How to Negotiate the Value of Your Influence

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WHO WE ARE

We teach social media. Sensei Project was founded in 2014 from a group of travel writers, journalists, designers and social media consultants. While we do the work of a traditional agency, we believe in empowering others to also manage social media channels themselves and learn from each other. For us, social media is all about excitement and possibility, and we want everyone to see its power. That’s part of why we helped bring you all together.

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DEFINING YOUR VALUE | (How we did SITsum)

Every conference or FAM trip is different, but here’s some of the criteria we used to evaluate SITsum attendees.

• Niche and alignment • Platform(s) • Audience size • Average engagement – received and given • Alexa score of website • Types of followers • Types of blog posts made, if any (quality and angle) • Initiative above and beyond the norm (hosting Twitter Chats,

Periscopes, Flipagrams, etc.)

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DEFINING YOUR VALUE | You are the product

Like any job, you need a resume. Put together a solid media kit. Be able to show examples (e.g. screenshots, numbers, tweets/videos that took off, etc.) and highlight your skills. Skill-wise, we want to know:

• Are you a writer? What’s the quality of your writing? • What kind of photos do you take? Do you post often? What quality? • Are you up on new technology? Do you do video? • Are you prompt and professional? • Are you influential on just a single platform or many? Will they post on just

Twitter or Instagram, Vine, Facebook, etc.? • Does their content have longevity? Are there media outlets who have featured it? • Are they familiar with the best social media practices?

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MAKE SURE PEOPLE CAN FIND YOU

Make yourself easy to find and focus on your website’s usability (or how easy it is to see/find info there).

• Are your social media profiles fully filled out (e.g. is your location listed – sometimes we might filter influencers by location, is it easy to find your social profiles on your website or blog)?

• Keyword your profiles (e.g. luxury travel, family luxury travel). If you were a marketer googling for a certain type of blogger, what would be what you could be found for?

• Do you have clearly linked social profiles? They won’t matter if we can’t find you.

• Have clear way to contact you. A “Work With Us/Media” button: • Link to campaigns, brands you’ve worked with in the past, or highlight your most popular work. And “As

Seen On/Listed In”

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THINK LIKE A MARKETER

The New York Times Magazine reaches 1.62 million people per week.

A 1/3 page ad costs $56,000 . That’s a $36.25 CPM (cost per thousand

impressions)

Figure out your demographics if you can.

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THINK LIKE A MARKETER

The New York Times Magazine reaches 1.62 million people per week.

A 1/3 page ad costs $56,000 . That’s a $36.25 CPM (cost per thousand

impressions)

The average CPM in the Travel industry for a higher-end display ad is around a $5 CPM.

But what you do is much better than a display ad.

Estimate Your Value in Hard Numbers

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THINK LIKE A MARKETER | Low End Scenario

Banner Ad to Targeted Audience of 50,000 $5 CPM = $250 per post

But most people don’t click on banner ads (and you can’t click on the Times), and your audience is loyal to you, your brand, and your content, which is why you’re worth more

than you may think.

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90% of consumers trust peer recommendations. Only 33% trust ads. (Nielsen)

STATS AHOY

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THINK LIKE A MARKETER

Know what you are – and aren’t – willing to sell. And what the benefits are. Here are some to consider:

Calculated reach value (CPM) Writing (long-tail SEO)

IP Release of Photography & Video Direct sponsored content

Guidance on how the brand can improve their social media & make the most of your content

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DIVERSIFYING MAKES YOU SEXY

Generally, influencers are chosen for their strength on a

single platform, but every platform your big on is a “value

add” that makes you more attractive, whether you’re being

sought-out and courted or actively pitching

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SHOULD I PITCH?

YES.

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SHOULD I PITCH?

Don’t wait for brands to come to you! You are your business.

Good pitches:

• Lock into the client’s goals and demonstrate understanding of their brand.

• Are concrete about the value you provide.

• Are brief and to the point.

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RESEARCH & PREP

Build positive relationships. It’s about proving yourself as trustworthy long before you ever reach out to us. The best way to get on our and our clients’ radars is by being someone they already interact with (e.g. through Twitter chat, expressing interest in specific brands, and extending small favors like retweeting or helping elevate their content before ever pitching to them).

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UNDERSTANDING YOUR AUDIENCE

If you do decide to pitch – and even if you’re being pitched to directly – take stock of the client’s social savvy. Depending on the brand, “reach,” “engagement,” “likes,” “retweets,” and all the vernacular we’re so familiar with might not work.

“I have 30,000 followers” “I have a loyal audience of 30,000 engaged travelers.” “I can put your brand in front of 30,000 potential guests.”

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FINDING THE WIN

If the pitch gets to the next level, you’re now in a business negotiation, so treat it like that. What buttons are you willing to push? What compromises are you willing to make?

Would I go on a trip without getting paid? (How else can I benefit – comps, visibility, networking, etc.)

Would I reduce my rate? (Perhaps the client would be willing to spend to promote your posts, benefitting you both simultaneously in exchange)

What other wins can I find that will help me grow my brand/business? For example: Don’t just be an influencer if you can lobby to be the “Instagram Ambassador for Brand X”

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Showing aspects of things we don’t normally see, or from a different angle. This is where your unique p.o.v. and talents come in

STUFF BRANDS LOOK FOR

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STUFF BRANDS LOOK FOR

Making partners look good.

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STUFF BRANDS LOOK FOR

Gosh darn rule of threes!

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AFTER THE PARTY

Once you’re done, you’re done, but a few practices go a long way to helping you be beloved and become the go-to for the kinds of campaigns you just completed.

• If you’re publishing a blog, tease it on social and let the client know when it’s coming

• Stay in touch and active with the brand from time-to-time, which helps counter the transitory nature of social media and shows extended value

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RECAP

Step 1: Define Your Value. Step 2: Determine Your Client’s Goals. Step 3: Negotiate. Step 4: Close or Re-negotiate. Step 5: Close & Prep.