What Influencers Really Want From Marketers

September 13, 2018 Influencer, Retail Kits1 Minutes

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We ran surveyed 2,000 US-based influencers in May 2018 to uncover what influencers really want from the marketers they’re working with and all of those boxes they’re receiving.

First some context:

Over 50% of influencers receive 1-6 boxes weekly

Only 47% rate it as a “good” experience.

What Influencers Really Want:

• Creative respect

• Feel special

• Be invited in

• A VIP communication loop

• IG-Friendly packaging

• Paid marketing support

• To get paid. Real money. On time.

• Key dates for the product launch or availability

• Let them know when the box is arriving

• Brand story and origin

• The story behind the product/s, the design, purpose, ingredients and origin story

• A sincere thank you

• Photography gear (micro)

• Extra kits to give way to their audience (micro)

• Help to grow their audience

• A handwritten note, something that makes them feel special

Proprietary Vivabox research of 2,000 micro and macro influencers in the US, May 2018

Looking for a solution? We can help.

Headquarters

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Rockville MD 20850

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Paris, France
San Francisco, CA
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Email

info@vivaboxsolutions.com

Phone

+1.212.652.2024


Using Experience-Driven Packaging to Increase Your Influencer ROI

August 28, 2018 Influencer, Sustainability6 Minutes

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Guiding Principle: Value Exchange

Influencer Marketing is, at its core, a relationship. This concept extends into every aspect of the market, including sending product to influencers. No one likes to do something for nothing: it’s against the core tenet of maintaining a healthy relationship.

More likely than not, the attention and detail you put into this process will have an impact on the outcome. If you do right by your influencer, they are inclined to do right by you. The experience they have receiving your product is a key element of their view of your product, your brand, and, ultimately, their decision to share this with their audience or not.

If you are going to send product to influencers, you need to jump in with both feet. It’s best to put the requisite time, money, and energy into the process. Without research, accurate targeting, and those special details that create surprise and delight, you’re likely to get a lukewarm response from your influencer recipients.

5 Tips:

1. PERSONALIZATION & DETAILS

Influencers are being sent free product all the time. 41% of the influencers surveyed get product every week on average, while 35% get product every month. Beyond that, 11% of influencers get product at least quarterly and 10% get product sent daily.

Be clear about how and where an influencer can post. Influencers are professional content creators and they are mindful of FTC protocol, brand hashtags, and using the right brand handle. Include a note card that lists the brand or product webpage, the appropriate brand handles, the hashtags influencers can use, and other relevant details (e.g. purchasing instructions, a personalized coupon code, or anything else that makes things smooth and easy). Then send a follow-up email, just as you would in any other professional interaction.

2. PRODUCT

72% of influencers surveyed stated that they would be most likely to post about a product sent to them if they genuinely loved the brand and the product. Of those who post, 53% of the influencers surveyed say they would post an Instagram Story.

Do your due diligence. In order to reach the right influencer for a campaign, you need to do a little digging. Get down into the details and find out who each influencer is, what they like, what type of content they create, and determine if that style is an organic fit for your product or brand.

3. THEME

Get creative and think thematically. Some of our influencers cited carefully curated, themed boxes with a conceptual element tying the product to a holiday, a season, or a certain aesthetic. Have fun, be quirky, and be unique. Remember that unboxing is a process unto itself: the more intriguing elements you can include, the more thrilling the experience will be, both for your influencer and for their audience.

4. ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

Be mindful of how you are packaging your product. Many influencers cited environmental concerns when receiving a bunch of stuff that may or may not be used. Whenever possible, try to be ecologically sound in your packaging and shipping choices. Some brands even send postage and instructions on how to donate or recycle an item if they don’t use it.

5. COMPELLING PRESENTATION

There truly is an art to sending product to influencers. While it may seem obvious to some, it’s important to remember that the packaging you use is another way to win over your influencers and their audience. Think of color, size, material, and presentation. Personalized touches like a handwritten note can make a world of difference. Remember to consider the optics (how will this look?) as well as the experience (how will this feel?) as you put together your packaging.

Sending product is not necessarily an “easy win”. Like so much of influencer marketing, the opportunities are vast, but so is the potential for missteps. It’s important to invest in a meaningful, organized strategy for sending product and to execute it with professionalism, attention to detail, and forethought. The amount of energy you put in is likely to show in your results; not just in the number of influencers who post, but in the quality of their content and the longevity of the relationships. With the right resources, you can reach your audience in a fun, natural way that allows both your brand and the influencer to truly shine.

Want More Resources? Ready to Roll?

TapInfluence allows you to quickly discover and assess influencers at a glance. You can drill into the details, and even get the information you need to contract them and send them your product— in addition to cash compensation or as a primary value exchange.

If you’re looking for a partner to help create, brainstorm, design, produce, and deliver high-quality product boxes, we recommend Vivabox Solutions. They have worked with leading brands to create meticulously designed product boxes. When it comes to experience-driven packaging, no one is more knowledgeable.

Looking for a solution? We can help.

Headquarters

9211 Corporate Blvd Ste 110
Rockville MD 20850

Satellite Offices

Dallas, TX
Paris, France
San Francisco, CA
Scottsdale, AZ

Email

info@vivaboxsolutions.com

Phone

+1.212.652.2024


How do I Develop Strong Relationships with Influencers?

August 28, 2018 Influencer, Retail Kits8 Minutes

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Ask the Fixer: When it comes to finding the best ambassadors for your brand, it can be overwhelming to know where to start. Here we launch the Ask the Fixer series with three experts who offer advice for building mutually beneficial relationships with the right social media influencers.

Melaina Juntti | Jul 27, 2018

Without question, influencer marketing can bring immense value to your burgeoning brand. It can help spread the word about your products, create engaging content and lend credibility to your company, among countless other benefits.

But making this strategy effective takes much more than just getting a long list of “big names” on board. It requires building solid, open, honest and mutually beneficial relationships with the right influencers. By doing so, you get “better content, better product insights, better ROI—plus, genuine community is good for the soul,” says Rachael Shayne, senior director partnerships, sales, and marketing at Vivabox.

Here, Shayne and two other “Fixers” share their best advice for building strong relationships with influencers.

Brand

Choose influencers who truly believe in your brand. We receive several partner requests daily, many of which I disregard immediately because they don’t send personalized emails; I can tell it’s a blanket outreach. The influencers I want to engage with are those who take the time to share with me how they use NOW products as part of their daily routine—those who truly use and trust our brand. On the flip side, we take the time to have actual conversations with them and get to know what’s going on in their lives versus having just a promotional relationship, such as they’ll do X content for X fee. We are a family-owned company, and we truly want to make our partners feel like they are a part of the family.

Start small. When we are considering working with a new influencer, we will often do a “test run” to see how well our partner content performs. We’ll maybe do just a small initiative, such as a one-time Instagram share, for a smaller fee. This also allows us to build a relationship because we can gauge which content will be most meaningful with that influencer and his or her audience and then do more from there.

Bring influencers inside. We host “influencer immersions” at our headquarters a few times a year. We’ll bring in about 20 influencers from across the country for an inside look at NOW. Transparency is so important in this industry, and this really provides them with an “aha” experience because they see the lengths we go to ensure we are bringing safe, quality products to market. It’s also a way to show the influencers that we value their trust and partnership, since this is the ultimate trust-building opportunity.

Alana Horinko, public relations manager at NOW Foods, a leading national brand of dietary supplements and other natural products

Agency

Get personal. When seeking influencers, don’t be a spammer—influencers are people, too, and nothing kills the mood more than a bland, impersonal e-blast. Their inboxes are flooded with opportunities daily, so make sure yours stands out. Call them by name, show interest in their life or brand and intrigue them with more than just the depth of your pockets. Show your personality and build an actual relationship, not just a business transaction.

Be honest and transparent. Don’t make promises you can’t keep. Be honest with influencers about the type of partnership you’re interested in and what you’re able to offer. Be flexible in your needs, and it’s likely they will be flexible, too. If you have a good product that is a great fit for the influencer and their audience, chances are you’re going to get more bang for your buck.

Remember: benefits go both ways. No one loves hearing how much someone can help them. Consider how you can make the relationship benefit the influencer as well. Outside of filling their pockets, what other ways can you add value to the deal? Can you give access to your audience, boost their reach or support their cause or event? When you get creative, you can end up with unique, mutually beneficial and often cost-effective partnerships.

 —Denise Lambertson, founder and chief connector at LMS, a boutique entertainment marketing agency specializing in solutions for growth-stage and emerging brands

Marketing

Support successes and nurture creativity. Celebrate your influencers’ personal milestones and successes—and do so genuinely. Be a fan. Also appreciate their creative ideas and influence—isn’t that the reason you’re using an influencer strategy to begin with? Respect their creative abilities and give them ideas to build on versus supplying fully baked content. If they are simply posting your brand imagery, their followers will sniff it out and their reactions won’t help the influencer or your brand grow.

Supply sufficient info. Be sure they know your brand story: why the product is being launched, why you think it will be great, what the ingredient story is, where it can be bought, for what price and when it’s available. You can also share relevant research, information about your category or even influencer marketing reports, and help them understand FTC guidelines for posting if they don’t already. If you have a super kick-ass social media manager, have them offer your influencers classes about how to grow their followers, how to use new video editing tools, how to get the best lighting, etc.

Compensate adequately. This is a business for influencers, so pay them with real money—and on time—not just with products. Beyond dollars, you can also compensate influencers with products, attention, access to your network, referrals, tools and resources. For instance, you can share analytics or a membership to a stock photo site. Also give them credit in product meetings for uncovering new insights, and then tell them how the team reacted to their idea and thank them for helping build your business. Send them unexpected and personal small gifts that aren’t directly brand related, and never forget the power of a handwritten note expressing authentic thanks.

Looking for a solution? We can help.

Headquarters

9211 Corporate Blvd Ste 110
Rockville MD 20850

Satellite Offices

Dallas, TX
Paris, France
San Francisco, CA
Scottsdale, AZ

Email

info@vivaboxsolutions.com

Phone

+1.212.652.2024