What is influencer marketing?

Influencer marketing is a newer type of marketing. It’s when a company partners with an influential person in their industry to shape consumer behavior. This individual, trusted by the company’s target market, can often influence shoppers to consider, engage, and use a business’ product or service.

Today, there are two types of influencers:

• Micro-influencers: According to researchers, a micro-influencer has between 1000 to 100,000 followers on a specific platform. For example, a person with 50,000 followers on Snapchat would count as a micro-influencer. In most cases, businesses partner with micro-influencers.

• Macro-influencers: A macro-influencer has more than 100,000 followers. In most cases, influencers tend to include Internet and Hollywood celebrities. Due to their mass following, influencers tend to charge high prices for their services, which is why small-to-midsize businesses (SMBs) stick to micro-influencers.

No matter which type of influencer you choose to partner with, they can have an impact on your bottom line.

How much should you pay influencers?

In today’s market, influencers range from well-known celebrities to everyday users. That’s why prices for influencer marketing range from $1000 to $1 million per post. It’s also why companies often ask what a fair price for hiring an influencer is.

Learn what you should pay an influencer by platform and post number in the video and pricing guide below:

1. Facebook ($25 / 1000 FOLLOWERS)

With more than 1 billion daily active users, Facebook provides influencers and companies unprecedented access to consumers. That’s why influencers on the platform charge an average of $25 per post, per 1000 followers.

For perspective, here are some potential influencer marketing prices on Facebook:

1. An influencer with 10,000 followers could charge $250 per post
2. An influencer with 100,000 followers could charge $2500 per post
3. An influencer with 1,000,000 followers could charge $25,000 per post

In some cases, an influencer may exceed that average rate. For example, if you want an influencer to create a post with video content, they may charge an additional fee for creating the video. Or, if you invite an influencer to visit your location, they may ask you to cover their travel costs.

For a streamlined influencer marketing experience, Facebook offers Brand Collabs Manager.

On this platform, your business can find and connect with relevant influencers quickly. You can also discuss your desired price and deliverables before you sign an agreement. This feature ensures your company receives the services you want, as well as understands what an influencer can do for you.

Brand Collabs Manager only includes influencers with 25,000 to eight million followers. With that range, your business can connect with micro- and macro-influencers. You can compare their costs, too, which can help your team make a decision.

The platform is free to use.

2. Instagram ($10 / 1000 FOLLOWERS)

With more than 1 billion users — 80 percent of which follow a business — Instagram is a go-to influencer hub. It’s also a cost-effective channel when it comes to influencer marketing, maintaining an average price of $10 a post, per 1000 followers.

For a bit of perspective, here are some potential prices for an influencer with more than 1000 followers:

1. An influencer with 10,000 followers could charge $100 per post
2. An influencer with 100,000 followers could charge $1000 per post
3. An influencer with 1,000,000 followers could charge $10,000 per post

In some instances, this price point can vary.

Celebrities, for example, can often increase their prices because of their reputation outside of Instagram. Some, however, accept lower price points than this average. Professional soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo, for example, has more than 140 million followers and earns $750,000 per post.

Based on the above average, however, he should earn more than $1 million per post.

While a celebrity partnership can gain your brand a lot of exposure, it’s often more beneficial to partner with an influencer in a niche part of your market. These are influencers that can speak directly to your audience, plus they tend to adhere more to the $10 a post, per 1000 followers price point.

For example, if you’re a manufacturer of running sneakers, you have a ton of niche markets, including:

1. Marathon runners
2. Casual joggers
3. Trail runners

As a part of your digital marketing strategy, you can approach influencers in each of these markets. With this approach, your team can connect with every segment of your audience. In comparison, if you partnered with a well-known Olympic runner, you would reach a broad audience that may not even have an interest in running.

If your company prefers a more performance-driven approach, you can also partner with followers that base their prices on engagement, versus follower counts. This strategy is smart because you’re paying for the results of that post, from a like to a comment to a share — which can support additional actions, like a purchase.

Influencers that follow this pricing model charge $250 to $750 per 1000 engagement, on average. That means, on average, 1000 users engage with that person’s posts. On Instagram, engagement can range from liking to commenting.

If you want to experiment with influencer marketing prices for Instagram, try this cost calculator.

3. Twitter ($2 / 1000 FOLLOWERS)

With 330 million users, Twitter features a smaller audience than Facebook and Instagram. Companies, however, still use the platform to reach their target audience, and they don’t pay much to do it. At $2 per post, per 1000 followers, Twitter offers the lowest influencer marketing prices.

For perspective, here are some potential influencer marketing prices for Twitter:

1. An influencer with 10,000 followers could charge $20 per post
2. An influencer with 100,000 followers could charge $200 per post
3. An influencer with 1,000,000 followers could charge $2000 per post

In most cases, an influencer with more than one million followers will break away from this price average. If they have that many followers, they’re probably well-known outside of social media. That allows them to reach more people, which can provide your company with additional exposure.

Remember, however, that you want exposure in order to build brand awareness with your target audience.

Influencers with a mass following often have followers with a wide range of interests as well as reasons for following that person. That can result in a partnership that doesn’t deliver any long-term value to your company. It’s a case where you’re targeting too many people, versus focusing on a specific segment of your audience.

4. YouTube ($20 / 1000 SUBSCRIBERS)

With more than 1 billion users, YouTube offers businesses access to a whole new set of influencers. On average, influencers on YouTube charge $20 a video, per 1000 subscribers. YouTubers with audiences of more than one million subscribers tend to veer away from this price point.

For perspective, here are some potential prices for influencer marketing on YouTube:

1. A YouTuber with 10,000 subscribers could charge $200 per video
2. A YouTuber with 100,000 subscribers could charge $2000 per video
3. A YouTuber with 1,000,000 subscribers could charge $20,000 per video

Keep in mind, however, that after an influencer reaches more than one million subscribers, they have more freedom over their rates. According to analysts, YouTubers with that big of a reach can charge up to $50,000 per video.

Like Facebook, YouTube offers a platform for connecting with influencers, but it comes with a price.

The platform FameBit matches influencers and companies. It uses several factors, like your budget, target audience, and goals, to connect you with an influencer. While it doesn’t cost anything to join FameBit and find an influencer, the minimum project cost is $100.

FameBit also charges a 10 percent service fee once you’ve matched and approved an influencer’s content.

If you prefer a performance-driven approach, you can also base your influencer marketing prices on video views. Influencers charge around $50 to $100 per 1000 views. This price range often depends on the influencer’s number of subscribers, as well as their most recent stats when it comes to video views.

For example, if an influencer’s newest videos earn around 10,000 views, versus 5000 views like their earlier videos, you can expect to pay more. In the opposite scenario, the influencer would charge less for their services due to their decreased reach.

A YouTuber with fewer video views can still make an impact, though. If the influencer is connected with your target audience, or even a difficult-to-reach niche of your market, they can help achieve your marketing goals. Those goals can include everything from visiting your website, subscribing to your YouTube channel, or purchasing your product.

5. Snapchat ($10 / 1000 FOLLOWERS)

With an average of 188 million daily users, Snapchat provides companies access to a range of influencers. On average, influencers on Snapchat charge $10 per post, per 1000 followers. Influencers with more than one million followers can abandon that price point easily.

For perspective, here are some potential costs for an influencer with more than 1000 followers on Snapchat:

1. An influencer with 10,000 followers could charge $100 per post
2. An influencer with 100,000 followers could charge $1000 per post
3. An influencer with 1,000,000 followers could charge $10,000 per post

If you’re familiar with Snapchat, you may have spotted a problem with this pricing model.

On Snapchat, you can’t see how many followers someone has because it’s private. You can, however, see a user’s Snapchat Story view count. While some companies use that view number to estimate an influencer’s follower count, others use it for a different pricing model.

Instead of paying $10 per post, per 1000 followers, businesses pay $10 per post, per 1000 views.

Like YouTube, Snapchat also offers a matchmaking program for companies and influencers.

With Snapchat Storytellers, influencers provide your business with their services, as well as recommendations for improving your presence on Snapchat. This program, however, is limited to a select number of influencers and brands. The advantage is that Snapchat Storytellers doesn’t charge a finder’s fee, unlike FameBit.

6. Blog ($60 / 1000 VISITORS)

While influencers are well-known for their social media presence, many also maintain personal blogs. Using their blog, influencers can reach, connect, and chat with your target audience in new ways. Influencers charge around $60 per post, per 1000 unique visitors for this service.

A few factors can shift this price point, including:

• Industry: If you’re in a technical industry, it’s essential to partner with an influencer that understands your market and target audience. Due to their expertise, however, they can often charge more than $60 per post.

• Topic: Your proposed blog topic can also increase your influencer marketing prices. For example, if you’re a luxury resort and want the influencer to write a post about their experience, you need to cover their costs of traveling and staying at your location.

• Length: For the best experience, your company should specify the desired word count for an influencer’s blog post. That way, you aren’t disappointed when your influencer forwards their draft. Depending on the preferred length, influencers may increase their rates.

While more expensive than other platforms, blogs can deliver the best results. In a recent study, analysis discovered that blogs were 37 percent more effective for influencer marketing than other social media platforms, like Facebook and YouTube.