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1) The Rise of the Freelance Workforce

According to SCORE, the nation’s largest network of volunteer, expert business mentors, 34% of the U.S. workforce (54 million people) consists of freelance workers. Many freelancers rely on online talent marketplaces, mobile apps and co-working spaces to help them work more efficiently. And 69% say the Internet and social media have expanded networking opportunities.

The ages of freelance workers vary widely. Of the total freelance population:

  • 30% are Millennials (age 21-34)
  • 33% are from Generation X (age 35-50)
  • 29% are Baby Boomers (age 51-68)
  • 8% are seniors (age 69+)

Read the full article on Small Biz Daily

IZEA Featured

From Ted Murphy, IZEA CEO & Founder

Understand Your Target & Goals

Small businesses looking to leverage Sponsored Social should first outline what their goals are—is it to drive awareness, sales, site visits, etc.? As part of this process, businesses should know their target consumer inside and out. Everything from who they are, where they live, how old they are, which social platforms they are on, their personality characteristics, interests, and so forth. Sponsored Social can be highly effective with very niche audiences, and is most effective when social influencers are able to tap into a clear audience.

Allocate Budget to Social

For small businesses, it is often daunting to allocate budget to Social as it can feel like there are other marketing or business initiatives that deserve priority budget. However, it is no longer possible to deny the influence of Social Media. Sponsored Social continues to grow in popularity. It’s an incredibly effective way for small businesses to reach their target consumer in an authentic way. In fact, according to IZEA’s 2015 State of Sponsored Social Study, consumers are noticing sponsored posts daily—up to 3 per day—and also perceive these messages to be more effective than any other form of advertisement.

Pick the Right Creators

When choosing who will represent your brand online, choose wisely. Conduct some recon on the creator’s social networks and blog to make sure their content is relevant, meaningful, and in a voice you are comfortable with. Do they look like they would be your consumer target? This will also give you some insights into their followers to ensure their audience is the right match for your brand.

Also, check out the creator’s reach and engagement. Reach is an important factor, but reach alone can be misleading. The goal should be to touch a niche, specialized audience, and do so with quality engagement. Creators that foster strong, dynamic engagement are often the key to how a campaign builds momentum and buzz outside of the Creator’s owned social networks.

Reap the ROI

As small businesses continue to look for ways to effectively target and reach consumers, Sponsored Social and content marketing will only continue to rise. Sponsored Social is effective because it’s authentic and breaks through the clutter—it opens the doors to tap social creators who have built-in credibility, creativity and engagement.