“Why not open a big house with bloggers from a variety of countries? Eliza, you know so many people and a lot of bloggers too, right?” It is really easy to arrange such a concept. You simply book a few flights, hire cars, rent a house and arrange for bloggers to meet there. However, in reality it is slightly different. If you would like to carry out (micro-) influencer marketing in an effective and smart manner, there has to be a clear DNA match between the influencers and the brand. In addition you must also strongly believe in what you do. With that as a foundation, the travel organisation Eliza was here has opened its first international blogger house in Cyprus.
From its first day of existence, one would hear about Eliza was here through a tip from a friend, colleague or relative. Over the years it has continued to grow through this manner. Customer research shows that over 35% of clients discovered Eliza was here through word of mouth, additional to a customer repeater rate of 35%,over the past 2 years. Without a doubt you can say that Eliza has been able to keep its brand promise, as well as to create fans who will act as its ambassadors within their social circles. You can “freely” interpret this into organic influencer marketing. Based on this success, Eliza was here has now chosen to enter the commercial market, by actively approaching and using social influencers and influencer marketing.
This is why Eliza has decided to open its first international bloggers house. Fifteen bloggers from the Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark were invited by Eliza to visit Cyprus during May 5-13, where they would experience a wonderful journey with Eliza was here. Bloggers that participated include: Claartje Schröder (Foodness, NL), Niel van Herck (Tjoolaard, BE) and Mie Kristine Quist (Wewonder, DK).
An eye for attention and details
- Eliza will personally communicate with the influencers before, during and after the event. This communication will be done by using their email address, their phone number and writing personalized cards and letters. Eliza makes sure she really gets “to know” her bloggers: Their favourite drink in the fridge, their favourite music playing upon arrival in the room and the must-haves they need during their holiday.
- The profile of every influencer will thoroughly be examined, in advance, so that Eliza is able to give personalised tips, to make this a special and authentic holiday.
- The influencers stay in a rural area, so that they each feel like a true local.
- Eliza introduces the influencers to her local Cypriot friends and invites them to try activities that she herself has experienced. This way the influencers get to see the real Cyprus, as Eliza likes to do so herself.
- Eliza will provide the best tips to taste local cuisine, which the influencers can cook together at their house.
- Every blogger will have their own rental car, which they can use to discover the island. Just as you would on a vacation with Eliza.
No buying of range
"We do not put restrictions on influencers and we do not ask them for a required number of blogs, posts, hashtags etc.", said Yuri Deutekom, Director of Eliza was here. “The vision of Eliza was here is that when someone's experience is good, they are more likely to want to share it with others. We are confident and convinced of our promise: always an authentic and special experience.”
The travel organization believes that, if the experiences are positive then the influencers will decide to share them with their followers. The content that flows from this type of communication is so much more relevant than content that flows from mandatory posted pictures and posts, making its reach much more valuable. If an influencer decides not to write or share something, it will be because the experience we offered to them would simply not have been exciting enough to write about. This is a risk that we are willing and daring to take.
From influencer to ambassador
“Obviously, we will try and estimate which and how many people we can reach, by the number of visits, views and other indicators. However, how the post or picture registers with followers; will always have to be an assumption; and whether it changes the decision of buying the holiday, is very difficult to measure. We believe in this effect. We compare influencer marketing with word-of-mouth advertising, which in our opinion, is a strong way of promoting your product. You see, it is truly valuable when someone during party mentions what an excellent holiday they had with Eliza was here. This is the moment that “that someone”, becomes an ambassador of our brand. The others, while having a beer or sipping a glass of wine will become enthusiastic. They will see and take this information more seriously, because the person, who is telling the story, shares the same values and belief system, with them. Everyone is always looking for common grounds and common values. Most of the time people who share this, are the people that “believe”. That client, who tells others of his experiences, without us having any influence on it, is our ambassador. This is exactly what influencer-marketing is about. Our goal is to turn all of our influencers into ambassadors. People that want to share their experience. The followers are the ones standing around and listening to the stories of our clients who had an unforgettable holiday. The next day the followers will be curious to know more about Eliza was here.”
