Difference Between Micro and Macro Influencers

The main difference between micro and macro influencers is that macro influencers have a larger and wider audience than micro influencers. 

Influencer marketing is a social media marketing method that involves endorsements and product placement from influencers. An influencer is a person who has the ability to influence potential buyers of a product or service by promoting or recommending the items on social media platforms like Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, and Pinterest. Influencers can be categorized into several groups based on their number of followers, the content they post and the platforms they use. Micro influencers and macro influencers are two such categories, mainly based on the size of their following. Both these types of influencers have their own strengths and weaknesses, and it’s important to understand the difference between micro and macro influencers before choosing one to promote your brand.

Key Areas Covered

1. What are Micro Influencers
     – Definition, Features, Pros and Cons
2. What are Macro Influencers
     – Definition, Features, Pros and Cons
3. What is the Difference Between Micro and Macro Influencers
    – Comparison of Key Differences

Key Terms

Influencer Marketing, Micro Influencers, Macro Influencers

What are Micro Influencers

Micro influencers are social media users who have 1,000 – 10,000 followers and are well-known for a particular area of interest. Social media users who post valuable content and videos and use storytelling can become micro influencers. Although these influencers have fewer followers, their followers are people who have a genuine interest in their content. Followers are more likely to engage with the content they post, even if it’s sponsored content. Moreover, micro influencers have a good personal relationship with their followers, and the followers show genuine support. Therefore, micro influencers have a high level of engagement for their posts. Another major advantage of using micro influencers is that they are less expensive than macro influencers.

Benefits of Using Micro Influencers

• Less expensive, which makes it more accessible for many brands
• Possible to use several micro influencers at the same time
• Wider engagement, resulting in high conversion rates
• Ability to reach a new niche audience

What are Macro Influencers       

Macro influencers are social media influencers with a huge following. In defining macro influencers, the number of followers may vary across platforms. On YouTube, a macro influencer may have 100,000-1 million average video views while on Instagram, a macro-influencer will have more than 500,000 followers. However, macro influencers usually have fewer followers than mega influencers, who have the greatest number of followers. Previously, celebrities and well-known personalities usually made up the macro influencer tiers, but at present, various social media platforms have given rise to new online personalities with a wide audience.

Macro influencers produce content regularly. These posts reach a wider and varied audience, creating more reach and engagement. Many brands choose macro influencers because these influencers are able to give brands more visibility and awareness. However, compared to micro influencers, macro influencers have a lower audience engagement rate. This happens because macro influencers do not have personal relationships with their followers, resulting in less customer credibility. Another major disadvantage of using macro influencers is their high cost.

Difference Between Micro and Macro Influencers

Definition

Micro influencers are social media users who have 1,000 – 10,000 followers and are well-known for a particular area of interest. In contrast, macro influencers are social media influencers with a huge following, typically more than 100,000.

Number of Followers

Macro influencers have more followers than micro influencers. Micro influencers have more than 1,000 followers, while macro influencers have more than 100,000 followers. The exact number of followers for micro and macro influencers may vary across platforms.

Audience

While micro influencers can reach niche-specific audiences, macro influencers reach broad and diverse audiences. Therefore, the former is ideal for businesses who want to target specific niches while the latter is ideal for businesses who want to target a wide variety of customers and niches.

Engagement Rate

Furthermore, micro influencers have higher audience engagement rates than macro influencers because micro influencers have a good relationship with their followers and have their genuine support.

Cost

Micro influencers are less expensive than macro influencers as they need less investment.  

Experience

In addition, macro influencers may have more experience as they have made sponsored content. Micro influencers, on the other hand, usually have less experience than macro influencers.

Conclusion

Both micro and macro influencers have their own strengths and weaknesses, and it’s important to understand the difference between micro and macro influencers before choosing one to promote your brand. Macro influencers have a larger and wider audience than micro influencers, but micro influencers have a higher audience engagement rate and tend to be less expensive. This is the basic difference between micro and macro influencers.

Reference:

1. Bernazzani, Sophia. “Micro-Influencer Marketing: A Comprehensive Guide.” HubSpot Blog, Available here.
2. “Macro-Influencers: a Fascinating World.” Kolsquare, Available here.

Image Courtesy:

1. “3434075” By Ariel Castillo (CC0) via Pexels
2. “Clickworkzz influencer marketing agency in Gurgaon” By Clickworkzz – Own work (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia