The Power of Influencer Marketing for New Christian Writerpreneurs

Greetings Beloved!

Welcome to a new Empowering Post hosted on our new blog, Writerpreneurs Millions.

I am Felecia Killing, award-winning coach and Founder of The Felecia Killings Foundation. Our mission is to help you build, launch, and scale your business or ministry around your authorship. Since 2011, I've worked with new and aspiring authors, helping them transform from average writers into powerful writerpreneurs.

Since then, hundreds of authors have learned what it takes to be truly successful in their calling; and I couldn't be more excited about the thousands more who will partake in our training. It's simply an honor to be the voice that empowers you for success.

In 2019, The Foundation experienced explosive growth. If you follow me on Twitter and other social media platforms, you've noticed how my influence has expanded immensely. And now my platform is connected to a massive network that comprises 250,000+ followers.

Anytime I experience growth in my virtual ministry, I immediately construct lessons that will help you reach new heights in your business or ministry. And in 2020, I've added a new blog to The Foundation called Writerpreneurs Millions. This site will teach you specific strategies that will help you position your platform to reach the millions.

​This blog is geared towards those who have gone through my online training or those who are considered seasoned authors. You have a book published, but you're struggling to accelerate your platform so you reach new heights. Perhaps you're looking to secure more speaking engagements, more followers, or more opportunities to expand your brand's awareness.

At the core, you're searching for answers that will help you scale your work, because you truly desire to get your message to more people beyond your sphere of influence. (In another lesson, I will teach you about scaling and how this plays a role in reaching millions.)

If that is you, then Writerpreneurs Millions is the place to be to receive FREE educational resources that teach you about crafting an aggressive marketing plan for your venture.

Now, for our opening post, I want to focus on a specific marketing strategy that has elevated numerous brands within the online space. By brands, I am including your work, Beloved. As you learned from our Christian Writerpreneurs blog, you are a business or ministry. Your story is a part of your service or offering. You package your service in a book, and you sell your solution to your audience (readers).

In other words, you are a brand. And Christian Writerpreneurs who treat their authorship as a brand, business, or ministry see the greatest results.

Getting back to my previous point, in order to thrive in your venture, you must apply an aggressing marketing plan. And in today's time, infleuncer marketing delivers optimal opportunities for you to tap into new audiences seamlessly.

So, grab your pen and notepad. Today's teaching, which is a part of our exclusive "Scale for Profit" class inside LiyahAmore University, will help you learn how to leverage this marketing strategy.

I know it will bless you! Let's get started.

The Story Behind Influencer Marketing

We all know the importance of effective marketing. You can have the perfect book that solves your audience's problems. But unless you know how to reach people and persuade them to purchase your product, your book remains obsolete.

Marketing is best understood as proper positioning in a targeted market. Once positioned, you use different communication strategies that highlight the value your product brings to a community, tribe, or audience.

Inside LiyahAmore University, I spend a great deal of time teaching the science behind this skill set. Most authors have elementary knowledge about this field; and too often, they position their product (book) in a market that isn't interested in their works. 

Consider my ministry and its products or services. I do not promote my works to just everyone. I am positioned strategically in the Christian self-publishing market. I'm also positioned in the conservative political market. Therefore, the content, books, and services I deliver are easily received by those who are interested in both topics.

Essentially, that is how effective marketing works; and when you're just beginning this journey of writerpreneurship, it's difficult to cultivate a space for yourself in such a competing market. For this reason, brands have leveraged the influence and power of famous people to help promote their products or services.

Think about the celebrities you see in various commercials. At times, you purchase a product because your favorite icon was featured in the ad. 

This is the basic premise of influencer marketing.

For the sake of this lesson, here's our working definition:

Influencer marketing involves outsourcing key leaders in the virtual space who will bring brand awareness to an author's brand. By purchasing sponsored content (i.e. blog posts, social media posts, video content, website ad space), an author can rely on an influencer to promote one's brand and book to a growing audience.

And over the last decade, this strategy has taken over the social media sphere.

Social Media Marketing: 2010 and Beyond

We know the power of social media. It is the one area where brands can fish for their ideal customer for virtually free. This is also a perfect place to locate readers who will be empowered by your books and services.

Since 2010, social media marketing has enabled people to become instantly famous. In fact, the barrier to entry into the fame life is so low, cat-lovers have discovered ways to become well-known.

Celebrities who have taken to Instagram, Facebook, and even LinkedIn have discovered ways to monetize their platforms by selling their influence to businesses who want to promote to a wider audience.

And over the years, smaller accounts (what we call micro-influencers) have emerged, giving other brands opportunities to advertise their products.

Types of Online Influencers and How Each One Leverages Their Platforms

Not all influencers are the same; and not all influencer platforms deliver the same results for each brand that hires it.

A great article from SenseiMarketing analyzed the various types of influencers, so let's discuss them here:

1. Mega-Influencer: These are celebrities whose name alone carries more fame and influence. They don't necessarily focus on a subject matter (like I do with Christian Writerpreneurship), but their influence is felt among millions of followers. Brands that have the marketing budget to pay for mega-influencers can expect to receive instant traffic and sales with just one Instagram post, for example. Some celebrities are known for charging up to $1 million for just a single post, because their social media presence commands so much persuasive power. This, of course, does not automatically translate into massive sales for a brand. And in this case, the best strategy for hiring a mega-influencer is to increase brand awareness.
2. Macro-Influencer: Like celebrities, these influencers have a large platform, generally consisting of 100K-1M followers across all social media sites. Such individuals include podcasters, bloggers, and political influencers. Ideally, such influencers are subject-matter experts. They are the go-to individuals for all things related to education, technology, empowerment, etc. Brands that pay for macro-influencer marketing can expect to reach a niche audience that focuses on a specific topic. 
3. Micro-Influncer: Individuals who have managed to create a following of 1,000-100,000 followers fall within this category. These are voices who, like macro-influencers, focus on a niche audience. They are intimately acquainted with their followers, and are supreme subject-matter experts for a given topic. My platform fits within this category. When promoting a brand (like you, Beloved) on my platform, I am helping you establish authority and credibility among an audience we both have interests. For example, if you are a new author whose book discusses women empowerment, your resource would be a perfect product for my quarterly women's retreat. Because I have such a connection to a specific audience, and that audience engages with my content on a deeper level, positioning your book on this platform is more profitable long-term than if you hired a macro- or mega-influencer (which may exceed your current marketing budget).
4. The Advocate: Think of these influencers as the ones who will engage in meaningful conversations with online audiences around your product. For example, let's say you have a book that will truly empower women. As an advocate and micro-influencer, you could ask me to host a weekly women's bible study, using your book as the primary resource. This marketing strategy goes deeper than simply asking me to promote your book to my audience of 15K+ followers. In this case, you are paying for me to promote your book AND engage in discussions that guarantee book sales.
5. The Referrer: I'll characterize this influencer as one who is brand loyal to one specific business. If you take a look at my influencer service page, you'll see I highlight one publishing expert and one editor only. I do not promote any other ones, because I am only concerned with helping these two brands increase their revenue by delivering to you the best services in the self-publishing market. In like manner, a Referrer will commit to only promoting your brand as the primary solution for their target audience.
6. The Loyalists: Here is where every brand wants to get in the market. Such influencers are the people who are loyal to your authorship, i.e. your social media followers, readers, viewers, and listeners. I remember back in 2019 when I decided to cut politics from my Facebook platform, I assumed all my followers would cease in promoting my messages. As I stepped away from this platform to focus on my e-mail subscribers and Twitter scholars, I watched as some from Facebook instantly followed me where I was. Today, these followers are my main promoters. They share and re-tweet my content and products for me. They purchase my offerings without me persuading them. They are absolutely loyal to this brand. And because of all they've done to voluntarily promote my platform, I've developed a Brand Loyal Program that financially compensates them for their commitment.

How Influencer Marketing Works for Writerpreneurs

By now, you get an idea of how influencer marketing can work for you as a Christian Writerpreneur. The purpose behind influencer marketing is to level-up your own platform exponentially and within a shorter time frame. If your current platform only has 100 followers, and only 1 person has purchased your book, then working with a micro-influencer can take your brand to the next level.

If you're looking to generate more sales for your book, then working with a micro-influencer who also offers an Advocate Service is best.

The more leverage you pull with an influencer, the quicker your own platform will increase, because audiences love being a part of a collective. I've discovered this within my own political network. The influencers connected to my brand willingly share my content and books with their followers, because we are all preaching a similar empowering message. And our followers often follow the same influencers, which gives them a holistic online experience.

If you can implement this same strategy within your authorship, you will discover how easy it is to position your business or ministry before millions.

Steps You Can Take to Leverage This Marketing Potential

Now that you understand the science behind influencer marketing, let's discuss how you can get started in this process.

1. Determine that you will make influencer marketing a part of your annual marketing budget. If you have been in the game for a while, you know how important it is to set aside a specific budget that will go towards promoting your books or products. And if you make influencer marketing a part of your aggressive strategy, you will see a positive return on your investment.
2. Generate a list of influencers you wish to work with. It's important to remember that influencer marketing is a brand partnership. That influencer does not work for you. Therefore, you should not treat the expert as an employee. That person knows how to reach her own audience, and it's to your advantage to respect that connection. Do not ask the influencer to say this or that when it comes to marketing to their followers. Instead, let the influencer decide how she will promote you to her network. For example, when brands work with me, I have specific packages that ensure each one is well-received by my audience. So, as you seek influencers to promote your works, do not expect a one-size-fits-all approach. At the same time, be comfortable with the methods through which they promote your book.
3. Reach out to the influencers via email or social media. When I connected with my first set of brands, I turned to Facebook publishing groups. I needed experts who could deliver the proper services that my audience needed, and we communicated via email to set up the partnership. As you seek your influencers, present yourself professionally. These experts are a part of the marketing industry and should be approached as such. Do not ask for favors. Do not present yourself as anything other than a professional Christian Writerpreneur. The Influencers will respect you immensely.
4. Hire the Influencer whose platform and services match your brand's goals. Never pay for a platform that doesn't reach your target audience. For example, it is practically pointless for a male author to hire my influencer services to market his book about empowering men. Why? Because my primary service model focuses on helping women. I have KillingsVille, which delivers a supportive network to single mothers. I have The Holy Ghost and You Women's Retreat, which empowers women ministry leaders. I have LiyahAmore University, which primarily consists of lessons that cater to a female audience. So, it wouldn't do much good for a male author to hire my influencer services UNLESS he wrote books that catered to my female audience. In like manner, you want to work with someone whose platform delivers exactly what you need and more.
5. Be prepared to work long-term with your selected Influencer. Remember that with influencer marketing, longevity is key. You need to see this marketing opportunity as an ongoing relationship. You may not see instant results with their services; but you will experience positive long-term effects.

Felecia Killings | Brand Influencer for Christian Writerpreneurs

Quite often, new authors look for opportunities to come their way to help bolster sales for their books. When they do not see them, persistent writerpreneurs forge their own opportunities.

But rarely do they consider purchasing opportunities that help them reach their goals.

In 2020, I determined to give more Beloveds within my audience the opportunity to share their greatness with my growing network. Through my influencer marketing services, I help writerpreneurs promote their books and brand to a vast audience that continues to grow each year.

As a writerpreneur, this strategy delivers multiple benefits to you:

1. Your name, brand, and book will be introduced to a larger audience, one you could not reach on your own.
2. Your reputation as a credible author is well-received because my audience trusts my recommendations.
3. You can ethically "hijack" this dynamic platform, which leads to book sales, website traffic, and more.
4. And most importantly, you instantly bump your platform to a higher level, which could have taken you years to accomplish on your own.

My influencer services include:​​​

1. a 500-word book review, which will be added to our online Bookstore
2. your book featured in 10 long-form blog posts (2,000+ words)
3. your book being featured inside our online school, LiyahAmore University
4. your book and its review featured during our 2020 Writerpreneurs College Fair, hosted during our virtual summits
5. your book and its review placed in our automated, social media, content-sharing platform for life
6. your book featured during one Virtual Bible Study Session

In addition, all who purchase our Influencer Marketing Services receive lifetime access to our award-winning, online school, LiyahAmore University. Our program contains hundreds of premium lessons that teach you about aggressive marketing, which you can do on your own.

As I shared in the Introduction, today's teaching is a part of one of our new classes. So, if you want to learn more, get connected today.

Until next time, Beloved, be blessed. I will share another Empowering Post with you shortly.

​And as always, let's grow together!