What Influencer Marketing Can Do for Local Business

Social media and digital consumption have taken over the online world as influencers position themselves as trusted voices shaping the opinions and purchasing decisions of their followers. For local businesses in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, partnering with these influencers provides a unique opportunity with many benefits.

The traditional marketing landscape has drastically shifted. Businesses no longer solely depend on TV commercials, billboards, or radio ads. Instead, they are now tapping into the digital space to stay relevant.

Read on and explore the concept of local influencer marketing, its relevance in the MENA region, and why it is an essential marketing strategy for local businesses to adopt in the modern digital-first world.

What is Local Influencer Marketing?

Influencer marketing involves businesses collaborating with individuals with a significant online presence to influence the opinions, preferences, and behaviors of their followers. Influences might be industry experts, bloggers, social media personalities, or celebrities.

Local influencer marketing helps you narrow this collaboration by focusing on individuals with a strong following in a specific region. For example, a local influencer in Cairo or Dubai can help a Small or Medium-sized Enterprise (SME) in the city attract more local customers.

Large-scale national campaigns are designed to reach as many potential consumers as possible. On the contrary, local influencer marketing is more personal and focused. It is about creating meaningful connections within a community.

For instance, a Jeddah gym can partner with a local fitness and health influencer to increase brand awareness among people living nearby or frequently visiting the city.

Social media usage in the MENA region is among the highest globally, making influencer marketing even more relevant. Over 90% of UAE residents follow influencers on social media. The rapid growth of digital platforms in the region offers local entrepreneurs an immense opportunity to leverage influencer marketing to thrive in their communities.

How Influencer Marketing Boosts Your Brand Awareness Strategy

Local businesses can reap numerous benefits from implementing influencer marketing. These benefits help foster healthier bank balances and even transform how they operate and compete.

The partnership of a local business and an influencer allows the former to tap into the latter’s established audience. The result is an instant brand awareness boost. This brand exposure is particularly invaluable in regions like MENA where social media penetration is exceptionally high.

Businesses with little to no online presence can quickly gain visibility by collaborating with influencers who are well-known in their area. For example, a bakery in Casablanca can work with a foodie influencer to promote its products. The partnership brings attention to the gym while enhancing its credibility as followers often trust influencers they follow.

Trust is a vital component of any successful marketing campaign. Your potential customers in MENA often rely on the recommendations of friends, family, or community figures, and influencers are viewed as trustworthy information sources. After all, 92% of individuals trust the recommendations of people they know more than any advertising form!

Collaborating with an influencer means borrowing from the established trust of their audience. The followers are more likely to trust and support your business when it is endorsed by someone they admire.

The ultimate goal of any business is to generate sales, and influencer marketing is an effective way to do just that. Over 89% of marketers believe the Return on Investment (ROI) from influencer collaborations is better than other marketing channels. The influencer provides authentic reviews and recommendations that inspire their followers to buy.

You can tap into the power of influencers to promote new products, limited-time offers, or sales events. For example, a fashion designer in Tel Aviv can partner with an influencer in the same niche to promote their new clothing line to drive in-store and online purchases.

Influencer marketing offers you a cost-effective alternative in an era where digital ad costs are increasing. Spending large sums on paid ads does not offer a guaranteed ROI. Investing in influencer partnerships assures your local business of better engagement rates at a lower cost.

Small business owners in the MENA region can collaborate with micro-influencers to stand out in a market where social media ads are quite expensive. The influencers might not have millions of followers, but they usually have engaged audiences who trust their recommendations.

Local influencers are content creators who can provide your business with a steady stream of high-quality pieces that can be repurposed for multiple platforms. For instance, an influencer can create an engaging product review that can be transformed into an Instagram Story, TikTok clip, or even a YouTube video. Sharing the content across different platforms helps amplify the reach of your campaign.

Many local businesses do not have the resources to produce professional-level content regularly, so influencer collaborations offer an effective shortcut. Visual content performs exceptionally well in the MENA region, and influencer-generated content will drive significant engagement.

Influencers sharing links to a local business website in their posts is an opportunity for the shop to attract new visitors. Influencer marketing significantly increases traffic to a business website, whether promoting a special discount, product launch, or an event.

Consider a beauty salon in Tripoli collaborating with a beauty influencer to share a special offer exclusive to their followers. Placing a link in the influencer’s bio or story will take interested customers directly to the salon’s website, increasing the chances of booking an appointment.

Influencers are inherently social-media savvy and partnering up with them can boost the presence of local businesses across multiple platforms. An influencer promoting your business on X, Instagram, or Facebook can lead to a rapid increase in followers for your business’s social media accounts.

The increased social media presence improves brand visibility and opens the door for future marketing campaigns. Plus, a larger following lets your business directly engage with customers to build a more loyal community.

Links to a business website or social media page can also have a significant positive impact on the venture’s Search Engine Optimization (SEO) rankings. Google and other search engines prioritize websites and brands with high-quality backlinks. As a result, they increase the chances of the business appearing in search results when people look for related services or products.

Conclusion

Influencer marketing is a powerful and highly effective tool for local businesses in the Middle East and North Africa to reach new audiences, build trust, and grow their brands. Collaborating with influencers who understand your market lets you tap into organic and targeted marketing that offers tangible results. The time is now for businesses to take action and incorporate influencer marketing into their strategy to stay competitive!