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Who Really Are The Best Valuable Social Media Influencers?

In Marketing, Social Media

Valuable Social Media Influencers

Everybody today is tvaluable social media influencersalking about valuable social media influencers. Just who are they? Are they everyone’s social media influencers or just valuable social media influencers in their own niches?

What is an influencer? According to the dictionary an influencer is a person or a thing that influences and /or causes change by inspiring others. They can change people’s mind about something or influence them to make a decision or a purchase.

According to Wikipedia – Influencer marketing (also influence marketing) is a form of marketing in which focus is placed on specific key individuals (or types of individual) rather than the target market as a whole. It identifies the individuals that have influence over potential buyers, and orients marketing activities around these influencers.

In the past companies relied on marketing via commercials presenting the benefits of their products or by price wars. Today they are using their own customers as people to talk about their products or services and influence others to buy and use them too. This has become a big shift in marketing over the past few years alone. It is also similar to the old fashion word of mouth marketing.

I don’t believe having influence is all about the follower count but having more followers can help. It is a numbers game but it is also more than that! One must be engaging and engaging in a manner to create influence. Influence involves creating others to perform an action – like a retweet, leaving a comment on your post or purchasing a product from you. Remember the old quote “Actions speak louder than words“?

What Others Have To Say About Valuable Social Media Influencers

Ali Lawrence

“Sali lawarenceocial followers are easy to come by today. You can even purchase thousands of followers on sites like Fiverr. So the number of followers is a poor determining factor when looking for the right influencer. The best social media influencers are ones that actually have sway over their audience. You can typically find these influencers by browsing their social account to see how much positive engagement and interaction they have on their posts. I’d rather work with an influencer who is trusted by a small audience with higher engagement than an influencer who has a million followers but only a few ever interact. ”

Ali Lawrence from MarCom Land.

[bctt tweet=”The best social media influencers are ones that actually have sway over their audience. – Ali Lawrence” username=”Lisapatb”]

Tor Reflasland

“Some of the best social media influencers that provides tons of value are:

Gary Vaynerchuk from https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/Tor

Evan Carmichael from http://www.evancarmichael.com/

Scott Eddy from http://www.mrscotteddy.com/

Sue B. Zimmerman from https://suebzimmerman.com/”

Tor Refsland from www.timemanagementchef.com

Mike Kawula

“The label “Social Media Influencer” should be taken with a grain of salt. There are many self-proclaimed influencers who take an online course over the weekend and anoint themselves experts on Monday. It is true that all exerts were once a beginner and the adage “fake it till you make it” is a reality.

However, as an owner who’s going to trust someone and take their business advice, it’s important to take a hard look at these individuals to determine if they’re actually succeeding themselves by practicing what they claim they can do for you. Influencers like Kim Garst, Rebekah RMike Kawulaadice, Sam Hurley, Marcus Sheridan, and so many others are influencers because they’ve put in the work, tested what they preach and reaped the rewards. Peel back the layers and really look at the individual, not the label they’ve given themselves or some list that someone creates whose intentions you don’t know.

Social Media and digital marketing in general can do wonders for your business and there are plenty of tremendous influencers/experts who are ready to assist you in reaping the rewards. Again, the key is finding the influencers who are walking the walk – then, and only then, should you listen to them talk the talk. ”  Mike Kawula, CEO of Social Quant 

[bctt tweet=”They’ve put in the work, tested what they preach and reaped the rewards. – Mike Kawula” username=”Lisapatb”]

Enstine Muki

“There is too much noise on social media these days and this calls for serious filtering. I think the best valuable influencers and those that have successfully and naturally builtEnstine Muki a huge community of targeted and active followers.

People can use software and scripts nowadays to bump the numbers. But that absolutely
doesn’t make any sense to me. A six-figure follower-base doesn’t  attract me. How responsive
they are is what counts.”  Enstine Muki, of EnstineMuki.com   

[bctt tweet=”How responsive they are is what counts – Valuable Social Media Influencers. – Enstine Muki” username=”Lisapatb”]

Don Purdum

 “Social media influence can be such a vague term. For some they define it as how many people follow someone on social media. While that can be important, I define it as how many people take action on social media? Meaning, do they engage, comment, share and/or indirectly endorse your work.
Influencers who are willing to “influence” your work are a challenge to find and it takes time to establish relationships with them. There are a few that come to mind.
First is Sam Hurley (@Sam_Hurley). Not only does Sam have a large Twitter following, he has promoted an article I featured with him, witDon Purdumh reckless abandon and with each tweet I gain upwards of 20-50 new Twitter followers and hundreds of re-tweets.
Ryan Biddulph (@RyanBiddulph) is another social influencer who not only has a massive following, his audience re-tweets as well. He is extremely engaged with his audience and his social influence is obvious by the number of visits that come back to my website within a few moments of him tweeting an article.
Another is Mark Schaefer. Known for his book “The Content Code”, Mark not only has a large following, but he is authentic, sincere and every post on Facebook on his personal wall and especially in his private Facebook group is enlightening and refreshing.” Don Purdum, UnveiltheWeb 

[bctt tweet=”Social Media Influencers – people that take action on social media –  Don Purdum.” username=”Lisapatb”]

Eli Seekins

“People who care are the most valuable influencers on social media. It’s really simple. If you want to make an impact on social media you need to care about people – you need to care about your tribe. Sharing content and links like your throwing up the spaghetti you just had for dinner isn’t going to work. It’s not enough. You need to really get to know people. Don’t pretend to care, ACTUALLY care. Have REAL conversations. Get on Skype with your followers, just to talk. Post content that shows who you are as a person. It doesn’t always have to be on topic. Show people that you are just like them. Be authentic. Don’t be afraid to show your flaws. Don’t pretend to be someone your not. Be relatable. Create legitimate relationships. And provide value to everyone you come into contact with.Eli Seekins

My favorite two people on social media right now are Gary Vaynerchuk and Casey Neistat. They have both mastered the art. It amazes me how well they connect with their followers and how good they are at cultivating relationships.It takes time though. You can’t become an influencer overnight. You need to be patient and work hard. For tips on how to get started on social media check out: The Beginner’s Guide To Social Media Marketing.” – Eli Seekins, from LaunchYourDream 

[bctt tweet=”People who care are the most valuable influencers on social media. – Eli Seekins” username=”Lisapatb “]

Philip Verghese Ariel

“Social media can play a vital role in our daily activities.  When it comes to our routine job, we, bloggers used to really depend on social media. No matter it really influences our daily life too!

As it is observed and proved the theory of 80:20 formula works well with the social media.  In short, it solely depends on social media to implement that theory or ratio in our blogging activity. 20% content creation and 80% promotion, especially through social media platforms. Philip Ariel

Coming to your question, as per my knowledge Jeff Bullas (@jeffbullas), Ted Rubin (@TedRubin  and David Leonhardt (@amabaie)are the first three names comes to my mind, and they are really wonderful social media influencers. Their activities on different social media platforms are worth notable and worth following. ” – Philip Verghese ‘Ariel’, Multilingual freelance writer, blogger, and editor at http://pvariel.com.

[bctt tweet=”The theory of 80:20 formula works well with the social media. – Philip Verghese Ariel.” username=”Lisapatb”]

Brenda Pace

When poised with the question Who Really Are The Best Valuable Social Media Influencers?  I knew this would be difficult. There arBrenda Pacee so many prominent influencers in my virtual world. How is it possible to nail it down to a few? If you’re going to force me to, here’s my most valued Social Media Influencers (in no particular order):  Donna Merrill of Donna Merrill Tribe, Ryan Biddulph of Blogging in Paradise,  Mike Allton of The Social Media Hat, and of course, You! I learn something different from each of these Influencers and would be lost without them. – Brenda Pace from BrendaPace.net
[bctt tweet=”I learn something different from each of these Influencers and would be lost without them – Brenda Pace” username=”Lisapatb”]

Sue Anne DunlevieSue Ann Dunlevie

I love Donna Moritz of Socially Sorted, Ian Cleary of RazorSocial and Amy Porterfield. I have taken courses from each of them and they are all experts in their specific areas of social media. I also read the blogs of Rebekah Radice and Marie Smith, two other important influencers.
All of these bloggers share a lot of free content and I have learned quite a bit from them in regards to using social media to gain blog visitors. – Sue Dunlevie of Successful Blogging

Ana Hoffman

“Who is the best valuable social media influencer to YOU? That’s the right answer, no need to listen to the rest of us… 🙂 … but since you are still here, here’s what I’d say.”Someone who influences my business. Who can teach me something I didn’t know. Who always responds and engages. Who KNOWS me. I know that’s a tall order, but that’s the kind of people we are talking about here – rising above everyone else, right? Ana Hoffman
As I am writing this, can’t help but think of two people who stand out in every single way: Mike Allton of TheSocialMediaHat.com and Ashley Faulkes of MadLemmings.com. They always bring a smile to my face whenever they pop up in my feed… and that’s priceless! – Ana Hoffman of TrafficGenerationCafe

[bctt tweet=”Social Media Influencers – rising above everyone else, right? Ana Hoffman” username=”Lisapatb”]

 

Ashley Faulkes

For me, the most valuable influencers to connect with are the ones I can have a long-term relationship with (business relationship of course!). I am not after quick wins, one-off shares or other fly-by-night connections. I prefer to get to know someone, kinda like in “real life”. That also means that I am looking for a win-win. That is, a connection with someone I can help, as well as potentially be helped by (if not now, then perhaps in the future). Ashley Faulkes
So many people are just looking at either the number of followers of influencers, or what they can get out of them now. I recommend taking a step back and instead seeing how you can further a relationship that yields something for both of you for a long time to come! – Ashley Faulkes from MadLemmings.
[bctt tweet=”Seeing how you can further a relationship that yields something for both of you- Ashley Faulkes” username=”Lisapatb”]

What do you think sets the most valuable social media influencers apart from the others?

I’d love to know your thoughts in the comments below.

Top Image via Brenda Pace of Virtual Bren

 

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Lisa loves helping others to thrive online through Content Marketing with Social Media, Blogging and SEO. What good is knowledge if you cannot share it with others? She has 20+ years experience in marketing/advertising with 6 years experience in content marketing, social media, blogging and SEO. Check out her latest eBook "Learn to Tweet and Thrive on Twitter" now on Amazon.

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40 comments On Who Really Are The Best Valuable Social Media Influencers?

  • Yasar Ali
    - Reply

    I’ve been hearing good about Enstine, He is one of the best guys in the Internet Marketing.
    Also, I’ve been following his blog for the last few months.

    In the post, I discovered many other Social Media Influencers as well.

    Thanks.

  • Janice
    - Reply

    Hi Ashley,
    I know many of these people but didn’t know this information. Thanks for helping me learn more about them.
    Janice

  • Sanjib Saha
    - Reply

    Some of them are already in my FOLLOWING list. I will try to add the rest today. Looking forward to get useful information and learn growth hacks from them.
    Sanjib Saha recently posted..Advanced Link Building Tips for SEO and Content Marketers [Infographic]My Profile

  • Junaid Shahid
    - Reply

    Hi Lisa!
    Thank for sharing this amazing post with us. I love to know about all these social media influencers. They all have different point of view but point toward same goal. I like this quote most.
    How responsive they are is what counts – Valuable Social Media Influencers. – Enstine Muki

  • Sherman Smith
    - Reply

    Hey Lisa,

    When it comes to influence I think it comes to three things

    1. How much value are you getting from others
    2. How much reciprocal communication you get from them.
    3. How inspiring they are to you

    Everything else falls under this as far as the technical side of getting traffic, backlinks, guest posting, etc..

    When it comes down to it, being genuine whether directly or indirectly is really what matters when it comes to influence. Without it, I believe many would just be another blogger.

    Great topi, list and share Lisa! Have a great weekend!
    Sherman Smith recently posted..9 Tips For Introverted Solopreneur Bloggers To Create Productive GoalsMy Profile

  • Amar kumar
    - Reply

    Hey Lisa,

    Using social media influencers in our marketing is the practice of building relationships with the people who can build relationships for us. Whether an influencer’s audience is small or large, an influencer can reach consumers via their blogs and social networks that our brand may not be able to. The most effective influencer marketing strategies build and foster strong relationships with current network, happy consumers and new influencers who are active in relevant verticals.

    We should create a message that people actually want to hear and share. Whether it’s in the form of research, infographics, surveys, fun facts, etc. we need to make sure our message is something unique and interesting. From there we will be able to steer our influencer strategy ship in an awesome direction. Eventually, thanks for your great support.

    With best wishes,

    Amar kumar
    Amar kumar recently posted..11 Things You Must Know About Web Design in 2016My Profile

  • Cori Ramos
    - Reply

    Hi Lisa,

    This is a great list of social media influencers. There are some familiar faces here and some new ones I wouldn’t mind connecting with one day.

    It was great to read everyone’s responses. Thanks for putting this together. I hope you’re having a great week so far. 🙂

    Cori
    Cori Ramos recently posted..There Are Times When Blogging Has To Take a Back SeatMy Profile

  • Donna Merrill
    - Reply

    Hi Lisa,

    What a great round up of influencers in the industry. I do believe that this is the cutting edge of marketing at the present time. More and more companies are seeing mid stream influencers than large company folks. All of the above make the grade!

    I was so delighted seeing Bren mention me.

    Cheers!

    -Donna
    Donna Merrill recently posted..36 Loyal Readers of Donna Merrill TribeMy Profile

  • Ravi Chahar
    - Reply

    Hey Lisa,

    I have come across many people who are influencing the social media. But there are few people who know the true value of influencing other with their content.

    On Twitter, people just through the tweets with the number and don’t even look at anything. As Enstine said, there is so much noise on the social media.

    You need to figure out the right platform to build your authority.

    Thanks for this roundup.

    ~Ravi
    Ravi Chahar recently posted..How To Become An Expert In Your Field With Power?My Profile

  • Mike Allton
    - Reply

    Hey Lisa! What a fantastic roundup, and I couldn’t be more tickled to have been mentioned by Ana and Brenda. Thanks ladies!!

  • Darrell Harris
    - Reply

    Hello Lisa
    Great post ! I There is alot of food for thought in this post and some great straight forward advice. This is a super roundup with some proven social media influencers,four of whom I read their blogs already and follow. And as Neena mentioned above me I DON’T just look for a name, but me personally I look for someone who is experienced 3-5 years if I’m going to order courses from them. Again thanks for this value-packed post , I like reading roundups because you always learn about “new” people crushing it .
    Darrell Harris recently posted..What E-commerce Model is the Best for You ?My Profile

    • Lisa
      - Reply

      Hi Darrell, thank you! I love how everyone had a different twist with their answers. That’s great- that you look for someone with 3-5 years experience Darrell, excellent point! You are welcome and yes I really like that too about round up posts, you can always learn something new and meet new people in your niche. Thanks for coming by Darrel and adding your input on this one. Have a great day ahead!
      Lisa recently posted..Who Really Are The Best Valuable Social Media Influencers?My Profile

  • Louis Huynh
    - Reply

    Love what Sue is sharing on her blog, and appreciate everything she’s sharing while also want to check out more of others work here.

  • Ryan Biddulph
    - Reply

    Hi Lisa,

    Awesome list! And thanks Don and Bren for the shout outs! Caring is at the core of super social influencing, and both these awesome folks up top and their mentions really, truly care for their followings in a loving, caring way. Sam Hurley is one such guy. He’s infused with gratitude in all he does on social platforms, one of the elite tweeters among the millions of them. I personally believe he is the #1 tweeter on earth. Seriously. Between his value shared and responsiveness, and his loving, caring, personalized delivery, he is the best tweeter I have ever seen among the nearly 8 years I’ve been on Twitter and over the half million tweets I’ve sent out (with some bot help LOL).

    Thanks for sharing!

    Ryan
    Ryan Biddulph recently posted..10 Ways to Create Traffic-Building Blog CommentsMy Profile

    • Lisa
      - Reply

      Hi Ryan, isn’t that cool to see others mention you? Oh yes, Sam is just awesome on all the social networks. I would agree with you on him being #1 on Twitter. Wow, you are up there in tweets Ryan, I think I’m nearing around the 200,000 tweet mark. It’s amazing how quickly they add up there. You are welcome Ryan and have a fantastic rest of the week on the islands.
      Lisa recently posted..Who Really Are The Best Valuable Social Media Influencers?My Profile

    • Sam Hurley
      - Reply

      So, so true Ryan!!!!! Amazing list, honourable people to follow and I’m so appreciative (Lisa, Ryan, Mike + Don) for the incredible shoutouts!!!!!!! I can’t thank you guys enough and have screen-shotted each one of them…there’s always a place in my heart for you all! Words can’t express what this means to me :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

      When people put the time in and genuinely care for others…amazing things begin to happen – and they happen fast. Relationships with influential figures like yourselves not only nurture personal development, business and engagement…but state-of-mind and happiness too. I class that as: invaluable 😀 😀 😀

      Absolutely love you all !!! 🙂

  • Hussain Omar
    - Reply

    Hey Lisa,

    What a great post!

    Connecting with influencers will greatly impact the online business, it opens a lot of opportunities for the online growth..

    Thanks for presenting these influencers to us, I already know three of them, the others are a great addition.

    Regards
    Hussain
    Hussain Omar recently posted..How to Do Blog Commenting for Traffic and SEO RankingMy Profile

  • Bren
    - Reply

    Hi Lisa! Happy Monday!

    This is a great roundup! First off, thank you for asking me to contribute. I believe there are different social media influencers for each one of us. What one may see as an influencer, another may not. Is it the value you we place on one person that we learn so much from? Or is it the number of Twitter or Facebook followers? I think it’s a tricky question. I’m sure we are all Influencers to some degree, right?

    Great to see so many contribute to your article. I’ve learned a few new names. 🙂

    Have a great Monday!

    B
    Bren recently posted..3 Things To Do When You Get The Blogging “Blues”My Profile

    • Lisa
      - Reply

      Hi Brenda, you too happy Monday – Another one flew right by! I’d agree with that too, one is to me may not be to you. It all depends on one’s niche and interests. I don’t think the # of followers is it. It’s more about getting people to Jump as Adrian indicated. Or getting them to add to a discussion, etc. Any action. When someone can get someone to act, that is influence in my book. Glad to see you learned a few names too Brenda. Thanks for particpating and coming by to comme nt too! (PS Thanks for sharing those quotes!)
      Lisa recently posted..Who Really Are The Best Valuable Social Media Influencers?My Profile

  • Adrian Jock
    - Reply

    Hi Lisa,

    Social media influencers (SMI) have lots of followers. But there are many regular gals and guys who have lots of followers. It’s not that difficult to get tens of thousands of followers.

    SMI get many retweets when they tweet something. But there are regular gals and guys who get the same thing. I remember how one of these regular guys tweeted one of my articles and … guess what! Within one minute that tweet got over 300 retweets. But… no one clicked the link to my article. Bots don’t click, just retweet 😉

    When the real SMI tweet something, it’s not very unlikely to get from tens of clicks to hundreds of clicks or even more. The regular guys (some of them listed in your article :)) and the fake SMI cannot replicate such a performance.

    That’s how you see when someone is a real SMI. When they tweet, people jump. And by jump I’m not referring to favoriting the tweet (bots do it too), or replying “awesome” while doing nothing else.

    That’s how to detect a SMI.

    As for how to become a SMI, I won’t fall into such a trap. I’ll tell you how to become one when I’ll be one of them. [No plan to become a SMI though.] Till then I can only make assumptions. And such assumptions have zero value. I let others make assumptions 😉

    Have a great week ahead!
    Adrian Jock recently posted..3 Little Known Blogging Issues Affecting Email DeliverabilityMy Profile

    • Lisa
      - Reply

      Hi Adrian, Isn’t that amazing when a tweet gets retweeted immediately like that? But you are right, retweets that get clicks are much MORE valuable. I like your defination via a tweet Adrian. We could say the same for any social network medium too. Those that get engagements and clicks get the best value and can seen as social media influencers. Once a person is a social media influencer they must continuously work at it too.
      Thanks for adding to this discussion Adrian and have a great week there!
      Lisa recently posted..Who Really Are The Best Valuable Social Media Influencers?My Profile

  • Philip Verghese Ariel
    - Reply

    Hi Lisa,
    This is really an informative piece, a wonderful collection of influencers.
    I appreciate the way in which you presented them here.
    Thank you so much for including my two cents opinion too!
    Good to know few more SM influencers through this roundup post.
    Keep it up!
    Thanks again for sharing
    Keep sharing
    Best Regards
    ~ Philip
    Philip Verghese Ariel recently posted..Can We Make Money Through Our Blog Posts?My Profile

    • Lisa
      - Reply

      Hi Philip, thank you. I like the way everyone came up with different answers too. It’s always interesting to see how people interpret things differently. You are welcome and thanks for sharing in many places. Have a wonderful day Philip!

  • Neena
    - Reply

    Hi Lisa,
    Such good advice in this article from so many proven social media influencers.
    Personally, I don’t just look for the name or the following. The person’s message and journey also have to resonate with me.
    Sometimes it is that person who is just one step ahead of me that can teach me the most because they have recently been in my shoes.
    I think authenticity is key.
    Neena recently posted..7 LinkedIn Profile Mistakes That are Costing You BusinessMy Profile

    • Lisa
      - Reply

      Hi Neena, I think authenticity is very important too. I like your thought about being a step ahead too. Thanks for coming by and adding some great points to this topic. Have a wonderful day!

  • Don Purdum
    - Reply

    Hi Lisa,

    I just watched an article last night on 60 Minutes about Social Media influence. What was interesting was they were all in the 20’s (minus Kim Kardashian) and doing some really interesting things with video. They defined it very different than we do in our context.

    Connecting with one another is vital to our growth, success and opportunities for expanding our businesses.

    Thanks so much for including me Lisa!

    ~ Don
    Don Purdum recently posted..How to Ensure Your Content Marketing is Effective Before Increasing Your BudgetMy Profile

    • Lisa
      - Reply

      Hi Don, I wish I had seen it, I used to love that show. That does sound interesting about the video. I wonder why all in their 20s though? You are welcome Don and thanks for your additional input here too.

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One of Report Garden's Top 10 Twitter Influencers. I love helping others to thrive online through Content Marketing, Social Media, Blogging and SEO. You may find me often on Twitter.

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