Explaining the sudden surge in influencer marketing by alcohol brands.

alcohol in a whiskey glass

Alcohol, one of the most consumed substances in the world. According to an article published in The Conversation, 12% of adolescents consumed their first taste of alcohol by the age of 13. Many people attribute this so socio-economic issues as well as the advertisement of alcohol. In 2012, the Control of Marketing of Alcoholic Beverages Bill was drafted by our Government, the bill was drafted with the aim to protect children from alcohol advertising.

The term ‘Brand Ambassador’ has been around for the longest of times, the use of the word has increased with influencer marketing taking over the online marketing space. According to Influencer Marketing Hub, of the 81% of marketers who use influencers and influencer content, 51% of those said their influencer’s content outperformed brand-created content. Influencer marketing can be a cost-effective way to reach a new, different audience – and big and small businesses can use this method.

Drinks in a bar

Now, lets think clearly about this, a countries advertising laws do not apply on people’s personal social media pages. The Constitution of the Republic South Africa Act of 108 1996 provides for the freedom of expression. This means that, the ambassadors will be free to continue to post about the different brands even if the drafted bill gets passed into law. It’s a smart move if you ask me. Especially because the whole point is for people to continuously see the product, the ‘how’ is another story.

Lets have a look at some South African celebs who became alcohol brand ambassadors in the year 2021.

Russian Bear x Nadia Nakai and Blaq Diamond

Nadia Nakai and Black Diamond
Image: South Africa Today

Russian Bear has always been a drink for young, vibrant people. The brands collab with Braga Queen, Nadia Nakai and the Afro Pop Duo, Blaq Diamond is centered around creating unique artwork. The collab came about as a campaign called Next level, which it is a call to creators within the arts, fashion or music industry to enter to stand a chance to collab with the brands ambassadors.

JC Leroux x Dineo Langa

Image: Aspire Lifestyle Magazine

We all know Dineo Langa for her classy dresses and the finer things in life. Dineo recently announced that she is the brand ambassador for JC Le Roux’s premium nectar range. The Demi-sec range is available in two variants, the Nectar Demi-Sec and the Nectar Rose. We can all agree that Dineo fits well with a brand like JC Le Roux.

Bernini x Linda Mtoba

Linda Mtoba x Bernini glass
Image: Celebs Now

Bernini, a natural sparkling grape frizzante, the ladies drink recently announced Linda Mtoba as their brand ambassador. Most of us know this beauty for her role as Nomonde on the telenovela, The River. Linda’s latest flex is being a part of the Bernini Glow Getter Squad.

My guess is we’ll be seeing more of these collaborations, especially with the rapid growth of the online marketing space. Social media marketing is where it’s at. Chris Brogan, President of New Marketing Labs once said ”Social Media puts the “public” into PR and the “market” into marketing. ”. What is your take on the move to more brand ambassadors by alcohol bands?

What marketers look for when booking an influencer

Influencers have changed the way marketers communicate with their desired target audiences. They have become the link between brands and the target audience on social media. This is due to their ability to produce niche-based content.

According to WebFluential a great influencer is more than the one who takes beautiful images and has the highest number of followers. However, the one who fits certain criteria and can show marketers their value pre, during and post the campaign. If you want to be an influencer, these are some of the elements that marketers look for before booking an influencer.

1. Who is the influencer?

This might sound obvious, but this is the question that marketers ask. Marketers can’t work with someone they don’t know. Therefore as an influencer you need to write a short bio including where you are based and the markets that you are influential in. For example you can state in your bio that you are a fitness and lifestyle writer based in Johannesburg.

2. Match between the influencer’s online personality and the brand

There needs to be a fit between the brand and the influencer for the influencer campaign to be successful. A fitness brand can’t choose an influencer who enjoys seating at home and watching TV, for example. The brand and influencer’s personality, values and vision need to match.

3. The influencer’s audience

The reason marketers choose to use influencers is because there is a desired audience that they want to reach and influencers can help them do so. Audience demographics e.g age and gender are essential for brands to improve their targeting. With Audience insights, a brand will be able to see if the influencer’s audience aligns with their ideal customer profile. Brands will also be able to find and prioritize influencers based on their audience affinity to the brand and specific topics.

4. Engagement rate

It has emerged that some influencers buy followers so that they appeal to marketers. Some influencers have a huge following but the engagement on their posts is close to zero. This is where the engagement rate of an influencer’s posts becomes an important metric in understanding the level of interaction of an influencer has on their content. An engagement rate is defined as the percentage of the influencer’s audience that responds to their content.

5. Previous work

Like any other “job” experience matters. Marketers need to know who the influencer has previously worked and the kind of work that the influencers have produced. This also helps marketers to see if the influencer has worked with competing brands. Being able to see an influencer’s body of work is an important insight when trying to gauge what kind of content the influencer can produce.

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How to become a social media influencer in South Africa

The revolutionary emergence of social media has provided ordinary people with an easily accessible platform to voice their opinions and become thought leaders in their areas of interest. These thought leaders are often referred to as influencers. They tend to be well-connected individuals and are perceived to be influential and in-the-know in certain topics. Their followers, on the various social media platforms, look up to them for advice, knowledge, direction and opinions.

For many brands, the use of influencers has become one of the most effective strategies to drive brand messages in subliminal ways. Instead of pushing their own message, brands can leverage the ‘attracting power’ of online influencers to get their message to the consumer.

In developed countries, such the Unites States and the United Kingdom, influencers are making lots of money. Some people end up leaving their jobs to become full-time influencers. In 2015, Business Insider reported that one of the most popular YouTube channels, PewDiePie made about $7.4 million. Converting this amount into Rands, that’s closer to a whopping R100 Million depending on the Rand/Dollar exchange rate. In SA we have people like Boity, Kefilwe Mabote, Karabo Mokgoko and Tshepi Mvundla just to name a few, who have become formidable influencers in their own unique ways.

We at patonbrands.com believe that by following the 6 guidelines below, you can become an influencer in your area of interest.

1. Identify a topic or area you are most passionate about

In the famous words of Georg W.F Hegel “Nothing great in the world has ever been accomplished without passion”. To be a phenomenal influencer, you need to be passionate about the topic/area you want to be influential in, whether it’s sports, fashion and lifestyle, cars etc. If you are not as passionate you won’t do great and your followers will pick it up.

2. Choose a platform to share your thoughts

There many platforms that you can use to communicate your passion on. You need to choose the one(s) that will allow you to reach your audience effectively and efficiently. You can have your own blog and presence on social media sites such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Instagram. This is, however, dependent on the type of content that you will be producing.

3. Be consistent

In the influencer marketing space, consistency is vital. If you don’t release content on a regular basis, your audience will forget about you (Out of sight- Out of mind).

4. Provide value

Give your audience a reason to consume your work. There are various ways to provide value, whether you want to entertain, educate and inform your audience or simply just to share on your inner thoughts. The choice is completely yours.

5. Network

An African Proverb states that “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go with others”. This is true to becoming an influencer, engage with those that are already in the space to broaden your reach and scope. Also find a way to add value to what they are doing.

6. Be patient

Like any other thing worth achieving, you need to have patience. It takes time to build an audience. Again, if you are passionate about your chosen topic/area it will be easier for you to be patient.

I hope you find this guideline useful to start your journey as an influencer and make a positive impact in people’s lives. Please leave your comments below and as usual don’t forget to share! Don’t forget to in-touch with @PatOnBrands on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.