Social proof is the innate human impulse to imitate the actions & behavior of people around them, particularly people they like & respect.
Social proof is why and how influencers make money: Their fans love the way they look and act, and want to imitate it by using the same products. Celebrities do this, too (the celeb endorsement has been a proven marketing strategy for hundreds of years), but influencers can have even more power. Why? Because they’re perceived as real people, with real opinions, so their reviews matter more than a celebrities’ do.
1. Don’t View Your Influence As Purely Transactional
By transactional, we mean feeling that you’re only in the influencer business to sell stuff & earn money. Viewers have grown savvy to influencers who are only in it for personal gain, and turn away from them in favor of creators with a genuine passion and zest for their content niche. If you truly love what you’re doing, it will show in the joy radiating from you in your content, and through the give-and-take you have with your fans. Truly connected influencers take the time to maintain their community of fans, interacting with them, addressing issues, and learning from their fans, as much as their fans learn from their content.
2. Remember, Video Matters More Than Print
Instagram, Snapchat, and YouTube are far more popular with millennials than any other forms of media, including TV, print, and blogs. Video content encourages a more interactive experience, and actively reinforces social proof.
3. Live Video Matters Most Of All
Having a library of recorded videos on your channel increases your earnings over time, since the videos can be viewed & the links can be clicked an infinite number of times, but the real social proof is in the LIVE video. Fans love seeing an unedited peek into your life, and seeing you use a product in real time.
Bonus? Regularly doing live streams can boost your ranking in search algorithms on most major social media networks.
4. Use Your Fans to Reinforce Your Cred
When you review a product, whether good or bad, ask your fans to chime in. “What did you think of this foundation? Is it better for oily skin or dry? Any new foundations you think I should try?” This ups your credibility by reinforcing your honesty, encouraging fan engagement, and giving you additional opportunities to recommend products.
