How to Find B2B Influencers: The Ultimate Guide

There’s no doubt about it: influencers are a powerful tool for B2B marketers. But, finding the right ones can be difficult. Not only do you need to know how to find influencers with a decent-sized following, but they also have to be relevant to your industry and target audience for content marketing to work.

In this guide, we’ll show you how to find B2B influencers for your business. We’ll also give you some tips on how to work with them to achieve the best results.

You can find B2B influencers by using some free options, like Buzzsumo or Followerwonk. But the best option is to look on Niche blogs.

Niche blogs target a micro audience and give regular feedback on what’s going on in their industry. They also generally have a sizeable following – typically anywhere from 10,000 – 100,000 followers or more – which means they’ll send a substantial amount of traffic to your website if you work with them properly.

You can also find B2B influencers on many platforms. Some more popular platforms for this type of search are LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.

Key Takeaways

• Influencers are essential in B2B marketing for their ability to affect purchase decisions through their industry authority and knowledge, with niche blogs and social media platforms being effective channels for finding relevant influencers with substantial followings.
• The effectiveness of influencer marketing in B2B contexts relies on identifying influencers who are respected within their industry, using tools like BuzzSumo and Followerwonk for discovery, and ensuring alignment with the target audience’s interests and needs.
• Successful collaboration with B2B influencers involves building genuine relationships, understanding their communication style and audience, and presenting mutually beneficial opportunities, with the ultimate goal of enhancing information marketing efforts and reaching new potential customers.

What is An Influencer and What Do They Do?

An influencer is someone who has the ability to affect the purchase decisions of others because of their authority, knowledge, position, or relationship. This could be due to how well known they are in their industry or how respected they are.

Social media influencers post content about niche topics. They gain their following because they demonstrate vast knowledge about these topics. Their followers see them as an authority on the subject

Influencer marketing takes different forms. It can involve working with influencers to produce ads, sponsorships, or content. There are also influencer networks that connect marketers with influencers for sponsored content.

For example, do you trust reviews that come from CNET more than your best friend? There’s a reason for this: sites like CNET have the resources to produce high-quality reviews, so it’s likely that their content will be better than your best friend’s. This is how influencers can affect purchase decisions.

In a nutshell, influencers help businesses create high-quality content that resonates with their target audience. They do this by leveraging their authority, knowledge, and relationships within their industry.

This can result in increased traffic and conversions for the business. Additionally, influencers can also help businesses reach new markets and connect with potential customers.

Why Are Influencers Important for B2B Companies?

When it comes to marketing for B2B companies, there is no one better suited for the task than B2B influencers. They can reach a large number of people with just one blog post or social media update. This makes them a valuable asset for any company wishing to improve its content marketing efforts.

Additionally, social media influencers are usually very well respected within their industry, so their endorsement carries a lot of weight.  They can endorse a product or service within their post, whether they are paid or not, and people will still buy it. They have the power to move markets because of the influence they command over other individuals.

However, influencers are difficult to find if you don’t know what you’re looking for. With influencer marketing becoming more popular each year, they are becoming harder to reach.

How Can You Find the Right Influencers for Your Business?

Finding the right influencers for your business can be a daunting task. You need to find individuals who have a large following and are respected within their industry. But, how can you find these influencers?

The best way to find the right influencers is to look up niche blogs in your industry. Try to find influencers that have their own blogs. Even better, those who write for a blog with a large following.

Another great way of finding influencers is by searching on Twitter and LinkedIn.

You can use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Twitter, and Quora. You can also use tools like BuzzSumo, Followerwonk, and Traaackr to help you find key influencers.

Buzzsumo

BuzzSumo is a great way of finding influencers who have written on a similar topic. It allows you to see the social engagement on their posts and also gives you a list of influencers who write around your topic.

Followerwonk

Followerwonk is a Twitter analytics tool (you can use it to find influencers and do brand mentions and competitor research). You can pick the best influencer who has a lot of Twitter followers.

Traaackr

Traaackr is an influencer marketing platform that shows people who are influential by looking at things like how many followers they have, their Klout score, and the industries they cover. You can also find potential influencers on Traackr based on your desired influencer type such as ‘thought leaders‘ or ‘bloggers’.

After you’ve discovered a few potential influencers, you need to assess them. Look at their following, engagement, and the quality of their content.

Once you find the right influencer for your industry, it’s time to build relationships with them. Influencers are not easily persuaded to work with you.

You will have to do your research, find out who they are, what they like and dislike, and then approach them.

How to Pitch to B2B Influencers Once You’ve Found Them?

So you’ve found some b2b influencers, you want to pitch them your content. What do you do?

First, make sure that you have a strong marketing plan in place. You need to know who your target audience is and what content will resonate with them. Once you’ve nailed that down, it’s time to start thinking about your pitch.

Keep it short and sweet. No one wants to read a long, drawn-out email.

Start off by introducing yourself and your company. Explain why you think their audience would be interested in your content. Make sure to highlight the benefits of reading your content, then politely ask for their feedback.

If you can, try to find out what kind of content they like to read and what their pain points are. This is key because you need to know the type of content that will resonate with them, then tailor your marketing strategy around those preferences.

Finally, make sure you give them a reason why they should share your content with their audience. Is it the first time this subject has been written about? Did you get exclusive access to a new marketing tool? Tell them why their audience will be interested!

Here are some extra tips for pitching to B2B influencers:

• Find the right platform. Not all b2b influencers are active on all social media platforms. Do your research and find the right platform for your business.
• Start with a compliment. This is simple but can be easily overlooked. Everyone loves a good compliment, so start your interaction with a kind word.
• Keep it short and sweet. You don’t want to overwhelm the b2b influencer with too much information. Make your pitch concise and to the point.
• Mention their work. It’s always good to show your audience that you value the influencer’s body of work, so make sure to drop in a reference or two.

If you can ensure that your content and pitch meets all of these requirements, then there’s a good chance that you’ll be able to catch the attention of some marketing influencers!

What are Some Tips for Working with Influencers Successfully?

Every marketing campaign is built around well-planned and executed content marketing. When you engage influencers to help with your marketing efforts, you need to consider the following tips and tricks to make sure you get the best marketing experience.

Here are some tips to increase your success while working with B2B influencers:

• When you’re working with influencers, you need to remember that marketing is all about building relationships, not just marketing content.
• You can’t simply approach influencers with marketing content. The marketing language has to be the same as theirs. For example, if they tend to write articles in a casual way, don’t send emails with business-like texts.
• You should create an affiliate relationship and help them achieve their goals. Remember to share content regularly-not just when you need something from them.
• You should present yourself as if you were working with a partner, rather than selling a service when marketing your digital marketing services.
• The digital marketing influencers you approach should recognize the service as a genuinely helpful one to solve their clients’ problems. If you can do that, you’ll not only get content from them, but many more will link back to your site and social media pages.
• When working with digital marketing influencers, be prepared for a long-term relationship where your digital marketing efforts will be mutually beneficial. If you keep that in mind, your success will grow exponentially.

Examples of a Great B2B Marketing Campaign?

So you know in theory about using B2B influencers as a marketing strategy, but what about some examples?

VideoFruit

Bryan Harris of Video Fruit leveraged himself as a guest blogger for larger publications as a method of using their influence. He chose blogs that targeted his market so he knew his content would be relevant.

When his guest posts were published, his page views grew a whopping 500% and he gained over 200 email subscribers.

American Express LoveMyStore Campaign

American Express has run other influencer marketing campaigns too. They teamed up with Grace Bonney from the Design*Sponge blog to design storefront decals. They also collaborated on an online video series teaching them how they could use their storefronts better than ever before to attract customers!

The campaign earned 5 million impressions across social media, which helped promote this new product line by AmericanExpress. This was perfectly targeted towards those who own businesses themselves.

When working with influencers, consistency is key!

You should work with influencers that have a similar audience type as your own. This will allow you to effectively reach their existing audience and gain new leads.

Conclusion

So, you’ve read our guide on how to find B2B influencers and now you want to put this information into practice. Congratulations!

Remember, finding the right influencer for your company is essential if you want to create a successful and lucrative relationship. And don’t forget – once you do find them, make sure to treat them well! Influencers are busy people, so make sure not to bombard them with requests or spam their inboxes.

Follow these tips and you should be able to work successfully with any influencer.

Frequently Asked Questions

Here are some additional questions  you may have about working with B2B Influencers: