Influencer marketing can be a powerful tool for short-term rental owners and boutique hotels to elevate the marketing strategy of their property. However, not all influencer partnerships are created equal, and it's important to be aware of red flags that may indicate a problematic partnership.

One study from Invesp found that:

• Over 60% of Instagram influencers have used artificial follower growth strategies.

• It’s estimated that up to 50% of sponsored content engagement is fake.

• 50% of marketers feel that spotting fake followers is the biggest challenge of influencer marketing. 

• 63% of marketers have had a personal experience involving counterfeit influencers. 

So while finding the right influencer can absolutely benefit your marketing strategy, it is equally important to be
well-versed in spotting these red flags in this industry:

1. Fake Followers

Fake followers? That’s right, some influencers may artificially inflate their follower count by buying followers or using bots. This can be problematic for brands, as it means that their content may not be reaching a genuine audience, and as we mentioned before, authenticity is one of the most important factors to the success of an influencer marketing campaign. You can avoid falling victim to an account full of inauthentic followers by checking the influencer's engagement rates and perusing their posts to ensure that their followers are genuine and engaged.

2. Poor quality content

An influencer is only worth the quality of their content.
You will want high-quality, and professional content that will elevate your property. If it doesn’t meet your standards, it will poorly reflect on your brand. Watch out for only sponsored content as well. A good influencer’s account will be mostly their own organic posts with a few sponsored ads sprinkled in. Make sure to review the influencer's content before entering into a partnership, and ensure that it meets your standards.

3. Lack of transparency

Transparency is key in influencer marketing. If the influencer is not transparent about their relationship with your brand, for instance why they may be staying at your property, it can damage your brand's reputation and lead to legal issues. Ensure that the influencer discloses their partnership with you in all of their content and that they are clear about the nature of the partnership.

4. Lack of engagement

Make sure you are familiar with engagement rates. We like this industry-standard guideline from scrunch.com: 

• Less than 1% = low engagement rate

• Between 1% and 3.5% = average/good engagement rate

• Between 3.5% and 6% = high engagement rate

• Above 6% = very high engagement rate

If an influencer has a large following but a low engagement rate, it may indicate that their followers are not genuine or not interested in their content. Ensure that the influencer has a good engagement rate (which varies depending on the platform.) After studying the engagement rates, you will have a good indication of whether or not their audience is genuinely interested in their content and therefore more likely to engage with and ultimately visit your property.

5. Inappropriate behavior

This can include anything from offensive or discriminatory content to unprofessional behavior or actions that could damage your brand's reputation. Ensure that the influencer is a good fit for your brand values and that they conduct themselves professionally at all times. Reaching out to other companies or properties they’ve worked with is another way to see how this person has conducted themselves in the past.

Tired of researching every single part of influencer marketing? We can help!