In this no-nonsense marketing blog, our influencer marketing experts dive into the influencer marketing industry and answer some common questions we often get asked about the differences between micro-influencers and macro influencers and help you decide which is right for your brand and where to invest your marketing budget. Working with micro influencers or macro, which is better?
What is the difference between micro influencers and macro influencers?
The main difference between micro and macro influencers is their follower count and engagement levels. Micro influencers typically have between 1,000 and 100,000 followers, while macro influencers boast over 100,000 + followers.
Are micro influencers better for your influencer marketing efforts?
This really depends on your budget, your target audience and your influencer marketing strategies. If you have limited budgets or are looking for authentic connections, this type of influencer would work well for your brand.
There are distinct advantages if your business is targeting a niche audience. Again, looking at this smaller type of influencer with niche expertise will be advantageous for creating authentic connections and reaching potential customers. For example, we successfully work with many micro pet influencers and micro equestrian social media influencers to tap into niche markets and niche audiences and strengthen genuine connections with their target audience.
Micro influencers also often have higher engagement rates, fostering a more personal connection with their audience. If you are working on a tight budget and looking for genuine content that creates connections with niche audiences, this type of influencer helps foster genuine relationships with minimal upfront costs. They can also be key opinion leaders and are an excellent choice for long-term relationships in awareness campaigns.
You are more likely to find more choices within particular geographic locations than macro-influencers, and their key advantage is that they can create genuine content that appeals to your target market.
Are There Any Downsides To Working With Micro Influencers?
In our experience, you need to choose carefully. Due to their audience size, they don’t always have the professionalism, knowledge and expertise of a macro-influencer, so you may struggle to define clear marketing goals and get a return on investment.
Their content quality may vary considerably from influencer to influencer, so it is imperative in micro-influencer marketing to set clear campaign objectives and share your desirable business goals and campaign outcomes.
In an attempt to grow their visibility commercially, some will resort to buying fake followers but this is easy for us to spot through experience and analytic tools.
Even though they will have some degree of influence, their level of influence won’t be their most significant benefit, but they are an attractive option for brands looking to add awareness campaigns to their marketing efforts.
What benefits To Working With Macro Influencers?
They generally produce higher-quality content and know what their audience likes and loves. With massive follower counts, they are typically industry experts in their field, whether as a fashion influencer in the fashion industry, a fitness influencer, a travel influencer or a food influencer.
For mega influencers, this is their full-time job working on their social media platforms, so this influencer type will be totally invested in your campaign goals and will have expertise in hundreds of thousands of influencer campaigns. Their larger follower base will help your brand reach a larger audience. As social media personalities, they will have a celebrity status, which will elevate your brand through your association with these types of content creators.
They will produce high-quality content with professional equipment and understand how best to work with your influencer marketing budgets. They can create a buzz around products and have a wide-reaching impact.
What are the disadvantages of macro influencers?
Both micro- and macro-influencers have their advantages and disadvantages. The disadvantage of working with them is usually the budget. With millions of followers, their costs for influencer marketing campaigns come at a higher cost, and while they offer broader reach, they might have less direct interaction with followers.
They will also be more protective over content rights, so in your influencer contract, you need to agree on content in advance, the desired length of use, and who is responsible for content production to avoid any content management chaos in the future.
For mega high profile influencers with millions of followers, such as Kim Kardashian, you won’t have direct contact with the influencer or a personal relationship with them, but through an agency, so you need to be clear on your marketing objectives and ensure this type of influencer aligns with your brand.
Their levels of engagement may be massive, with the most significant impact, but they won’t be able to physically reply or engage with every comment or query. These high-quality endorsements have value and conversion potential, but if you want a personal connection, you won’t find this in your macro-influencer marketing. While they tend to have a broader reach, they might interact less directly with followers.
