How does influencer marketing work in the cultural sector?

Social media influencers are typically associated with bikini-clad Instagram models promoting detox tea or contouring brushes and urging you to use their promo code. But this form of marketing extends far beyond commercial topics – as impressively demonstrated by the increasing number of activists and politicians on Instagram and TikTok .

The arts and culture sector can now also benefit from targeted collaborations with influential personalities in social media, even if many cultural representatives still react to this topic with frowns and a considerable amount of skepticism.

So let's ask ourselves: How could the influencer marketing approach be relevant for arts and cultural organizations? In this article, we want to give you an overview of why cultural institutions such as museums, galleries, fairs, events, and the like should consider this marketing approach, and how it can be successfully implemented in practice.

Where do we stand? A brief assessment

Influencer marketing has already established itself as an effective strategy for cultural institutions to breathe new life into their content. By collaborating with content creators, they gain the opportunity to reach a broader and more diverse audience that could not be reached through traditional advertising methods.

The collaborations between cultural institutions and influencers on social media, blogs, YouTube and online magazines (we also work with cultural institutions, by the way) serve to give cultural offerings more visibility in an authentic way.

Influencer marketing already complements traditional advertising for cultural offerings in the status quo, achieving a different reach and more interaction than the cultural institutions' own digital communication.

For some museums, such as the Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe, influencer marketing has been an integral part of the marketing mix for many years, as Angelika Schoder from the musermeku culture magazine notes (see sources) .

Nevertheless, many cultural institutions still face challenges and uncertainties in dealing with influencers, bloggers, vloggers and podcasters.

The question arises as to how they can select the right partners for their campaigns and what kind of content best suits their brand. Careful planning and coordination to ensure successful collaborations and build long-term relationships. For renowned museums and galleries, this can be a delicate balancing act, as they are determined not to damage their reputation.

Ultimately, however, influencer marketing offers a unique opportunity to increase the awareness of cultural institutions (in viral form) and to reach a new audience that may have remained undiscovered until now.

The Louvre demonstrates the benefits of influencer marketing for museums

Influencer marketing extends beyond beauty, fitness, and lifestyle and can also have a significant impact on the art world. A striking example of this was the Louvre's record-breaking year of visitors in 2018 following the release of the music video "Apeshit" by Beyoncé and Jay-Z .

The video was filmed at the Louvre and showcased artworks from across the museum. Following its release, visitor numbers at the Louvre increased by 25% to a total of 1.2 million in 2018. By portraying the Louvre as a modern, relevant, and highly fashionable place, Beyoncé and Jay-Z made a significant contribution to this increase.

The art world has taken note of this with great interest.

Music video by THE CARTERS performing APESHIT (Official Video). (C) 2018 Parkwood Entertainment LLC, under exclusive license to Sony Music Entertainment, and SC Enterprises, under exclusive license to Roc Nation

While the support of Béyoncé and Jay-Z isn't feasible everywhere, the same principle can be applied on a smaller scale to any cultural institution. Influencers have the unique ability to interact with their audience in ways that institutions alone cannot always achieve.

Followers trust influencers not only because of their fame, but more importantly because of the personal connection they develop through regular access to the influencers' content. This foundation of trust is based on authenticity , which can be invaluable in developing your brand and voice.

Cultural institutions of all kinds can effectively leverage this close engagement by partnering with influencers, regardless of size, budget, niche, or region.

Besides traditional press, influencers are playing an increasingly important role. The cultural landscape has therefore reached a point in recent years that necessitates a rethinking of communication strategies.

The National Gallery, London's influencer marketing program “200 Creators”

To mark the 200th anniversary of the National Gallery in London, the museum has launched comprehensive influencer marketing measures for 2024.

“200 Creators” program was launched to build a network of 200 influencers to support the museum. These influencers are not only meant to provide advice, but also to create their own content for the National Gallery and share it with their followers via their channels.

The selected members of the network have the opportunity to meet museum staff, gain exclusive behind-the-scenes insights, and explore the collection outside of regular opening hours.

They will then create content and share it with their online community. In addition, 50 people from the network will be selected to develop concepts for the National Gallery in the museum's idea lab.

Note for art influencers: The open call is now closed.

How Influencer Relations expands the communication strategy of cultural institutions

What is meant by influencer relations?

The term can be understood as an analogy to "public relations." Strategic communication with influencers is of significant importance today. As part of the marketing strategy, the focus is on reaching a variety of online players who are considered "non-traditional media.".

These are influencers who exert significant influence on their target groups and are considered opinion leaders. These influencers include not only traditional bloggers, but also vloggers (video bloggers on platforms like YouTube), podcasters, microbloggers (present on Twitter and Instagram), and influential figures in forums and Facebook groups.

By specifically targeting these stakeholders, the potential is leveraged to authentically convey brand messages and build a closer relationship with the target groups. This often results in multiplier effects in communication with the target group.

Benefit #1: Authenticity

Influencers play an essential role as digital ambassadors for cultural events and experiences. By collaborating with these creative minds, museums and other cultural institutions can build a unique and authentic connection with diverse target groups, one that differs significantly from their own social media communication.

Ideally, content creators share a passion for cultural topics with the institution they support and can combine this with their individual perspective to make the cultural experience tangible for their followers.

Benefit #2: New perspectives and personal stories

Influencer marketing allows cultural institutions to present their stories in a new and fresh way. By collaborating with content creators, they can not only promote events and cultural offerings to attract more visitors, but also illuminate various facets of the institution from a new (personal) perspective.

This includes artistic processes, curatorial decisions, and personal stories related to the cultural content. This content may be shared on social media platforms where the institution is not normally present or where it structures its presence differently.

Benefit #3: Greater reach, addressing new target groups and a sustainable basis for dialogue

By leveraging their reach and credibility, influencers can reach a broad target audience and generate high level of interaction

This represents a valuable addition to traditional advertising, as the personal recommendation of an influencer can establish an authentic connection with potential visitors in a way that direct communication from cultural institutions cannot.

In this way, influencer marketing can help to increase awareness of cultural offerings beyond the original target group and to arouse interest from both regular visitors and new target groups.

It also enables a completely new form of digital communication, allowing the cultural institution to connect with a wider audience while simultaneously building a sustainable basis for dialogue.

Benefit #4: Multiplier effects

The way customers process information and respond to advertising content has fundamentally changed. This also applies to the cultural sector. In 2024, conventional channels and traditional media planning are no longer sufficient to reach the relevant target group.

Since customers continue to listen to and interact with various opinion leaders, their attention is spread across the entire media mix.

The influencer multiplier effect clearly demonstrates how strategically planned influencer marketing can have a positive impact at every stage of the brand management funnel, complementing and sometimes even surpassing existing channels. Furthermore, with good planning and optimal timing, it can amplify the effectiveness of traditional communication channels at all levels.

Recent studies (e.g., by Aberdeen Strategy & Research , one of the world's leading marketing intelligence companies) clearly show a positive correlation between influencer marketing and above-average revenue increases.

Success parameters during planning, implementation and evaluation

Successful influencer marketing prioritizes long-term relationships, the exchange of knowledge and experience, and collaborative work towards a defined goal. Instead of focusing solely on short-term campaigns with influencers, institutions should aim to reach new target groups, increase brand awareness, or convey specific content, argues Angelika Schoder of musermeku.

The concepts for collaborating with influencers are diverse, but require careful planning, implementation, and success measurement. Furthermore, the necessary resources, whether personnel or financial, are essential for adequately compensating content creators.

01 Finding and identifying art influencers

Your journey in influencer marketing logically begins with identifying the most relevant influencers for your specific target group and marketing messages.

Platforms and service providers

A useful digital PR service provider like BuzzStream can help you build your own database based on topic, relevance, and impact.

German platforms like SeedingUp , a partner of the established internet marketing agency netzgefährten, are also a valuable resource for finding suitable influencers for a collaboration.

Bloggers and influencers at SeedingUp offer companies of all kinds (including cultural players) the opportunity to significantly amplify their marketing messages and communication content through independent editors and content creators in magazines, blogs, social media and video portals.

Write a detailed description of what you're looking for and what kind of advertising campaign you're planning. You can then publish this description on a platform like Tribe or Takumi . These platforms connect influencers or content creators with companies looking for advertising partners for their brand. Micro-influencers, in particular, show great interest in such platforms, as they are actively seeking collaboration opportunities.

YouTube BrandConnect offers an innovative platform for collaborating on video content It's a comprehensive self-service solution for YouTubers and brands to jointly implement branded content campaigns. Using an advanced influencer dashboard, brands can efficiently manage their campaigns and identify talented content creators who are a perfect fit for their brand.

Other influencer platforms include:

• Shopify Collabs
• Grin
• Upfluence
• Brandwatch
• HashtagLove
• Clear
• Neoreach
• Traackr
• Ocean
• Shoutcart
• Whalar
• Influence.co
• CreatorIQ

Such specialized platforms are, in principle, an easy starting point, as these services have done most of the work for you and allow you to select from the people who are likely to be most relevant to your institution.

Social media

Leverage the power of social media to find influencers. They are primarily active on social media platforms. Follow hashtags like #PRrequest and #PRrequests on Twitter to see what collaboration opportunities other institutions and brands are offering.

You can also try posting your own collaboration requests using these hashtags, targeting smaller influencers.

Joining relevant Facebook groups worthwhile in order to find similar collaboration opportunities for influencers as with the Twitter hashtags mentioned above.

Additionally, leverage your own social media followers to attract the attention of influencers (e.g., through an open call like the National Gallery's campaign – see above). Depending on the size of your own follower base, it can be helpful to mention in your own posts that you are looking for potential collaboration partners.

A look at our following articles will also give you direct access to important social media influencers in the art world:

• The rise of influencer culture among artists: On personal values ​​and financial compensation
• 20 famous artists who should definitely follow on Instagram
• Füllhorn of inspiration - 60 incredibly creative Instagram profiles from all over the world

Media research

Conduct thorough research to find the ideal influencers for a partnership. Analyze the platforms and content your target audience consumes to identify suitable collaboration partners. Specifically search for relevant niche publications frequented by your target audience.

Investigate which individuals regularly publish high-quality content or are present on social media.

Analyze their followers and the people they follow to identify potential influencers.

The good old “Google search”

If you run out of ideas, a quick Google search can sometimes work wonders.

Simply enter terms like “Top influencers in art and culture” or “young people from art and culture” and be surprised by the interesting personalities you might encounter there.

Keep in mind that the number of followers isn't always the deciding factor when making your selection. Even with a smaller audience, a collaboration can be valuable if it's relevant to your project.

Working with an influencer is significantly different from hiring an advertising agency.”

In "relationship marketing," trust and reputation are paramount. Influencers have invested considerable time in building a dedicated following by creating relevant content. They are selective when accepting collaborations and will only work with brands that have a genuine interest in the project.

02 Choosing the right social media influencers

Selecting the right influencers for a collaboration is crucial for the success of your marketing model. It's important to find someone who authentically represents your brand and whose followers are interested in a partnership. First, you should have a thorough understanding of your brand and target audience to approach the right influencers on the right platforms.

It's not necessarily the size of the fan base, but rather the trust your target audience has that is crucial. Different types of influencers should be considered to establish the optimal partnership. Information about your target audience gathered over the past few months should serve as a guide when selecting the ideal influencers for your company.

Macro-Influencer

Consider well-known internet personalities like Yusaku Maezawa or Joan Cornellà . These influencers typically have between 100,000 and millions of followers. They can reach a large target audience, such as "young people" or "women".

Collaborating with such an influencer can involve higher costs. However, working with a macro-influencer will make your brand visible to millions of people.

Micro-influencers

Micro-influencers are considered ordinary people with a following of approximately 1,000 to 100,000. These influencers are characterized by a strong commitment to their followers, who have a close bond with them and trust them.

Because of this familiarity, followers are more likely to believe that a micro-influencer genuinely endorses the advertised products. They actively seek collaborations with companies that align with their audience.

Nano-Influencer

Do you know someone who's really good with social media and whose posts always get a lot of attention? This person has probably never worked with a brand, but they're exactly the kind of content creator perfectly suited to becoming a nano-influencer.

Nano-influencers have up to 5,000 followers. They are more like a good friend who gives you a reliable recommendation than a celebrity.

Nano-influencers are generally the most authentic and personal form of influencer marketing.

Awareness and reputation in line with your values ​​and ideas

Before contacting an influencer, it's crucial to carefully evaluate their reach and reputation. After all, you're entrusting your reputation with a certain degree of responsibility when you collaborate with them. Therefore, it's essential to ensure that the resulting relationship aligns with your vision and that the influencer authentically reflects your institution and its values.

Therefore, when choosing the right influencer, you should ask yourself some important questions :

• What is the influencer's area of ​​expertise?
• How does your institution align with the influencer's audience and image?
• Do these influencers and their audience use the same channels and platforms as your audience?
• What does a typical follower of this influencer look like?
• Is this follower likely to be interested in your institution?
• What is this influencer's reputation? Is he generally popular?

The platform and content type accessed by the target audience should also match the target audience you want to reach.

Here is a list of marketing channels and content types to consider when approaching influencers:

• Instagram (Posts, Stories, Reels)
• YouTube (videos, clips)
• Facebook (especially live videos)
• LinkedIn (expert articles, videos)
• Twitter/X (posts, videos, hashtags, discussions)
• TikTok (videos, clips)
• Snapchat (photos, videos, filters)
• Blogs (posts)
• Reddit (posts, discussions)
• Pinterest (photos, infographics, videos)
• Twitch (Videos)
• Mastodon/Fediverse (posts, discussions – currently limited reach, still under development)
• Relevant forums
• Podcasting platforms

03 Making contact – Pay attention to the correct form of address

Finding the right influencer is similar to online dating in some ways – it may require carefully considering many options to ultimately find the ideal partner. When you're ready to propose a partnership, it's crucial to approach it in the right way.

The simplest way to contact an influencer about a potential collaboration is via email. Your inquiry should stand out from the rest and be relevant and appealing to the influencer. In relationship marketing, it's essential to understand why you want to work with this influencer and clearly explain why a collaboration would be beneficial for both parties.

Below are some proven guidelines from MuseumNext for initial contact:

• Keep your email concise and to the point, especially when dealing with influencers who receive countless requests daily.
• Be direct and transparent in your communication by clearly describing your institution's goals and desired outcomes. Present this information in the introduction to give the influencer an immediate overview of your objective.
• Tailor your message to each influencer, because even if you are contacting several, you should still address them individually.
• Explain precisely why you chose this particular influencer. Provide concrete ideas for potential content while remaining open to collaboration in developing campaign concepts.
• Write your message in a personal tone to build a human connection – a formal address is occasionally appropriate, but in the influencer context, authenticity is crucial.
• Communicate the value of a partnership with you to the influencer, even if no financial cooperation is planned.
• Make it easier for the influencer to agree by simply asking about their interest and availability. A simple "yes" is all it takes.

If you don't have an influencer's email address, one option is to contact direct messages on social media platforms

However, it's important to consider the direct message as the starting point. You should present the influencer with an elevator pitch (a method for a short yet concise summary of an idea) and ask if you can contact them for further discussions about the partnership via email or phone. If you don't receive an immediate response, don't be discouraged and keep in touch.

Influencers receive a lot of emails, so it doesn't hurt to remind them of your presence and ensure your messages are at the top of their inbox. When following up, it's important to strike a balance between gentle reminders and spam.

04 Campaign Concept – Set clear expectations and guidelines

You have now successfully made contact and are at the starting point to collaborate with an influencer and launch a successful campaign.

Now it is crucial to establish clear expectations and guidelines in order to develop an effective strategy together. Seize this opportunity and convince the influencer of a collaboration that brings added value to both sides .

Options for collaboration

The following cooperation options are available:

• Reposting: This involves influencers republishing your content on their own channels. This is the simplest form of partnership, which can be achieved through a simple direct message or email requesting permission. Many micro- or nano-influencers will agree to a repost simply because of their connection to your brand (keyword: halo effect).
• Collaboratively created content: Your organization and influencers work closely together to create original content that can be published jointly on both channels.
• Event or product marketing : The goal is to increase traffic and awareness for your institution, whether for a special exhibition, show, or event. You could ask the influencer to post about the event to their followers and/or invite them to attend.
• Takeovers: In this less common type of collaboration, an influencer takes over your social media channels for a set period. This encourages their followers to engage with your channel. As a result, you can gain new followers while simultaneously offering your existing audience a fresh perspective.

Campaign planning and budgeting

Depending on the type of campaign you're running, the next step is to create a campaign plan . Work closely with the influencer to establish a timeline, goals, and key performance indicators .

These indicators can include impressions, views, engagement, clicks, follower growth, and/or sales. Ensure you are on the same page regarding the message and execution of the campaign. Show examples of similar posts that align with your brand, while still allowing the influencer the flexibility to tailor content to their target audience.

Review the content created by the influencer before publishing it. Consider specific requirements, guidelines, and payment terms, and consult your legal department or advisor before finalizing your campaign plan and contract.

Some influencers may be compensated through free tickets, backstage access, exclusive interviews, behind-the-scenes insights, or cross-posting content.

Larger micro-influencers and macro-influencers, on the other hand, will likely demand financial compensation. Conduct thorough research and pay attention to the return on investment (ROI) when budgeting . Predicting the ROI can be particularly difficult with nano- and micro-influencers.

Therefore, consider carefully how much you are willing to spend. If your organization runs social media advertising or sends out sponsored newsletters, it may be helpful to compare the costs and engagement rates of these campaigns with your expectations for your influencer by contacting your marketing or digital department.

It is essential to always allocate a specific budget when using influencer marketing. Even if you build a personal relationship with the influencers, it ultimately remains an exchange of goods and services. Depending on the type of influencer marketing campaign, you might end up spending even more on a single influencer than on a general campaign.

It's important to remember that you're paying for a carefully selected and engaged fan base, as well as the trust that group has built. You should be aware of your own brand value and the influencer's brand value, as this will affect the compensation. It might be beneficial to maximize your budget by using multiple influencers more easily and summarizing the campaign with a single hashtag.

Here are some helpful tips to consider when developing your campaign plan:

• Be transparent . What are your expectations for the campaign? What key performance indicators (KPIs) will you use to measure success? You're working with an individual, not an agency. Influencers are sometimes accused of being difficult to manage.
• It's important clear guidelines . However, keep in mind that this isn't just a business interaction – you're building a relationship with the influencer and their followers.
• Strive for consistency . Relationship marketing isn't purely a business matter. So, be sure to stay in touch with influencers and nurture the relationship. You might want to collaborate with them again in the future.

05 Campaign evaluation and success measurement

It is crucial to conduct a thorough analysis of the results . Only through careful evaluation can you ensure that the cooperation was successful and that the set goals were achieved.

This evaluation will provide you with important insights that will allow us to process the results effectively and use them for future projects. Only in this way can we ensure that the potential of the collaboration has been fully exploited and long-term success is guaranteed.

However, measuring the success of influencer marketing in numbers proves difficult. Since direct conversions often don't occur, determining a return on investment (ROI) for the campaign budget is tricky. Furthermore, the number of likes, shares, views, comments, etc., has only limited significance. Not to mention quantifying the branding effects.

The best approach here is to use an advanced software solution like Traackr , which captures a wide variety of data points and intelligently evaluates them in a detailed report.

With Traackr, you can measure your activities, analyze what works, and make the right data-driven decisions for your next campaign.

Conclusion

Influencer collaborations can take many forms and concepts. However, a common characteristic of successful campaigns is always a well-thought-out process, from planning and implementation to measuring success.

This requires suitable resources, whether in the form of qualified personnel within the company or a budget for adequate compensation of the content creators.

Only in this way can the collaboration be successfully structured and the influencers' performance be appropriately rewarded.