Public Relations & Social Marketing Insight

Social media influencers – like Instagram stars or YouTube celebs – often promote products they like, either as part of a brand relationship or as means of generating income through affiliate sales. Now, Amazon is looking to get in on this action as well. The company has quietly launched the “Amazon Influencer Program,” which is currently in beta testing as of a couple of days ago.

Similar to the Amazon Affiliate program, the new program will offer influencers commission on products sold, but is not open to the public.

One of the key things that makes the new Influencer program different from Amazon Affiliates is its exclusivity.

Today, anyone can sign up to be an Amazon Affiliate, which lets you build links and shopping ads that you can use on your own website or blog. When a reader clicks through to buy the product, the affiliate receive a commission on those sales, which varies by product type.

Amazon Influencers, meanwhile, must submit an application to be considered for inclusion....

When it comes to winning the hearts (and dollars) of potential consumers, a positive consumer review can go a long way. A new report shows that more than two-thirds of US Internet users trust businesses more because of positive consumer reviews.

The high levels of trust represent a significant shift. Five years ago, 45 percent of consumers said they didn’t pay attention to online reviews at all or didn’t let them influence them,eMarketer reports. But in 2015—in part because of increased mobile use—reviews are a big part of users’ online shopping experience. Thirty-eight percent of Internet users read reviews on mobile via a browser, and 24 percent on mobile apps....

The benefits of combining word of mouth and digital interactions are crystal clear to marketers at Swarovski—especially when it comes to driving in-store purchases.

“Word of mouth, we're finding, is actually more and more important every time we do an event,” says Robin McCall, marketing manager for Swarovski Crystal Society, a community that customers can join to attend the company's private events, as well as receive free gifts and exclusive rewards. “But if you're not having the people who are your fans and your advocates speak for you, it's that much harder to be successful.”...

So what exactly is this buzz about influence marketing? Imagine handpicking the most influential bloggers to work together in evangelizing your story. Ok, now take it one step further for it to really work: make sure that those influencers are actually true fans who LOVE and believe in your brand!

From a public relations perspective influence marketing is about targeting your brand evangelists or groups of your biggest fans versus a solo celebrity sponsor or the masses. Call it brand evangelists, loyalists, advocates or influencers, welcome to the next phase in social PR marketing as platforms like Triberr take blogger outreach and influence marketing to new levels...