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Macro-influencer – What is the difference between a macro- and micro-influencer?

Francesco Pastorelli
Marketing Growth Lead at Make Influence, I have a background in growing early stage startups through digital...

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Before you decide what Instagram influencers to use for your campaign, you must know the difference between micro-influencers and macro-influencers. What influencer suits your influencer marketing strategy the best depends on different factors such as budget, product and target group.

In this article, we will discuss the following:

  • What is a macro-influencer?
  • Who has the highest relevance – micro- or macro-influencers? 
  • Who has the highest trust and authenticity – micro- or macro-influencers?  
  • How do I choose the right social media influencer? 

 

What is a macro-influencer and how many followers does a macro-influencer have? 

The definition of a macro-influencer is a creator with more than 100.000 followers and at least a 3% engagement rate. Most macro-influencers are famous and often called celebrities, TV personalities, athletes or leaders. By being famous and popular, they can leverage this notoriety to build a community and reach many followers on social media – and much faster than a micro-influencer. Many macro-influencers have hundreds of thousands of followers on their platforms. 

Macro-influencers have consistent growth in followers. However, the number of followers doesn’t promise high engagement. Macro-influencers often have a hard time engaging their followers – unless they have another title that will help the followers feel a stronger connection. 

 

The unique benefits of macro-influencers 

 

The macro-influencer Wildfern standing in a room full of greenery, with a plant in her hand.

Wildfern is a famous macro-influencers who mainly produces content about plants. In this post she is advertising a sweater made by the designer Chelsea Burkett. 

Reach many people

Macro-influencers' reach metrics are high. A creator with millions of followers can reach hundreds of thousands of people with a single post. If you want more impressions but less targeted awareness, a macro-influencer can help with that. This is ideal if you’re aiming for the mass market with your product.

Optimized reach time

Macro-influencers are visible to brands and are, therefore, easy to find. Brands also need fewer macro- than micro-influencers to reach out to as many people as possible and get the job done. 

Professionalism 

Macro-influencers are usually managed by talented managers or agencies who tend to be professional in their dealings. They already have set terms and conditions, and as a brand you are expected to adapt. This makes it easier to choose the right macro-influencer to work with. Do the terms and conditions work for your brand or not?  

Les risky 

Macro-influencers are highly unlikely to have fake followers since they are genuinely popular and have a well-known name on social media.

 

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The unique benefits of micro-influencers

 The micro-influencer Nana Agyemang showing up her every day  look during New York Fashion Week.

Nana Agyemang is a New York-based social media editor for magazines like New York Magazine and The Cut, as well as a popular fashion- and beauty micro-influencer. 

High engagement rates

Micro-influencers with about 10.000 followers generate at least a 4.9% engagement rate. They can inspire people to follow their recommendations.   

Reaching out to a specific target group 

Micro-influencers gain visibility by being one of the few who create content that covers a specific topic. As a result, they are beneficial for brands that sell a particular product or solve a specific issue.

A cheaper marketing strategy 

Because micro-influencers are often relatively new content creators, they focus more on community growth than financial gains. Collaborating with a micro-influencer is much cheaper than collaborating with a macro-influencer.  

Creative energy 

New influencers are often eager to begin their first collaborations, and their creativity is often remarkably high. They will never skip a challenge, and they ensure outstanding campaigns. 

 

Who has the highest relevance – micro- or macro-influencers?

As mentioned above, micro-influencers can connect with a highly relevant audience. This can help you improve the ROI of your influencer marketing campaign significantly.

They are experts in a specific topic and have a small but engaged audience interested in their content. Therefore, it is likely that a micro-influencer generates more qualified leads and conversions compared to macro-influencers. 

Macro-influencers are often experts in a specific topic, and they obviously have the ability to entertain their audience. But they also promote products or services irrelevant to their usual content. 

 

Who has the highest trust and authenticity – micro- or macro-influencers?  

Consumers prefer to hear about products and services from real people rather than a brand. They are also more likely to trust recommendations from someone they are connected to. Use influencer marketing to help your brand establish an authentic connection with your target audience.  

Because macro-influencers have hundreds of thousands of followers on their social media platforms, most are already seen as celebrities. Brands have been using celebrities for marketing for a very long time – and the customers know this. That is also why they generally associate their branded content with advertisement rather than when a micro-influencer markets a product.  

3% of customers would consider buying something recommended by a celebrity, and 30% if a non-celebrity influencer recommended the same product. Macro-influencers are much more trusted than regular celebrities, but micro-influencers are usually the most trusted ones. 

 

How do I choose the right social media influencer? 

If your goal is to reach out to many people and increase your brand awareness, using macro-influencer marketing is often a great idea. Macro-influencers have, as mentioned above, the ability to reach many people and fast. You could choose a macro-influencer if you only want one effective influencer collaboration. Also, for general appeal products, larger influencers are great.  

But remember, the larger the audience, the less focused they are likely to be. So a micro-influencer is probably a better choice if you want to engage people with a specific product. 

 

Is it really a choice between micro- and macro- influencers? 

Well, not really. It’s about what goal you have with your influencer marketing strategy. Do you want to reach many people, engage or hype a product? Your marketing budget is also a relevant factor. 

When using influencers for your marketing, you will create awareness and drive sales through their followers – that is the general goal. However, it is also clear that there is a shift towards using micro-influencers instead of larger ones due to their affordability, authentic content and trustworthiness. 

 

Make Influence help you find the perfect influencer for your campaign 

Let us help you find the perfect influencer for your next influencer marketing campaign. Our platform is designed to make it easy for both influencers and brands to find successful collaborations. In addition, we offer many valuable tools and features that naturally enhance your way of working, allowing you to save time and money and grow faster. So, what are you waiting for?

Try Make Influence for free today

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