What is the best way to evaluate an influencer's engagement rate for social selling?

The engagement rate is a key measure of how well an influencer connects with their audience, indicated by interactions like likes, comments, and shares. A high engagement rate suggests a loyal and active following likely to trust and act on the influencer's recommendations. Conversely, a low rate may point to fake or disengaged followers. This metric is essential for assessing an influencer's true reach and the value they offer to their audience.

Engagement Rates are hyper-dependent on the platform in question. I'll speak to TikTok, having worked there. While likes/shares/follows are important, it's equally important to look at Video Completion Rate and View Through Rate - how long does someone stick around on that video and capture the entire story? TikTok metrics suggested that most users drop after 2-5seconds, so a good measure of Engagement Rate also reflected how many users watched past that mark &, ultimately, how many actually watched the video in its entirety.

Engagement rates showcase how content is performing amongst audiences. Higher rates mean your social game is strong; lower rates might call for a content shake-up.

Aligning your personal brand/content with engaged followers not only enhances ROI but also amplifies algorithmic visibility, optimizing both reach and conversions.

Engagement rate is crucial in influencer marketing, as it indicates the quality and relevance of an influencer's audience for social selling. It's important to ensure their followers align with your ideal customer profile and are likely to interact with your brand and make purchases. Engagement rate also aids in evaluating the return on investment (ROI) of influencer campaigns by showing the potential exposure and awareness generated. Additionally, this metric influences the algorithmic ranking and visibility of content on social media platforms, affecting your campaign's reach and conversion potential. Hence, engagement rate is a key factor in determining the effectiveness and value of partnering with an influencer.

Engagement rate is less important if your target demographic is middle age or older. Older people don't have time to comment, like, or share content than someone in their teens. A better indicator is Media View Rate. This takes the recent videos divided by the number of followers x 100.

Many social platforms such as Talent Pitch Pro, Brandwatch, and Hype Auditor offer free engagement rate calculators for content creators if you're not math savvy.

Be careful about depending on online platforms and tools like Grin and others. They have a tendency to overestimate the engagement rate.

When comparing engagement rates among influencers, it's crucial to consider platform, content format, niche, and audience size. Variables like platform features, content type, and audience passion impact rates—Instagram and TikTok often outshine Facebook and Twitter. Niche differences, for example, result in varying engagement; beauty influencers may soar while tech influencers might see a different dynamic.

Improving engagement rates can range from pivoting content ideas, surveying audiences for feedback, and keyword optimizing. It can also be as simple as responding to comments on content posts and asking organic questions of audiences to spark conversation.