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A Conversation with The Influence Marketer: Tom Augenthaler

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Every time I have a conversation with Tom Augenthaler of The Influence Marketer, I come away with a new insight or idea about influencer marketing. Credibility, scale, SEO, conversion and trust are some of the many topics we touch on when we talk, and I always want to bottle those discussions with Tom and share them with our team, clients and influencers.

With that in mind, today I asked Tom a few questions to share with you. As we enter the fourth quarter of 2017, where we’ve been in influencer marketing, and where we are going, has very much been on my mind, and I was curious about Tom’s impressions. Below, you can read Tom’s opinions and thoughts on influencer marketing in this super interesting transcript of our exchange.

A Conversation with The Influence Marketer

Cooper Munroe: Tom, you and I were providing influencer marketing (IM) services to clients before there was even a term for it. Is there anything from those early days that you feel could benefit IM in its current form?

Tom Augenthaler: Yes, relationships! Back before software platforms enabled quick and easy searches for influencers, I had to manually search up blogs. Once I found a good candidate, I’d take a look at their blog roll (remember those?). As a result, I had to closely look at who the influencers were and the content they created. By scouring their blogs, I got a grasp on their content, their interests, and in many cases, their career path.

When I emailed them, I could reference all of these things, which meant I could make a meaningful connection. Often, it opened an email dialogue, and I got to know the influencers more personally. In many cases we became friends. As a result, I have a personal “brain trust” I can leverage anytime I want. Every influencer marketer should have that.

CM: Coming from traditional, global PR, how do you see influencer marketing evolving – will it stay a PR strategy, or do you see it moving into digital advertising or elsewhere? What does the future hold?

TA: Right now, public relations firms can do influencer marketing because of the new software platforms. These make the identification of influencers faster, simpler and scale. Where PR goes wrong is that they treat influencers as promotions (digital advertising) rather than relationships.

PR people only reach out to you when they want something – which is not how productive relationships are built. I know this because I hear it from influencers all the time.

The real benefits of influencer marketing come from the relationships because you can then leverage the influencers as a brain trust, targeted focus group and a listening device to know what your ideal customers want and need.

As to the future, that’s hard to tell. The FTC is watching the influencer marketing space more closely as a result of some blow-ups (example: Fyre Festival), but until the consumers shift their attention elsewhere, it will likely stay on the same course for now.

CM: What’s your advice for the business with a small budget but big goals for IM? How can IM be a success for a smaller business, while keeping the budget in check?

TA: Know what you want to achieve and know why you want to use influencers. Don’t jump into using influencers because it seems like the hot, new marketing tactic. Ideally, your influencer strategy should be aligned with other marketing initiatives you’re doing. This can include Facebook ads, promotions and tactics to get more reviews on Yelp, Facebook and Google. This is something most small businesses don’t know: Your best influencers are your happy customers! You should ask every customer to post a review on Yelp or Facebook. It’s so simple and can do so much for your business.

To get started, you don’t need to pay for an expensive software platform. Use Google to find some [influencers]. Once you do, be sure to look closely at their content so it’s congruent with your business.

Then reach out and ask them if they’d be interested in sampling your product or service in exchange for a review. Be sure to include a tracking/discount code for them to include in the link to your business. This way you can track the followers who come to you through the review. You must keep track of your metrics – it’s the only way you can tell if the strategy is successful or not.

I have some free resources to help you get started: A free 5 day email course and a free Facebook group for anyone wanting to learn about IM.

CM: One word – automation. Any predictions or trend-spotting insights on the future of IM automation?

TA: Ah, automation! It seems like marketing people want to automate everything. In some ways, it’s really helpful. Chat bots are a great example of that. I know some people online who are doing some amazing things with chat bots, even selling online products and courses.

But for influencers, let me ask you this … do you automate your friendships? Of course not. As I said earlier, relationships are at the heart of IM and the crux of deriving the benefits. Selling stuff via promotions is great, but it’s only scratching the surface.

I do think identifying influencers and tracking metrics will become increasingly easier – even automated – which is good.

CM: No follow links, search terms, key words and links back – what are brands and influencers to do when it comes to search? There are myths, facts and everything in between on the SEO / influencer content subject. Can you help share some clarity there?

TA: I encourage brands and influencers to link to each other in all of the campaigns I run.  Quality contextual backlinks (text and images) benefit both sides. The brands can always use the “trust boost” as I call it and the influencers benefit because they get some SEO juice. This helps them to grow their audiences and attract those ideal consumers the brands covet.  It’s a win-win. The trick is to make sure the backlinks are naturally woven into the content and not forced. Inserting keywords and no follow links are also beneficial, just make sure they are incorporated into the content naturally and not force fitted.

CM: There have been a number of online discussions lately about IM and some of the hot button issues there. One issue I’ve seen come up a lot lately is commentary on how overrun many influencers’ blogs and social platforms are with “sponsored” content, without other, non-sponsored content to balance it out. Do you think that’s an issue, and if so, what is your recommendation to influencers, and why?

TA: Yes, it’s a big issue. Influencers who do this are greedy and not serving their audiences well. They have to be careful because once they lose the trust of their audiences, they’re finished. They lose their influence. A balance of content is key and more productive. Also, businesses will choose not to work with them once their influence drops. My recommendation to influencers is to put your audience first! Treat them like gold.

CM: Your site offers really smart, useful resources based on years of experience and expertise; there are a lot of new businesses popping up every day that are offering IM tools and services. How can businesses, organizations and influencers cut through the noise, figure out the best approach and what tools they should use, if any?

TA: The influencer marketing space can be confusing. I recommend you reach out to a professional and ask questions before you jump in. It’s a strategy that is extremely effective, but it must be approached with focus and purpose. It really pays to talk to someone who’s done it and can help you avoid the pitfalls.

Thank you to Tom for a great, thought-provoking conversation.

We’d love to hear thoughts and feedback on my conversation with The Influence Marketer and invite you to join the conversation in the comments section below!

Be sure to read up on how to take your influencer marketing efforts from tactic to brand strategy!

Fred Forward Symposium: Thought Leadership on Families, Digital Media, Mister Rogers and the Neighborhood

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Last week, I had the great fortune to be a part of the Fred Forward Symposium at the Fred Rogers Center in Latrobe, PA, where the goal was to look at and discuss, from a variety of different angles and expert voices, “How families live well with media and technology in ways that strengthen and enhance adult-child relationships?”

Amazing minds from media, entertainment, academia, research, non-profits and business presented on topics, each more fascinating and thought provoking than the next. Presentations included: Family Personas in the Media (shout out to Dr. Shira Lee Katz from Netflix); Learning from Organizations in Diverse Settings (this session still has me thinking – thank you Brian Wallace of The Coin Laundry Association, Ramon Murphy of the Bodega Association of the US and Patti Miller of the Clinton Foundation and Too Small to Fail); The Impact of Words and Language; Messages Not to Be Missed; Brand Strategy; and Connecting with Parents Through Children’s Media and Music (Laurie Berkner, Joey Mazzarino and Brad Montague seriously brought the house down!). Facebook’s head of safety, Antigone Davis had powerful points about connection and community, as well as safety, sharing the MamaDragons as an important example of the impact of online community and support.

Every single speaker was mind blowingly impressive and I loved meeting and chatting with so many of you: Amazon’s brilliant Dr. Alice Wilder, the motivating and inspiring Joanne Goldblum of the National Diaper Bank Network (their work changes lives), Dr. Todd Wolynn from Kids Plus Pediatrics (everyone should be so lucky to have him as their pediatrician), Dr. Anne Gill (who made me cry with her beautiful words on parenting) from the Center for Parents and Children University of Pittsburgh and the very witty and smart Wynne Tyree of Smarty Pants.

Betty Cohen, Chris McKee and I presented a panel titled: Lessons Learned from Commercial Messaging. Betty moderated in such a thoughtful way while Chris (a seriously talented guy) and I focused on dad and mom angles of marketing. I can hardly wait to work with both Chris and Betty more. They are so sharp, funny and wise. I’ll let Twitter tell you:

Here are more from tweets from the Fred Forward Symposium! I can’t help sharing these tweets, every session had such nuggets that I can’t stop thinking about:

It was so clear through the Fred Forward Symposium that we are strengthened, sustained and grow because of the support of our neighborhoods, wherever they may be. Thank you Rick Fernandes and the whole Fred Rogers Center team for including me. I’ll never forget your incredible symposium, the life experience of it and the invaluable lessons from the hearts and brains of the world-changing people there.

 

Wheelbarrows, Customer-Led Growth and H.J. Heinz

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We’ve been told The Motherhood’s office in Sharpsburg, PA sits on land that was once part of the H.J. Heinz family farm.

In the years we’ve been in this building, I’ve also heard many other stories about Sharpsburg’s most famous son. This is the one that’s most stuck with me (as told by Pennsylvania Heritage Magazine):

Sharpsburg’s residents tended gardens, and the Heinz family’s garden was sufficiently fecund to feed their children (soon to be eight) and provide extra for selling. In 1852, at the age of eight, first-born son H.J. began peddling the surplus in baskets door-to-door in the neighborhood. Two years later his parents gave him his own three-quarters of an acre and he began using a wheelbarrow to deliver produce. By the age of twelve, he had enlarged his tract to three-and-a-half acres and purchased a horse and cart to sell to customers.

Imagine that young Henry John (and how YOUNG he was!) farming and bottling, mostly horseradish, and going door-to-door selling from a wheelbarrow, right here, in our neighborhood.

What was H.J. thinking as he visited the neighbors, building the foundation of what became one of the world’s most well-known brands and biggest corporations?

In 1904, the house where H.J. Heinz founded his company was floated down the Allegheny River from Sharpsburg to Pittsburgh. Photo credit: http://www.post-gazette.com/business/businessnews/2013/02/15/history-of-heinz-it-all-began-with-his-mom-s-garden/201302150279

Of course, it comes back to his mother.

According to this article, H.J.’s mother, Anna, would tell him, “Always remember to place yourself in the other person’s shoes.”

Putting himself in the customer’s shoes, one of the things H.J. must have learned going door-to-door was that families – who were for the most part growing and preparing food themselves – demanded any food they bought from somewhere else had to be up to the families’ highest standards. From Explore PA History:

To convince prospective customers that his horseradish was pure and wholesome – just like homemade – Heinz used clear bottles, instead of the traditional green, to show customers that his was “unadulterated” horseradish that contained no leaves, grated turnip, sawdust, small chunks of wood, or other foreign substances that unscrupulous manufacturers often added. Consumers quickly recognized the quality of his product and soon sales of Heinz’s expanded line of horseradish, pickles, sauerkraut, and vinegar were brisk.

Young H.J. was obviously on to something. He listened to his customers and had a relationship with them, he innovated accordingly, based on what he heard from his customers, and he implemented those innovations, even expanding on them — and then repeated the process again and again.

Photo credit: https://artmap.com/wattis/exhibition/americana-pennsylvania-2011

Customer-led growth is a buzz word now, but it’s proven to be critical for any successful brand. H.J. Heinz planted the roots for not only customer-led growth, but also for what’s best in how brands and organizations use social media to connect and communicate with their customers.

What are some other lessons from H.J. Heinz on customer listening and relationship building that we can apply in the age of social media?

Build Trust by Being Transparent

Just as he aimed to be transparent in selling his own product in clear bottles, H.J. was a driving force in passing the 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act, a consumer protection law that aimed to prevent the sale or labeling of harmful foods and medicines – and an act that many other food manufacturers of the time opposed. This commitment to product safety and purity helped garner trust among his customers, and it boosted sales for his brand (source).

Transparency is a requisite for any successful brand. It applies to all aspects of a business – from leadership communicating with employees, to ensuring ethical business practices (like properly disclosing partnerships) and communicating successes or failures in an honest way to your stakeholders. In this day and age of interconnectivity and social media, it’s immediately apparent when brands are lacking transparency.

Show and Tell: Communicating Your Value

In the late 1800s, Heinz offered factory tours to demonstrate just how safe and clean his manufacturing process was. The tours highlighted how well he treated his employees through comfortable working conditions and instructing managers to listen to employee concerns. Visitors were also given samples of his products and a pickle pin on the tours. This was such a successful tactic that other companies soon started following suit (source).

H.J. was quoted as saying: “To do a common thing uncommonly well brings success.” It’s commonplace for brands to demonstrate the benefits of a product or service. But doing it exceptionally well – communicating your value in a strategic way that breaks through the clutter – is what drives brand loyalty and spurs positive word of mouth.

Photo credit: http://explorepahistory.com/displayimage.php?imgId=1-2-125C

The quote above, “Heart Power is Better than Horsepower,” is the principle on which H.J. founded his business, and defined how he treated his employees (source).

While there is a need to create efficiency and a role for automation in nearly all industries, without that human touch, so much is lost. That human element is critical to process and respond thoughtfully to the concerns of your customers, or your employees.

Listening to Customers

H.J. not only applied his mother’s advice of placing yourself in the other person’s shoes to ensure fair treatment for his employees, but for his customers as well.

Listening is becoming increasingly important, as consumers are quicker than ever to share their unfiltered experiences via social media. Brands that listen – and respond (whether that’s actually responding or using those insights to shape future practices) – to their customers’ concerns reap short- and long-term benefits.

In fact, customers who encounter positive social customer care experiences are nearly three times more likely to recommend a brand (source). When companies engage and respond to customer requests over social media, those customers spend 20-40 percent more money with the company than other customers do (source).

Today I watched a boy skateboard around our building’s parking lot and wondered what might happen if H.J. Heinz had been that boy today. Imagine what he’d build with the help of social media, imagine what he would do with the power to connect “one-on-one” with his customers, but at scale. He’d no doubt build something that changed everything, this time with a smartphone instead of a wheelbarrow, because he carried with him fundamental lessons from his mom — that empathy, understanding, listening and placing yourself in the other person’s shoes are at the heart of all true success.

Top photo credit: http://historicpittsburgh.org/collection/hj-heinz-company-photographs?page=8

A #BeBoldForChange Profile for International Women’s Day: Chaton Turner

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Today is International Women’s Day 2017 and the theme this year is #BeBoldForChange — to forge a better working world and work toward a more inclusive, gender equal world. In honor of IWD17, we’d like to share with you an inspiring woman and influencer we’ve known, worked with and admired for many years, and someone who represents all those things. She is bold and works for a better world, every single day: Chaton Turner.

Chaton, an attorney for one of Pittsburgh’s largest organizations, who has published her blog, Chaton’s World, for 10 years, has dedicated her life to issues affecting gender equity, workplace fairness and women’s rights. Over the years, I’ve had conversations with Chaton that stayed with me long afterward. She thinks in ways that are broad in scope, thorough and big picture, but laser focused on the specifics of the issues she cares passionately about, and always with an eye on how she can be most helpful.

Chaton is driven to share with her community what she has to say. I asked her where she thought that came from, and Chaton told me about her grandmother.

International Women's Day Quote

Growing up, Chaton’s grandmother was sought after by community organizations and local churches because nobody else came close to being able to mobilize for a cause, a charity event or even sell tickets to a fundraiser like her. Watching the impact of her grandmother’s civic involvement, and how much her grandmother’s dedication made a difference, taught Chaton that even as an individual, you can significantly impact your community and the world around you.

Becoming an attorney gave Chaton the added confidence that what she had to say had value.

And then, becoming a mother crystallized for Chaton the issues affecting women that she fights for to this day.

Chaton told me that, as an employment lawyer, she understood workplace issues such as pay equity, paid leave and workplace flexibility from a policy standpoint, but once she became a mom, she lived those issues in a way that was wholly tangible and real. She also immediately realized that being a corporate lawyer, the benefits she received were not common for most women.

So Chaton took action, writing and speaking about paid leave, workplace fairness and other key issues women and girls face, and joining local organizations that dedicate themselves to equity and women’s rights. In her role as a board member of the Women and Girls Foundation, Chaton is working with the organization on the PA Coalition for Healthy Families and Workplaces, a campaign for paid family and medical leave in Pennsylvania. You can sign up to get involved here.

One of the things that struck me most from our remarkable conversations is the thoughtfulness and care Chaton puts into every idea, message or challenge she voices. Chaton said, “In my job, I focus on conflict resolution and my goal is to make every situation better, if possible. What I’ve learned in resolving conflicts is the outcome is what matters most. It is not ego or pride, it’s the outcome. So, that’s always my approach, even for my blog. I’m thoughtful about what I post or share, to nurture a healthy conversation and positive outcome around the issues being discussed.”

I kept thinking to myself: the world needs viewpoints and approaches like Chaton’s now more than ever. In the online community of mothers, built over the last decade, we need each other — and Chaton’s dedication to this “neighborhood,” not unlike her grandmother’s, makes us all better informed and hopefully, more willing to #BeBoldForChange.

After we finished our last call, Chaton sent me a note with a final thought. As we celebrate IWD17, I’d like to share Chaton’s beautiful words with you. Thank you, Chaton (and your grandma), for living #BeBoldForChange and inspiring us all to make a difference for women and girls in our community and in our world.

This Is Us and Why We Want to Hold Hands

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On Tuesday nights my family and I pile onto the couch to watch This Is Us, and millions of others do too.

(Thank you to Brittnee, who, the day after the pilot aired, said “You HAVE to watch this show!” That’s WOM, at its best. Added bonus: It’s set in THE BURGH!)

Not since the heyday of American Idol have the Munroes gathered together with this level of dedication and regularity to watch scheduled, non-Netflix, “community event” television. Mandy Moore, the “mom” on This Is Us, sees that too and talked about the phenomenon in the New York Times. “This Is Us was gaining real steam after a couple of unusual things happened: There were raves from people who usually watch ‘the cool show on Amazon,’ not over-the-air TV.”

When NBC had Must See TV seriously EVERYONE watched the Thursday night line up, and the next day at work, or wherever we were, we talked about it (I see you, Gen X-ers).

Image: NBC
Image: NBC

This Is Us is starting to feel like that, but now we have the joy of social media. Yes, a lot of talk online and off is about Jack (sidenote: usually pronounced with a sigh, “Jaaaack” – can you blame us?):

THIS IS US — “Kyle” Episode 103 — Pictured: Milo Ventimiglia as Jack — (Photo by: Vivian Zink/NBC)

But the conversation is also around how much people love the show, how much it makes them cry or how they identify with the characters. This comment on the This Is Us Facebook page pretty much sums it up.

“This show speaks to ‘us’ as a family, as humans, on sooooo many levels. We are so amazed by what the cast and crew do each and every week. WOW! Thank you – with huge gratitude!!! Love, Love, LOVE.”

Dan Fogelman, creator of This Is Us, shares an interesting theory about why This Is Us is connecting with the audience saying, “They’re looking to hold hands with a TV show, and something about the show has done that.”

Mandy Moore also pointed out, “The uncertainty is in the air, and nobody knows what to expect in the next couple months, coming weeks and year ahead.” But the show gives us a cathartic moment to experience together.

Together. The fact is, This Is Us tackles everyday challenges, struggles, pain, joy, love, caring and connection, and is the number one breakout hit on network TV. We, the audience, are showing up every Tuesday at the same time to watch it. Why?

What can we pull from that?

  • More than ever, community matters. Neighboring, kindness and connection matter. This Is Us covers topics of common ground and is a reminder we all have things in our lives we’re working on or dealing with and compassion is what we need.

  • The show clearly is built on a philosophy of authenticity and relatability – from the heart. It feels, from a viewer standpoint, like the writers and cast are there fully. This magic is only possible when culturally relevant, often moving themes (especially when the theme or message goes beyond a “category”), like celebrating what makes us each unique or embracing family, whatever form it takes are addressed and lifted up in thoroughly real, authentic – and even uncomfortable – ways.
  • We are the product of our experiences and the people around us. Elizabeth Berger, co-executive producer and writer of This Is Us, said in an interview, “We really liked the idea that life throws you curve balls, and what you do with those curve balls ultimately determines the life that you live.” Isn’t that what we all want for ourselves and our kids, and what we all are most proud of: How we got through – stronger and wiser, and the people who were – and are – there for us through the good and the bad?

  • Ultimately, and I’ve always believed this to be true, life-affirming moments, experiences and unexpected reminders make the world go around and we need them as much as possible, most especially today. Those instances of affirmation reinforce to us why we are here and that we have love, community, support and each other.

This, for me, is what This Is Us is all about:

The Motherhood at TEDx

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Emily McKhann and I were asked to present a Talk at TEDxSetonHillUniversity this week and it was such an honor to share what we know, love and believe about the power of moms online.

The video of our Talk will be available in the next few weeks and we will share it as soon as we get it!

TEDx Speakers get a standing O

Congratulations to Seton Hill University and all the wonderful speakers for a job well done!