4 Reasons You're Not Getting Sales From Influencer Posts & How To Fix Those

You've done your research and selected the perfect influencer. You've even managed to negotiate a fair deal with the influencer, and finally, you've watched the influencer post your carefully curated content...only to see that it's not translating into the anticipated boost in sales.

We can practically hear you from here: "I've done everything right! Why aren't I seeing results?" 😭

If this scenario sounds all too familiar, then you're in the right place.

The frustrating truth is that influencer marketing, like any marketing strategy, doesn't come with a one-size-fits-all guarantee of success. Perhaps your product just isn't getting the traction you expected, or maybe the influencer’s audience isn’t as engaged as you thought.  🤷

But this isn't the time to throw in the towel on influencer marketing. In fact, it's quite the opposite.  This is an opportunity to reassess, fine-tune, and make your strategy even more fail-proof. 💪

In this blog, we'll share some practical advice to tackle 4 common reasons that usually prevent a brand from getting results from influencers.

1 — Not picking the right influencer 🕺 😥

One of the key elements that can make or break your campaign is the influencer themselves. This is why a common reason behind not seeing the desired results could be as simple as not picking the right influencers.

When choosing influencers, brands often focus too much on the surface details.

A large following, an aesthetically pleasing feed, or even just a big name can lure them into a partnership. But that doesn't guarantee success.

So, how do you ensure that you're picking the right influencers for your campaign? The answer lies in a mix of both quantitative and qualitative research, along with a careful analysis of the influencer's brand values and the quality of their content.

🔢 Quantitative Research

When looking at metrics, the key here is to also focus on the engagement rate - how active and responsive is the influencer's audience? How many die-hard fans do they have?

You can find this data about any influencer using SARAL's Chrome extension.

Click on the extension icon, and within a few seconds it will display the key numbers. You can use these to judge whether they're the right partner for you or not.

💬 Qualitative Research

This is where you dive deeper to understand the influencer's relationship with their audience.

Are the followers genuinely interested in the content, and do they engage by liking, commenting, and sharing the posts? Check the comments — are they genuine questions or feedback of just robotic messages like 'nice', or 'awesome.'

🌼 Checking Brand Values

Ensure the influencer’s brand values align with yours.

When an influencer genuinely shares your brand's values, their promotion of your products or services will come across as more sincere and credible to their audience.

📸 Assessing Content Quality

Finally, evaluate the quality and style of the influencer's content. Is it compelling and engaging? Does it match the tone and aesthetics that your target audience would appreciate? Do they create an engaging story around your product or just push it in people's faces?

Here's an example of engaging content that can drive sales (and it doesn't have to be anyone dancing on reels or exotic locations!)

2 — Poor onboarding process 📄 🤢

Brands often say 'yes' to an influencer partnership, ship their products, and give the go-ahead thinking they've done what they could. Then they sit back, expecting the sales to roll in.

But on the other side of this partnership, the influencer is fumbling. They're unsure about the promo codes, confused about the perks of being an affiliate or a brand ambassador, and have no idea whom to reach out to in case of doubts or issues.

There's another extreme to this poor onboarding experience.

Brands give influencers an exhaustive creative brief, micromanaging every aspect of their content creation process and controlling the story so tightly that it leaves no room for their creativity, authenticity, and personal connection with their audience.

Lack of proper onboarding is a common but often overlooked reason why many influencer marketing campaigns don't deliver the expected results.

This problem has a simple and effective solution —

📃 Creating a comprehensive Influencer Onboarding Document.

This essential guide serves to give influencers all the information they need about partnering with your brand without overwhelming them or restricting their creative freedom.

Here's a quick visual to show you the different sections that should be part of your onboarding  or inspiration document.

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The final step is to add this document to your onboarding email to the creator. Also, store it under “Resources” inside SARAL. This way your creators have access to it at all times!

By clearly outlining your expectations, providing the necessary resources, and maintaining open communication, you'll foster strong relationships with ambassadors who are excited to represent your brand.

3 — Influencers are not posting enough 📅👎

Once you've chosen the right influencers and onboarded them effectively, it's time to sit back and watch the magic happen, right?

Well, not always.

Sometimes, even with a well-executed influencer partnership in place, you might find that the influencers aren't posting as much as you'd like… even if they're getting a commission on every sale/conversion that comes through them.

If this is the case, it could mean a few things.

Maybe the influencers aren't fully knowledgeable about the product, or they're unclear about the incentives. Or perhaps they've simply forgotten about it amongst their slew of other collaborations.

Whatever the reason, here's how you can address this problem:

📩 SARAL Activation Drip:

An activation drip is a set of messages sent automatically over time. These messages keep influencers excited and informed about your campaign (details like any new promotions, bundles or feature launches)

SARAL is an excellent tool that can help you activate your influencers and motivate them to post.

Add them to an activation drip within SARAL and it will take care of the rest. The editor is easy to use, needs NO learning curve. If you can type, you can use it without hassle

📜 Weekly Information Dose:

Send weekly emails or messages packed with useful information. This could include product details they might have missed, and clarifications about incentives.

You can also show success stories from other ambassadors to inspire them and help them get an idea of the level of growth they can reach.

🪄 Post Inspiration:

Curate examples of effective posts, both from other influencers and your brand. This not only gives them a clearer idea of what kind of content resonates with your audience but also gets the creative juices flowing, leading to more and better posts.

4 — Product X Market X Channel fit is not right ❎

Influencer marketing is not a magic bullet.

If you're doing everything right in terms of influencer marketing - choosing the right influencers, onboarding them properly, providing engaging content, and tracking your results - yet still not seeing the desired outcomes, it might be time to take a step back and revisit the basics of your product and its overall marketing strategy.

Check your success in acquiring customers through other marketing channels you might be using. Consider leveraging the power of posters, as they are a highly visible and impactful. With poster templates, you can easily create professional and visually appealing posters that effectively communicate your message and capture the attention of potential customers. Are you seeing positive results from them?

If the answer is yes, then it's possible that influencer marketing just might not be the best fit for your product or target audience. Not every marketing channel works for every brand or product (for example, complicated tech products, medical devices, or legal services).

On the other hand, if you're not gaining customers through any marketing channel, it could indicate a larger problem of product-market fit. If you haven't found a target audience to sell your product then no amount of marketing - influencer or otherwise - will drive sustainable sales.

Successful marketing is built on a strong foundation, which is a product that meets the needs of a specific market. Only when this is in place can tactics like influencer marketing effectively drive results.

Future-proof your influencer marketing

The key to overcoming many of these influencer marketing challenges lies in efficiency - and that's where SARAL comes in.

SARAL is an all-in-one influencer marketing tool that helps you easily find, manage, and track influencers in any niche from one centralized platform. Say goodbye to complex spreadsheets and bring hassle-free campaign management to your brand.

See for yourself with a 7-day free trial of SARAL. Claim your free trial here.

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