Find Authentic Voices for Your Brand with Tribe Marketing

Photo by John Schnobrich on Unsplash

Influencer marketing is nothing new; it is a staple in every marketer's version of a food pyramid. Brands continue to find new ways to remain authentic and relevant with their consumers and the most effective way to do that in 2022 is to build a brand that people actually want to engage with. 

This has led to the emergence of tribe marketing as consumers increasingly want to engage in a two-way mutual relationship with their favourite brands. As influencer marketing becomes increasingly more relevant for our clients, we’re doing a deep dive into tribe marketing and what you need to know about it.

The Development of Influencer Marketing

 According to BCG, millennials have paved the way and expect brands to have a two-way relationship with their consumers. One of the ways companies build this is by recruiting influencers to share their thoughts on a product or experience that will be relevant to their audiences. This creates an opportunity for influencers to build their own online communities that they can capitalise on. 

While millennials set the expectations, Gen Z has added new rules to their checklist: authentic and meaningful engagement. Gen Z prefers not to see influencers holding a box of detox tea or another HiSmile campaign with a shirtless Conor McGregor holding the product for 15 seconds. This new generation of consumers don't want to see the fancy cars, perfect skin and designer clothes that could construct a false reality - they want to see real people who mirror them and their experiences. 

While the general focus for big brands was previously on building customer communities, they are now  exploring "tribes", which use micro-influencers. Tribe marketing takes a different approach from online community building. Forbes explains that tribes are connected through common passions and behaviours, while communities target a demographic.

Tribe Definition

In 2008, Seth Godin, an American author who was inducted in the American Marketing Association's Marketing Hall of Fame in 2018 released a book called Tribes where he uncovered tribe culture and shared ideas to help marketing teams engage with influencers more effectively. Godin defines a tribe as "a group of people connected to one another, connected to a leader, and connected to an idea," and to be a tribe, you'll need a shared interest or passion and a way to communicate. For a tribe to exist, it will require a leader and a tribe of other people to co-exist and exchange with. 

The most defining trait for tribes is that they are fuelled by a belief in an idea set by their leader and tribe. People in tribes don't feel the need to just be part of one tribe but in multiple they can identify with.

Leveraging Tribe Marketing

An excellent tribe example would be Glossier and its founder, Emily Weiss. Emily built an online tribe of beauty consumers through her blog; she saw everyone she came into contact with as an influencer. This led to great UGC campaigns like Feeling like Glossier, where the brand took real people from their office and tribe to be part of the campaign. The brand also gives back to their tribe with a grant initiative that empowers beauty entrepreneurs like Emily to strive for their goals with Glossier. 

Now that we’ve covered the basics, how do you get started? The most essential part of tribe marketing is understanding that anyone can be a tribe leader, regardless of their follower count. Tribe leaders continue to disrupt the social media landscape and create refreshing content for our now marketing-savvy consumers. 

With so many tribe leaders and members available, how can we identify the best ones to work with? The answer lies in User Generated Content (UGC), which brands can utilise to establish deeper relationships with their current and prospective tribes. As social media platforms evolve, strategies to connect with consumers will grow too. UGC is an evergreen and cost-effective way to build brand trust and loyalty while engaging with various tribes. 

Whether you are a newcomer or an established household brand, tribe marketing will allow for you to engage with consumers and create your own tribes of supporters among people you may never have thought to engage with.

Want to learn more? Get in touch with the Accela Communications team at [email protected] to discuss your marketing needs and how tribe marketing could work for you.