How can you manage expectations and communicate with influencers?

Not only sharing KPIs and goals but also expectations that you, the brand or agency has of the creator goes a long way. As a manager, this is one of the key questions I ask along with budget, SOW, usage, exclusivity etc. Asking "what are your expectations of me or the creator with this campaign" is a great catch all to learn anything else you need to know but that hasn't been shared with you yet. Conversely as a brand, knowing what you do expect of them (this will post on a weekday between 8-4pm local time or we expect you to post as a collab post or use 8 hashtags) and communicating this goes a really long way for building trust and having a great campaign.

Goals might be more engagement or follower growth or product sales or perhaps all of that. Brands should expect a spike in follower growth if the influencer has a lot of followers and not be put off by that because when brands are not expecting it sometimes they panic. Same thing happens with verified engagement. Yes believe it or not some brands don't want verified users to comment on there posts if the influencer asked the verified user to do it and I guess they only want truly interested users to engage and yes that is foolish of them because they will sell more product if it looks like verified users support it. The take home is that they can be very picky so it's critical to ask them what they want to gain from it beforehand.

influencers are individuals with their own schedules and commitments. Treating them with respect and fostering a positive working relationship can lead to successful collaborations that benefit both your brand and their personal brand.

If your products are largely purchased via 3rd party vendors (such as Amazon), the KPIs will be tailored to impressions and engagement as click-throughs and conversions will only be traceable when you can use product/influencer specific links. You're always going to have KPIs that reflect attribution and those that don't. For those influencer campaigns that can't really reliably provide this data, then you're left with a somewhat squishy measure of "success." These KPIs are more like relative benchmarks that you're always aiming to beat. This makes cost/hassle-to-benefit calculations a challenge. Other thoughts are most welcome

Spend the most time defining your goals and KPIs. Be as elaborate as possible. Add as many KPIs as possible, add as many processes, and add as many flows and plans. This becomes your bank of KPIs, so to speak. Then narrow it down to your specific campaign. E.g.: You want tech influencers specifically to promote unique tech features of a new handset and you want their followers to click a link and read more. KPIs here will differ from another set of influencers from whom you want visibility aka impressions. Being specific for specific needs helps get the best out of influencers.

Influencer marketing for many brands will increasingly become more granular. It's like taxonomy. As marketers we are steadily needing to push past defining potential consumers (and their affinity with our products or services) not by kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus to species and subspecies.

I advise brands to hire the most honest person you can find. That means they should be able to teach you many things as you work together. You may even want to overlook the appearance of the person because even though they might not align with your message, the honesty they provide means they have real people interested in them all the time because truly helpful advice is hard to come by. At the end of the day, you don't really need the influencer to become a full-time spokesperson for your brand you just need them to reach real people who might buy the product based on the reputation of the influencer. If they are known to be very helpful due to honesty, it's nearly as powerful as hiring a superstar A-lister but a fraction of the price.

Not all influencers are created equal. While some may have a large following or share similar interests as your brand, it's also crucial to find an influencer who aligns with your brand's values and shares your passion and vision. Additionally, identifying an influencer's unique perspective and understanding their content style and niche will enable you to select the right one for your campaign. Moreover, cultivating long-term relationships with influencers can help create an emotional connection between your brand and their audience, leading to more significant returns on investment. This connection can be further enhanced by utilizing advocacy and promotions from loyal and engaged influencers.

Make sure you approach the Influencer with the brief in good time. One of the most exciting parts of working with an Influencer is the fact that you're usually working with the Creative Director, main actor and Director all in one person. Influencers know their audience really well so allow them the chance the mould the brief and influence it. You'll get a much more authentic piece of content.

Developing a contract and brief with influencers is a crucial step in a successful partnership. By outlining expectations, deliverables, and payment, you ensure both parties are on the same page and minimize any potential disagreements. Furthermore, beyond providing a legal framework or creative inspiration, a contract and a brief can also strengthen the influencer-brand relationship. By demonstrating your respect for their professionalism and creativity, the influencer feels valued and more invested in the success of the campaign, leading to a more authentic and engaging partnership.

This is key throughout any influencer campaign. Treat them like a trusted member of the team by sharing campaign goals, potential hurdles and celebrate their wins. Too often, brands and agencies are treating influencers transactionally and that is often displayed in the content performance (or lack of). When an influencer feels like a valued member of the team, their tone of voice, messaging and enthusiasm is elevated.

Monitoring the influencer's activity and providing support is essential. This allows you to track the performance of your campaign and make any necessary adjustments. Influencer partnerships are more than transactions, they are collaborations built on shared values and mutual respect. Providing support means giving influencers access to the tools they need to execute the campaign successfully. Provide samples, answer questions, or promote their content The goal is to create a seamless partnership that drives results. Moreover, having a consistent line of communication between you and the influencer will help to build a lasting relationship, resulting in a more durable and authentic endorsement of your brand by the influencer.

Brands need to keep their ROI expectation in check when working with influencers or they can be disappointed. But the good news is, you can use the influencer created content in your own brand ad campaigns, that's where the gold is. Any revenue it produces organically is gravy.

Definitely try to establish a relationship with the influencer. In my opinion, a long-term partnership provides more value than a one-time collaboration. Although tracking results is important, sometimes it’s hard to prove the immediate ROI because affects like increased brand awareness are not easy to measure (however essential). If you try to measure it, definitely have a look at impressions rather than leads/sales

Have reasonable expectations when it comes to results. For example, if the product is a custom pair of shoes priced at $600, understand that it will take millions of impressions to make a sale and therefore your focus should be on longevity, meaning how long is this post going to remain on the person's page? If they plan on removing it after 30 days, it's very likely you will be wasting your money, where as if they promise to keep it permanently on the page, your outlook is obviously much better. A skilled and honest influencer would immediately assure you of that once they see that its a high-end specialty product.

When the campaign ends, it's essential to conduct a comprehensive review and evaluation of the results. This should serve as an opportunity to reflect on the overall value of the partnership and benefits it brought to all parties involved. Beyond sharing the report with the influencer and thanking them for their contribution, there are other ways to ensure the partnership takes root. For instance, following up with the influencer and maintaining a relationship even after the campaign ends can help fuel future opportunities for collaboration. Developing strong ties and relationships can pay important dividends when planning for future campaigns, making influencer recruitment and collaboration more accessible and seamless.

It's simple but remember to say "thank you". A really intentional and descriptive "thank you" via email can go a long way to creating great brand sentiment in Influencer circles.