How Influencer and Ambassador Marketing Works

Using celebrities and well-known figures to promote a product or service is not a new technique, but with the growing popularity of social media platforms, there’s also been a rise in promotion via influencer and ambassador marketing, as well. It may seem complicated or ineffective to use social media marketing, but influencers and ambassadors can have a huge benefit for your business. Here are a few things to know about working with social media stars.

Influencers and Ambassadors Are A Little Different

While both social media influencers and brand ambassadors serve the role of promoting your product and helping to spread the word about your service, there are a few fundamental differences between the two. Ambassadors tend to be real clients and customers that want to use their organic reach to share the product they love (yours!) Influencers, by comparison, are more famous and popular figures that have very large followings, which they’ll share your product with.

Influencer Relationships Are Usually Short-Term

While you can spend years growing a relationship with an ambassador who supports your product and service and genuinely wants to share it with others and see it succeed, an influencer-brand relationship falls more within the lines of traditional marketing. You give them a product and they promote it. There can be cross-over between the two, but it’s worth noting that there are benefits to both.

There Are Rules

It may seem like social media is the Wild West, but there are rules and regulations regarding how an influencer discloses their advertising content. It’s important to stay informed and on top of the rules, because your content can be flagged or taken down and your company can be otherwise penalized if you don’t follow the guides.

Numbers Aren’t Everything

Utilizing the reach of a big-name influencer with a very large following can be tempting, but that number of followers isn’t everything. It’s more important that the person you’re bringing on as an influencer or ambassador has a good engagement rate, which means you might see a better return from someone considered a “micro-influencer” with under 150,000 followers than a super big-name social media personality.

Find Influencers and Ambassadors That Support Your Brand

It’s key to work with influencers and ambassadors that support your company’s products and ideology for many reasons. Not only will they have better access to the right demographic of consumers for your business, but they’ll also more effectively sell your products to them by tapping into the customer’s needs and interests. A fitness influencer can sell workout gear much more successfully than a baking influencer would.

Influencers and Ambassadors Are One Part of Marketing

Depending on your product and demographic, influencer and ambassadors may make up a large part of your marketing, but not all of it. Social media influencing should be integrated into your current marketing and media plan to ensure maximum effect. And it works the other way too. You can use influencers and ambassadors in more traditional media and advertising, as well.

Connect with expert marketing and advertising teams right here at Ripplequest.com. Begin your search and take your company to the next level today.