Have you ever asked ”Should I be connecting with influencers, and is it as valuable as people make it out to be ?”
The answer is a simple, straightforward “YES !” How you do it is up to you. I’m going to share my take on it with you.
It’s so much work to follow, share, quote, connect, and put yourself in the circles you desire. It’s difficult to see yourself in that bigger overall picture. If you're anything like I was, you may say "It's a waste of time why bother", or something like “They’re out of my league, they won't hear me", and even this one "Why does this even matter?"
All the above excuses are detours that keep you playing small. As a woman who is also trying to connect out here, let me tell you. Stop that!
Reaching out to influencers is valuable, you are worthy, and connecting with those influencing your market matters.
Below in a photo shared on Instagram you can see I’m speaking at The Ladies WHO Lunch Network “Get Social” event with Founder Maria Kritikos, and leading women in business Kristina Matisic, and Natalie Boll. I was honoured to be speaking at the event hosted in HootSuite HQ Lunch Hall (which is awesome BTW). I would never have been able to do this, if I hadn’t stepped out of my comfort about a year prior.
Marie Forleo, Sheryl Sandberg, Elizabeth Gilbert, Mastin Kipp, Kimra Luna, Kris Carr, Danielle Laporte...and others. These are some of the large global influencers in my field, all of which I have had direct interactions and engagement with online. Also, all of which probably didn’t note it like I did when it happened. Cue the sound of crickets on their end vs the sound of celebration on mine. Not only do I like what they have to say and offer, so do many in my market. This made me feel a step closer.
These interactions came in the form of replies, social likes, private inbox back and forth, and my comments being shared to their very large email list.
So What? You ask.
This is about intentions. If you want (or feel like you are) to be aligned with certain influencers or certain circles, and you envision yourself at this influencers level, then you need to take the action to put yourself right where you want to be.
With heart, and being a good human in mind. I mean, don't be pushy. This isn't about you, but it does support you. When your market can see you interacting on social media with the influencers they care about, they care about you a little bit more. Connecting enables you to reach more of the people you influence.
Taking action is declaring your intentions and it says to the world "This, I want more of this!"
So I want to tell you the obligatory “Go get em!” remark here.
How I do it. My complete strategy for connecting with influencers at all levels is too long to post here, so I’ll summarize. Reach out to be supportive, share value, and connect with respect. Expect to be heard, expect to be seen, and expect to connect in some way. Always, always be grateful.
Ideas how you can do it:
- Loved a book you read? Say that! Make sure you include the authors handle in your social post.
- Liked a tweet your influencer shared? Don't just Re-Tweet, Quote the tweet and add your voice. Start the conversation. Twitter continues to be well responded to. It’s not just for pumping out content, get out there and engage.
- Create a unique social post that quotes your influencer, the work they are doing and share their content. Again, be authentic, add your voice, and make sure to include their social handle this is how they see it.
- Attend an event the influencer is at. Before waiting in line to have your 10 seconds, take advantage of Q&A time. Introduce yourself and ask a thoughtful question. You’ll stand out to the audience and be more memorable to the speaker.
- If you have purchased a product from any of your influencers, leave a review. They need the good reviews still too.
So what came of the interactions I listed above? I felt really excited to be seen and heard, and to feel connected. Because social media interactions are mainly public, my social circles saw this. My influence level went up a notch. However results can be tangible as well. A very direct result from reaching out to influencers was that I became a published blogger, I have been invited as a speaker, I have gained clients and have built solid relationships from reaching out online. Best of all I truly expanded my social circle in a meaningful way.
So please, ask for what you want. Expect to receive it.