This episode features Stacy Skiavo, Account Supervisor at BCW Global and Food Influencer Extraordinaire at @YinzHungry412. Stacy shares how you can establish an influencer brand in today's fast-paced, constantly-evolving social media landscape.
Table of Contents
3 Big Takeaways From This Episode
Influencers are tremendous storytellers and do a remarkable job helping brands project their message to a wider audience
In order to gain traction on today's fast-paced Web, you need to establish your own brand and personality (don't mimic others), lean into the type of content that's garnering engagement on your chosen platform, and embrace the value of community and connect with other influencers in your space
Don't be afraid to evolve and make changes when needed in order to keep our influence relevant
Connect With Stacy Skiavo
Instagram: @YinzHungry412
TikTok: @YinzHungry412
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In Season 1 Episode 3 of Let's Blow This Up, food influencer Stacy Skiavo breaks down what it takes to build an influencer brand in today's fast-paced, constantly-changing social media landscape.
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How Do Influencers Help Businesses Tell Stories?
With so many options available for consumers, it's important for brands to make powerful connections that get people invested, intrigued, and captivated. And, since said people are humans, one universal truth rings true: we are all suckers for a great story.
Brands who interweave storytelling into their daily communications are bridging gaps between their business and the people they serve. Stories stand out...and the right people will resonate with a unique, well-told brand story.
Influencers play a big role in helping project that story to a wider audience. As you'll learn in this episode, Stacy Skiavo and other food influencers in her circle are telling the story of food across the Pittsburgh region, giving consumers an up-close-and-personal look at what's happening at these destinations before they even pull up a chair or barstool.
For some restaurants, having a dedicated social media manager in place isn't always possible, so embracing what influencers bring to the table can help push their message forward in a profound way.
Even if you do have a dedicated person in that position, influencers should still be utilized. Inviting them in for a meal to create captivating content that will boost sales should be viewed as a marketing expense and those relationships will play a key role in helping customers make decisions that bring them through your front door.
What Does It Take to Be An Influencer On Today's Internet?
There's no question the game has changed when it comes to building influence on social media. All platforms are algorithm-driven and feature millions of posts going live every minute trying to capture a user's attention. There's much more competition than year's past and the style of content that stops a person's scroll is changing constantly.
To help you get started, Stacy has some tips for you:
Establish your own brand and personality - don't try to copy someone else
Cast a wide net - ex. for a food influencer, do more than just pizza
Connect with other influencers in your space (and your city) and work collectively to establish your presence
Build strong relationships with businesses and brands in the space you're looking to create content
Leverage viral content the right way - lean into what works and don't try to reinvent the wheel every week. If you get traction with a certain kind of content, don't completely change things up the next post. Lean into it!
Trust the process and stay consistent even if your audience is small. You need to establish trust and have the patience to see things through
HAVE FUN!
How to Avoid Having a Shelf Life As An Influencer
We know the Internet is a crowded place. Every day, new people are creating accounts and looking to carve out their little piece of web success.
So how do you "protect your turf" once you've established presence as an influencer and avoid being cast off as "outdated?"
Here are a few steps you can take:
Don't be afraid to rebrand if things get stale. Keep your brand new and fresh
Stay on top of what's new, what's popular, and what's working. This doesn't mean getting sucked into creating content with "trending audios" just because everyone else is. But be cognizant of what's getting the most engagement on your platform of choice
Never be afraid to evolve
As it was in the last section, HAVE FUN!