How can you identify influencers who are not working with your competitors?

1 Define your goals and criteria

Before you start looking for influencers, it's important to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve with your influencer marketing strategy and which type of influencers you are looking for. You should consider factors such as your budget and campaign duration, target audience, brand values and message, desired influencer type (e.g., nano, micro, macro, or mega), preferred influencer platform (e.g., Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, etc.), and influencer metrics (e.g., engagement rate, reach, niche, etc.). Having a well-defined set of goals and criteria can help you narrow down your search and concentrate on the most suitable influencers for your brand.

2 Use social media listening tools

Using social media listening tools is a great way to find influencers who are not already working with your competitors. These tools allow you to monitor conversations and mentions of your brand, competitors, industry, and keywords. By analyzing the data, you can identify influencers who are talking about your niche, have an engaged following, and have not partnered with your competitors yet. Some of the tools you can use are BuzzSumo, Brandwatch, and Mention. BuzzSumo helps you find influencers based on content, domain authority, and social media presence; Brandwatch allows you to track and analyze conversations across various sources; and Mention helps you monitor and manage your online reputation. You can also compare your performance with your competitors using Mention to identify gaps and opportunities.

3 Use influencer marketing platforms

Another way to find influencers who are not working with your competitors is to use influencer marketing platforms. These platforms are designed to connect brands and influencers and offer features such as access to a large database of vetted and verified influencers, the ability to filter and search by niche, location, platform, audience, and more, the ability to view influencer profiles, portfolios, and analytics, the ability to communicate and negotiate with influencers directly, and the ability to manage and track your campaigns and results. Some of the popular influencer marketing platforms include AspireIQ, which helps you find and work with influencers who match your brand and goals; Upfluence, which helps you find and contact influencers who have an affinity with your brand; and Traackr, which helps you build and manage your influencer relationships as well as optimize your influencer marketing strategy. All these platforms offer insights into influencer data, content briefs, performance benchmarking, campaign monitoring, and impact reporting.

4 Conduct manual research

Finally, you can also find influencers who are not working with your competitors by conducting manual research. Though this method may be more time-consuming and tedious, it can uncover hidden gems and niche influencers who may not be on any platforms or tools. To do so, you can search for hashtags and keywords related to your niche, products, or audience on social media. Additionally, you can use features such as Instagram Explore, YouTube Recommendations, TikTok For You, or Twitter Trends to discover popular and trending content and influencers in your niche. Moreover, you can leverage your own network and ask customers, employees, partners, or friends for recommendations or referrals of relevant influencers. By combining these tips and tools, you can identify influencers who are aligned with your brand and goals and create impactful influencer marketing campaigns.

5 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?