5 Insider Secrets for Influencer Marketing Success
- The Patient Whisperers
- Apr 1, 2023
- 3 min read
Updated: Aug 18
As published in the April 2023 issue of Ophthalmology Business Minute. To subscribe, visit their website.
It’s official. If your practice is not working with influencers, you’re missing out on huge revenue potential. Influencer marketing has been dubbed the “fastest-growing online customer-acquisition method” for a good reason.(1) Because it works, we see big brands like Nike, Amazon, and even luxury designers working with regular influencers now (not just celebrities).
You know us, we’re not going to let ophthalmology fall behind when something is changing the game in marketing. When we applied influencer marketing to our own practice, we saw ‘word-of-mouth’ refractive revenue increase by 257% in just two years!
Why does influencer marketing work?
Influencer marketing harnesses the power of word-of-mouth. We already know this produces our highest quality new patient inquiry. We are simply scaling it via social media: instead of a happy patient telling a few friends, thousands of people now see your practice and service through someone they trust or admire!
Influencer marketing also allows you to reach the demographic that is not being marketed to. This person glosses over ads because, for whatever reason, they’ve accepted contacts or glasses. LASIK, for instance, is not on their radar. RLE? Never heard of it. They are not going to Google search or respond to an ad. What they will respond to is someone that they feel like they know sharing an authentic, life-changing experience that sparks an a-ha moment or FOMO.
What is an influencer?
A social media influencer is someone with a loyal following over whom they have great… well… influence. Their followers are generally engaged, have a genuine interest in their opinion, and view them to be everyday people so it’s a more authentic and influential relationship than a celebrity following.
What is influencer marketing?
When a practice engages social media influencers to become ambassadors and represent the product or service that is agreed upon to their followers, this is influencer marketing. For instance, a LASIK ambassador would document their procedure journey on social media through photos and videos or even a blog. This offers incredible value because it ‘pulls back the curtain’ and shows what it’s really like to be a patient in your practice, along with unfiltered opinions and results. Influencers work hard to gain their audience’s trust, which is why data shows their recommendation offers a much higher ROI than ads.
Here are a few attention-grabbing stats:
72% of Gen Z and Millennials follow influencers on social media(2)
89% of marketers who engage with influencer marketing will increase or maintain their investment in 2023 (3)
71% of marketers find that influencer marketing leads are better quality than other sources(4)
When it’s done right, influencer marketing works! Let’s dive into five key ingredients to starting an influencer program or re-evaluating if you’re not seeing great results:
1) This isn’t a casual date, it’s a committed relationship
Casual engagement will produce mediocre results at best. Have a clear plan for deliverables, expectations, and terms of compensation.
2) Choose your ideal match
We typically see the best success with nano influencers (between 1K-10K followers) for most markets. They are more likely to have an extremely loyal localized following and usually engage for little pay or free products or services.
3) Make sure you’re compatible
Research the influencer and complete a consultation to ensure that they’re an excellent candidate and that their persona, language, and public opinions are a positive reflection of your practice.
4) Invest in the relationship
Fostering a genuine connection is key to producing powerful authentic content that resonates with their audience. Someone like a social media coordinator should ensure they are meeting deliverables and expectations.
5) Show them off
Some of our highest-yielding social media advertising campaigns were repurposed influencer content. Ads that don’t look like ads and show real patient emotions produce incredible results.
Influencers create brand recognition and loyalty for you, resulting in new inquiries that are already ‘bought in’ and seeking out your practice specifically for their needs.
If you’ve never worked with influencers or didn’t see results, it’s time to put together a consistent program for 2023 that works. Don’t be left behind!
REFERENCES
Tomoson. Influencer marketing is now the fastest-growing online customer-acquisition channel. https://www.tomoson.com/blog/influencer-marketing-study/. Accessed 2023.
Morning Consult. The Influencer Report. https://pro.morningconsult.com/analyst-reports/influencer-report. Accessed 2023.
Brenton Way. Influencer Marketing Statistics for 2025. https://brentonway.com/top-influencer-marketing-statistics/. Accessed 2023.
Tribe Group. Is Influencer Marketing Really Worth It? https://www.tribegroup.co/blog/influencer-marketing-worth-it. Accessed 2023.
Co-Founders, The Patient Whisperers & upSKILLery
