How to Scale Your Business Using Influencer Seeding and What It Is

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What exactly is influencer seeding?

The act of delivering free items to people who have influence is known as "influencer seeding." However, various marketers have different definitions. Some people believe that for influencer seeding to work, the influencer does not need to take any action; the creator may choose to publish, but it is not required of them. The practice of providing free items to influencers in exchange for postings or other activities taken on their behalf is known as "influencer seeding" by certain marketers.

At Smartfluence, we consider influencer seeding to be the former: a gift from a company to a creative that comes with no conditions attached.

Giving out free products as part of the introduction to a possible collaboration is an excellent approach to get off to a strong start since it may help generate goodwill. And considering its power to strengthen relationships, it doesn't take up a lot of time either.

Why should brands think about influencer seeding?

A fantastic strategy for getting in touch with micro influencers is called "influencer seeding." This approach can make it much simpler for you to communicate with several new content providers, which is useful if you intend to expand rapidly.

Because of this procedure, the amount of time you need to spend cultivating a one-on-one connection with each influencer will be cut down by a large amount. Even the expense of putting these connections in place is reduced to a minimum.

The Benefits of Influencer Seeding

Finding content creators that are passionate about your company may be accomplished using influencer seeding. The viewers will be able to discern that the endorsement is not genuine if the content producer does not truly use or enjoy the product that they are advertising. And inauthenticity is the kiss of doom for a brand. Creators will be able to evaluate your goods and determine if they meet their needs if they are given the opportunity to test them out for free. You may continue forward with a partnership that is favorable to both of you if they truly take pleasure in them.

One further advantage of utilizing influencer seeding is the fact that it is an effective method for fostering robust relationships on a massive scale. Everyone enjoys getting presents, and content producers will almost always feel delighted when they learn that a business appreciates their work so highly that the firm is ready to provide free things with no strings attached. Your attempts to create relationships with influencers may frequently be given a boost by these agreements, which demonstrate to creators that your brand is fully committed to the endeavor.

The Drawbacks of Influencer Seeding

There is no assurance provided for the material. Influencer seeding, in contrast to content partnerships in which authors receive free items in exchange for postings, does not promise any form of promotion on social media or a blog. It is possible that some content providers will say something about how much they enjoy your work; nevertheless, this is the exception rather than the rule. You will need to enter these partnerships with the mindset that you will not receive a direct return on investment (ROI) from the costs of the goods and the transportation.

There are many who believe that seeding content with influencers is immoral. Larger developers have recently started discussing the possibility that these partnerships with no strings attached are not as harmless as they initially appear to be. They explain that businesses are aware that even when they say there are no obligations to post, many creators will feel the need to post in order to "pay back" the brand for its generosity. To do this, they explain, businesses are aware of the psychological principle of reciprocity, which states that people feel the need to "pay back" those who have been generous to them. They are essentially accusing them of using psychological vulnerabilities in order to coerce their way into receiving free stuff.

Which categories of creators are most receptive to the seeding efforts of influencers?

In most cases, creators who have smaller followings, such as nano and micro influencers, are the ones that respond most favorably to influencer seeding offers. Creators that have more over 100,000 followers are often highly busy and, as a result, do not have the time to examine anything that does not give financial compensation. However, if you are truly interested in working with a creative and want them to test out your items, you should make an effort to get in touch with them as it won't hurt anything to do so. The worst that can happen is that they say "no."

The cultivation of relationships with creators may be accomplished effectively through the use of influencer seeding. If you are just getting started with your influencer marketing program or have a relatively young company, influencer seeding may be a fantastic method to get things off the ground. If you do this in a way that is smart and purposeful, you will quickly build a team of devoted creators who are fans of true brands.

If you’re interested in learning more about influencer marketing and how Smartfluence can help you establish and scale your influencer marketing campaigns, feel free to book a demo here.

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