You’ve heard peers and colleagues talk about influencers. You’ve seen influencers on Instagram dancing on the edge of an infinity pool in a bikini… and you don’t quite get what an influencer is, why they’re important or how they can help to promote your brand, product or business. No worries, everybody’s been in that boat… or in that infinity pool. Influencer Marketing, or IM, seems like a daunting mystery to many and that’s why we’ve created the Engaging Influencers workshop.
See also: Building Beneficial Partnerships – 1 day workshop
What to expect from Engaging Influencers
Engaging Influencers is a comprehensive two-day workshop bringing together brands, businesses and bloggers. Led by Rob Taylor, founder of 2TravelDads, Paddle Your State and the Explored sites, the workshop covers everything you need to know from WHY you are considering working with influencers (of any sort) to how to ensure campaigns are successful.
Participating in the two-day Engaging Influencers workshop, you’ll leave with knowledge, new content strategy skills, and a plan to either start engaging influencers or to change your current approach to influencer marketing. Expect the following from the workshop:
- gain an understanding of Influencer Marketing (IM) holistically
- plan for creating a budget for IM
- skills to generate an effective content plan
- method for researching/vetting influencers
Engaging Influencers workshop itinerary
While we will form and update final workshop plans per the request of the hosting brand or destination, the following is the general schedule and subject matter of the Engaging Influencers workshop. Depending on the projected size of the workshop (no more than 40) or by request of the sponsoring entity, additional content creators or marketing specialists may present different parts of the workshop. It’s always best to have diverse experience when running sessions focusing on such an intense topic as influencer marketing.
Here’s the plan for the two-day workshop:
- Welcome / Meet-and-Greet: open mingling time to connect with new faces and get comfortable
- Introduction to Influencer Marketing – why you’re taking the leap
- De-mystifying the Influencer Skill Set – understanding what the job of an influencer actually is
- Budgeting for Influencer Marketing – why and how to allocate budgets
- this is a hands-on session with OPEN DISCUSSION. Participants should be prepared to share their experiences and concerns.
- bringing a high level version of your operating budget is recommended for personal use (not to share)
- Campaign Case Studies – where you start to see your ROI
End of day 1. Evening plan to be determined in partnership with hosting destination/sponsor. We recommend a group event to encourage continued discussion and keep the momentum going!
- Morning Mingle – check in with participants, workshop leaders available for quick-connects
- Building an IM plan – defining your goals and creating a Scope of Work (SOW)
- this is a hand-on session following the process presentation
- be prepared with basic data re: current customer base/reach, desired impression demographic, example of current/past marketing plan
- Engaging Influencers – presenting and soliciting your IM plan to an influencer
- Value of Influencer Teams – creating long term partnerships with a diverse reach
- Bringing others along – tips and tools for selling your team on the IM approach
- Closing event – last function together, time to connect with those you haven’t met yet
To get a preview of the workshop content, please feel free to check out our online series. This is some of the content we cover in our Engaging Influencers workshop, and we’re happy to share it to get the ball rolling for you.
Follow up to Engaging Influencers workshop
No doubt, after two intense days of learning and planning, you don’t want that investment of time and money wasted. Following the workshop, we’ll reach out to participants regarding support and next steps. If somebody would like to spend a few minutes clarifying anything that was covered in the Engaging Influencers workshop, we’ll be happy to connect 1-on-1 within 30 days of the close of the workshop.
Should you need additional support or if you’d like to engage our consultation services, we’re happy to discuss that as well. Whether you would like us to vet influencers or create and run a campaign, we’re happy to do so. You should feel empowered and have gleaned the needed skills to start down the IM path after the Engaging Influencers workshop, but like we always tell our kids “if you need help, just ask!”
Booking and planning an Engaging Influencers workshop
Are you ready to have your team participate in a workshop? Great! Here’s what we need to do next:
- evaluate the team, group or association you would like to experience our Engaging Influencers workshop
- download and complete THIS FORM, returning it to Rob@2TravelDads.com
- expect follow up within 2 business days to discuss workshop dates, expectations and agenda planning
As you consider who you want to participate in this workshop, know that any size group from 10 to 40 is good. The more, the better, as that will provide greater opportunities for sharing and discussion, but also know that a small group will get more direct attention. We’ve presented to as many as 200 and as few as five.
Event planning for Engaging Influencers workshop
As you review our Workshop Questionnaire form you’ll see options for events in conjunction with the actual workshop. Hosting a series of small (or large) events provides an opportunity for you to market and share your brand or destination with others in your industry or other influencers participating in the workshop. This is also an opportunity for networking and sharing best practices.
Examples of events and activations that have been successful in the past, both with Engaging Influencers and other conferences we’ve participated in, are as follows:
- pre-workshop dinner / evening out – catered event or hosted at local venue
- morning activities – guided hikes, simple yoga sessions, location specific craft product course (think coffee roasters and artisan bakers)
- lunch service – this is required for all workshops
- event dinner – both plated dinners and collaborative dining experiences are great ways to encourage participants to engage with each other while enjoying the hosting destination/brand
- product giveaways – we operate on a zero-waste basis, meaning that we do not distribute single-use plastics or paper products that will be immediately discarded. If you are procuring product or building “swag bags” please be conscious of this, as leveraging influencers and growing marketing strategies is developing skills and reach for the better of business and humankind. Creating trash is not a part of the workshop. 🙂
- cocktail hour / evening – bringing in local producers of wine, microbrews, ciders, and spirits is always a hit, garnering the greatest bonus event turnouts. People love to both try and learn about locally crafted products.
We are happy to partner up in the planning and execution of any workshop events. Ultimately, these events are the responsibility of the hosting sponsor, but we have the skills and experience to plan and carry out these activities.
If you have questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Once you’ve completed your Workshop Questionnaire, please email to Rob@2traveldads.com.
Looking forward to sharing, engaging, and learning with you and your team soon!