Working with Social Influencers to Tell Your Organisation's Story

by
Jacques Foul

Obviously, you’ve already heard of social influencers. Not just because I wrote about them here – though I’d feel blessed to think so – but because they’ve gathered a lot of attention in the marketing world in the past 4-5 years.

From our experience, this trend goes beyond companies and their need to sell products. For us at FH, these trusted “experts” with a large online following represent a clear opportunity for organisations to spark conversations and shape minds in the public affairs sphere.

Why? Influencers have an audience of aficionados that share the same passion, a record of earning and building trust and the best of them are even performers that have the ability to tell an organisation’s story with great enthusiasm.

For a recent project with a public sector client, our team travelled to Vienna to co-create a video production with a veteran journalist and YouTuber in the renewable energy space.

Our goal was to work with a trusted third party to tell an authentic story we knew would resonate with our intended audience and to go deeper than simply advertising on behalf of our client. Rather than dictate the terms of the collaboration and the resulting video, we took time to co-create with the influencer – to find a way of telling the story that ticked the right boxes for our client AND felt right for the influencer and the audience he’s built. The result? Something completely unique that educates, entertains and leaves people wanting more.

I personally believe that what makes communication effective is the ability to catch the attention of a specific audience and deliver a clear message that sparks a reaction.