Reaching Out to Influencers on Instagram

Instagram has proven itself as a valuable tool for marketing your fashion brand. Fashion is a visual industry, and emotional factors (such as brand loyalty, latest trends, and what celebrities are wearing) drive sales. This means Instagram allows you to connect with customers on a more personal basis than ever before.

Instagram is changing often, and as a result so are the recommended best practices. Influencer marketing is a form of outreach that many companies have found effective, and it provides excellent ROI. Think of this as the Instagram version of giving a celebrity a handbag or a pair of shoes. The widespread nature of Instagram means that many non-celebrities garner a great deal of influence on the platform, so it provides a great way to market your business at a low cost.

Promoted posts won’t break your budget

One thing that works in an advertiser’s favor is that it’s difficult to price a “promoted post”. There are many accounts that aren’t approached for promoting products, and do not expect compensation. We’ve found the sweet spot to be users with 50k – 100k followers. These users are usually happy with free items and knowing that their account is popular enough to garner interest from a business, so target them! Many accounts fall in this follower range, and as a result it just as effective as paid promotion on Instagram.

How to connect

The best way to reach these accounts is a direct message on Instagram itself. If a user advertises their email addresses, they’re aware of their exposure level and may expect compensation. Create a template message to send, and switch out the name each time to personalize it. Be sure to keep track of to whom you’ve sent these messages, what free things you’ve promised them, and any other details. Don’t worry too much about being perfect — just see what works as you go along, and adjust as needed.