Influencers & Cool Stuff

​Hello from Austin, Texas! As an alumnus from The University of Texas at Austin, and the girlfriend of a sport-loving dude who is also an alumnus, UT football comes up pretty frequently.
 
A few weeks ago, we went to the game. This time around, my boyfriend and I decided to stay home to watch it on TV. We had a great time: he was able to be sad as the Longhorns lost to Kansas City, and I was able to carelessly scroll through Instagram in the comfort of our own home.
 
Of course, while scrolling, I had to be updated on the influencers I follow…
 
First things first, I noticed a local food blogger (and now influencer), Rachel Lately, was at the game (photo can be seen here).
 
I am fan of her work: she posts great photos, makes jokes about Austin, and tends to stir up the pot occasionally. She and her friend were able to get on the field at the UT game and sit in a fancy area with free stuff, all thanks to the lovely marketing team at Coors Light.
 
Rachel was not the only notable influencer at the game. One of my all-time favorite influencers, Caila Quinn, from The Bachelor was there. Let me tell you, I was screaming!
 
As I said before, and will continue to say, I really love the Bachelor franchise.  
 
I have been a follower of Quinn’s career for more than 5 years now. I saw her build up her blog, live it up in NYC (just as every influencer does), fall in love, get married, and recently move to Austin. She and her husband seemed to have a great time on the with all the other influencers (could not tell you who the others were – they probably need more followers). Check out her photo here! 
 
Anyways, I told my boyfriend about all this excitement: like who was at the game and who was getting stuff for free. And as he drank his Shiner, that he did not get for free, he gloomily asked, “Why do they get to do that cool stuff at the game?” And friends, that’s what we are going to discuss today:
 
How are Influencers Chosen to Do Cool Stuff?
 
From tailgating and burnt-orange merchandise to crazy fans and the actual game, UT football is a day-long event. With any event, or brand, Influencer Marketing is needed to reach larger and different types of audiences.
 
Based on my previous words of wisdom, we know that using an Influencer is beneficial to a brand. To promote a brand, Influencers can be sent products to try or invited to certain events by a marketing team with hopes that social media posts will create brand-awareness.
 
After developing a strategy, budget, and goal, marketing teams reach out to the Influencers with their proposals. However, before choosing an Influencer to reach out to, some important questions need to be asked:
 

• Is the influencer already posting similar concepts and ideas to your brand?
• Is their engagement ratio to follower count at a normal rate? Do their account metrics seem legitimate?
• How many followers do they have exactly? Are they all real followers, or are some potentially bots?
• Have they worked with brands like yours before?

(https://sproutsocial.com/insights/influencer-marketing/)
 
Both Rachel Lately and Caila Quinn have posted engaging Austin lifestyle in the past AND have large followings, which is why they were likely chosen to experience and represent the UT Austin brand.
 
If you are looking for Influencers to promote and embody your brand, make sure to do your research. If you are hoping to become a successful influencer and represent a brand, you must do your research too. To fit the mold that marketing teams create, you must know how to:

1. Appeal to your audience
2. Create engaging and “pretty” content
3. Have a good amount of followers

 
Until my boyfriend increases his followers, works on engagement, and posts “prettier” content, he can no longer ask, “Why do they get to do that cool stuff…”