elements.
A time to slow down?! When brands slashed their marketing budgets, I’ve found myself busier than ever. Influencer marketing is far from over.
When the pandemic hit, everyone was shouting ‘influencer marketing is dead’, but the trends are showing quite the opposite according to Jennifer Quigly-Jones at Talking Influence.
As a content creator, I couldn’t agree more. I can create content safely from home on my terms without ever leaving the front door. (Well, maybe I’ll venture out for curbside pick-up, but otherwise, consider me part of the freelance work force at home. We don’t always wear pajamas though, since content needs to be created.) Brands are considering influencers to be pivotal when these businesses are cutting marketing funds.
According to Talking Influence, here are the different reasons influencer marketing are part of the upward trend during the pandemic:
The hiatus of traditional broadcast ads
The Facebook advertising boycott
The explosion in interest in ‘useful content’
The rise of e-commerce and ability to track sales
Slashing of the lead times for campaigns
Why pay for traditional media when you have brand fans to do the cheering for you?
Brands know they can make a quick impact with influencers and it’s cheaper than traditional media.
Affiliate marketing can be used in tandem to track where sales are coming from and reward influencers with cash deposits or even product all at the same time. Giving out codes to influencers also helps make campaigns individual to each blogger. It helps you give back to your audience with a discount, while also staying true to what you believe in sharing with others. Sometimes through collaborations, I have found new favorites that improve my life, so why not share that with my audience, too? I think we all could use a little cheer and convenience to ease the days indoors.
Share what’s useful! Is there curbside? Is there an app for that? Can a restaurant or company deliver? How can this craft, recipe, product or service help them especially right now? Life hacks is going to be key here.
What content should I create?
Write articles about useful tips and tricks in your new normal day-to-day, go live and answer questions your audience may have about how your life is impacted, and/or create webinars with a Facebook group to stay connected. However you like to keep it authentic to both you and your audience is as unique as our own DNA. What might work for someone else may not resonate with you and that’s okay. For example, you might find success in posting about shopping hauls where someone else cannot reach anyone’s interest. That’s fine as well. What you need to do is focus on your way, connect with brands that align with your vision, and then blend a mix of affiliate marketing, your own content and ideas, and sponsored content. People want to know who you are and what you’re interested in before they can relate or trust your picks. It’s also a way to peel back your own layers and connect on another level.
We’re still thriving sans the super cool and fancy events in person. I miss them, but it is all about adaptability. Can you thrive in the virtual world?
Affiliate marketing and collaborations are powerful tools, but knowing where to find that balance is key.
Singer and songwriter Vikina Lopez, who is also from Miami (305!), uses affiliate marketing with her style and beauty advice across social media. Connecting with brands helps with SEO (search engine optimization), you can improve your life through newly discovered products, and build up your brand for more people to find you. Even Vikina agrees that brands can determine who they align best with and offer up pitches to suit both parties through the campaign. She also likes to include a healthy mix of content to keep it genuine.
There are ways to collaborate, listen, and implement, while being respectful and mindful. Do your research. We are always growing! Listen and you might learn something new.
It’s our duty to do research; and with cultural shifts, we must be open to taking into account how our content can impact others.
2020 is the year of many changes and awakening to what doesn’t work anymore. Consumers are paying attention to the way you’re creating and sharing content. Is it appropriate to share a pool party without masks? Right now, this type of content may not receive positive interactions due to insensitivity and a lack of caring for others. Even if this isn’t the intention, there can be that perception. If content creators produce content that is helpful, kind, and thoughtful, people will watch to improve their lives. Why? Content creators are genuinely sharing what they love—without fancy events or perfect videos as Best Media Info alludes to here.
If you can create from home and present ideas in your own way across social media, AND add some extra supplemental cash into your pocket, that’s the icing on the cake. Overall, be mindful and sensitive with what’s going on, educate yourself and others, and continue to build your brand with that healthy blend.
Reference Links:
https://talkinginfluence.com/2020/07/15/why-pandemic-boost-influencer-marketing-needed/
https://intellifluence.com/blog/vikina-lopez-influencer-spotlight