Why You Should Work with a B2B Influencer Marketing Agency in 2023

Four reasons to partner with a B2B marketing agency rowing teamwork in boat image

It’s ironic that B2B influencer marketing is getting more difficult as it gets more popular.

In the ancient before times of 2017, it was as easy as dropping an email to a few well-known folks, asking for a quote or a quick interview, offering only goodwill and recognition in return.

Now that the B2B world at large recognizes the value of influencer marketing, it’s a much more sophisticated discipline. The game has changed for marketers and influencers alike. The days of informal requests and handshake deals are numbered, if not already over.

Despite these growing pains, it’s clear influencer marketing is going gangbusters for B2B. HubSpot reports that over 89% of marketers who currently engage in influencer marketing will increase or maintain their investment in 2023. In the TopRank Marketing 2022 B2B Influencer Marketing Report, 86% of our respondents said they had seen success with the practice.

If you’re just starting to build your influencer program, or you’re looking to increase your level of sophistication — and your results — it makes sense to join with an agency that excels in B2B influencer marketing.

Here’s why.

4 Big Reasons to Partner with a B2B Influencer Marketing Agency

As the B2B influence landscape continues to evolve, it takes specialized knowledge to get the best results. An expert agency brings the knowhow, tools, tactics and established relationships that drive better results.

#1: Finding the right B2B influencers is challenging

Our colleagues on the B2C side have a much easier time finding the right influencers. Get the most popular social media star you can afford, pay for an endorsement, and off you go!

For B2B, however, follower count isn’t the only thing — or even the most important thing. In fact, research shows that micro influencers generate up to 60% more engagement than those with a huge audience.

This is true because B2B influence is all about relevance and credibility. In our survey, “size of audience” wasn’t in the top three essential qualities for a B2B influencer. Instead, the most effective influencers were relevant, trustworthy and knowledgeable:

98% said relevance of audience
87% said trustworthiness to audience
78% said subject matter expertise

Finding the most relevant, truly influential people to your target audience takes deep industry knowledge. More than that, it takes influencer marketing experience and specialized tools like Onalytica, Traackr, BuzzSumo, …read more

Source:: Top Rank Blog