The retail sector of the economy is not the same since the birth of the Internet. Plus, the pandemic changed the way people shop. The change in buying and selling habits has large, as well as small companies, looking for ways to market their products without having a brick and mortar location.
Marketing products is a multi-billion-dollar industry. Marketing goods and services is an expensive endeavor. Companies looking to grow must spend marketing money on the Internet. Big and small companies have to invest in social media advertising as well as search engine advertising. Plus, most companies also add a key opinion leader to their 21st-century marketing strategy.
A Key Opinion Leader Influences Consumer Buying Behavior
Using an opinion leader marketing strategy is a must in this new retail environment. A key opinion leader marketing plan is word-of-mouth marketing on steroids. In today’s retail market, consumers want to read reviews and ask questions before they buy. Consumers also want to hear what people they respect say about a product or service.
The old word-of-mouth advertising still works, but it might take longer before brands see results. According to retail marketing studies, consumers want to protect themselves from buying things that may come back and haunt them in one way or another. That’s why consumers want someone with credibility to help them make a purchasing decision before they buy something they can’t use.
An opinion leader influences consumer buying behavior. Instead of spending big bucks on printed marketing ads, opinion leaders talk to consumers directly and sell branded products.
Key Opinion Leader Marketing Creates New Opinion Leaders
Opinion leader marketing is a version of pyramid marketing without all the issues that come with that brand awareness technique. Consumers who look for an opinion leader become opinion leaders. Consumers usually share the information they receive about the brand from the first opinion leader. That sharing makes them an opinion leader, according to the founding partner of 6S Marketing, Chris Breikss.
Mr. Breikss told the press marketing strategies that include opinion leaders are on fire. According to a European consumer poll, 60% ask a family member or a friend about a brand or product before they buy. Twenty-four percent of the people in the poll said opinion leaders influenced their decision to buy electronics. And 36% of those polled said buying computer hardware was not as scary after hearing what opinion leaders said about their possible purchase.
Key Opinion Leaders Have The Ability To Gain Consumer Trust
Opinion leaders provide consumers with actionable advice. Their original ideas help consumers, businesses, and entrepreneurs achieve personal, marketing, and organizational goals. Businesses follow them, and consumers trust them. Opinion leaders have the ability to give businesses and consumers valuable market insights that can affect their current lifestyle.
Arianna Huffington, Seth Godin, and Lori Greiner are well-known opinion leaders. But other leaders like Mel Carson, an expert in branding, and Dan Cobley, a former Google VP of Brand Solutions, don’t have celebrity status. But they are just as effective when it comes to influencing consumers and businesses.
NetBase Quid Uses Opinion Leaders To Track Consumer And Business Behavior
NetBase Quid is a next-generation consumer intelligence and marketing platform. NetBase Quid identifies business trends using structured as well as unstructured data. The company uses opinion leaders as well as product reviews, news articles, and the reviews consumers write to give their clients the information they need to increase productivity, sales, and income. The power within key opinion leader marketing beats other forms of marketing, according to consumers who believe in word-of-mouth opinion leader advice.
