Brand Ambassadors 2.0: The Era of Engaged Representatives

Effectively promoting one’s brand and products is a challenge for all companies, across all sectors.

As markets become increasingly diversified and subject to exponential competition, truly standing out among target audiences (and the right consumers) has become a constant challenge. To leave a lasting impression, using brand ambassadors as “2.0 representatives” proves particularly effective.

Today, communication methods continue to evolve, and marketing strategies must follow this trend. Limiting oneself to traditional advertising? No. Let’s now develop the habit of integrating influencer marketing into our strategy, which is 11 times more effective and provides companies with a proven return on investment.

Focus on one of the most well-known practices in influencer marketing: the gifting strategy, one of the royal roads to finding brand ambassadors, these 2.0 representatives who inspire trust and authenticity 👆

Brand Ambassadors: Definition and Origin of a Strategy Known to Luxury Brands

The evolution of luxury marketing has given birth to a particularly effective strategy: brand ambassadors. An ambassador, in the marketing context, is a personality, often famous, chosen by a brand to embody its values, image, and deep essence.

The origin of this strategy? The 1920s, when Coco Chanel herself became “the ambassador of her own brand, posing for her advertisements and embodying” elegance and refinement.

Today, many luxury brands (especially in beauty, like L’Oréal) have adopted this strategy. For example, Dior has called upon actress Natalie Portman, while Louis Vuitton has chosen music icon Léa Seydoux. These collaborations are not coincidental (especially in terms of price!). In the haute couture sphere, Lily-Rose Depp has managed to offer a fresh new image to the Coco Chanel brand. Since her appearances in Vogue Paris magazine in 2015, the young woman has multiplied her appearances in Vogue Australia and Vogue Japan, as well as the Sunday Times.

According to a 2019 study, “78% of consumers are more likely to purchase a product when a celebrity they admire promotes it”.

Yes, the impact of these ambassadors on brand perception is immense. They reinforce the brand’s identity and create an emotional connection with the consumer. They remain more suitable than influencers for conveying CSR values.

Karl Lagerfeld, Chanel’s iconic artistic director, expressed it very well: An ambassador is more than just a face, it’s an embodiment of the brand’s values.

The numbers speak for themselves: brands that use ambassadors can expect an average increase in their turnover of 20% compared to those that don’t. Undeniable proof of the effectiveness of this strategy?

But beware: while ambassadors are part of the possible strategies for companies, they come at a price. Just like collaborations with macro-influencers and celebrities. Moreover, the ambassador is primarily useful for the brand’s image, more than for reassurance about its quality or relevance.

The ambassador, deeply rooted in the history of luxury marketing, continues to prove its effectiveness. But to go further, it’s time to move on to brand ambassadors 2.0: brand representatives. And the simplest method to start? Gifting.

Brand Ambassador 2.0: Representatives Through Influencer Marketing

Influencer marketing has been developing for several years: a strategy that proves itself, if we believe the latest figures:

• The influencer marketing market was worth more than 16 billion dollars in 2022, 20 times more than in 2015.

• 90% of marketing managers believe that influencer campaigns are at least as (if not more) effective as traditional advertising.

• 87% of buyers were convinced by an influencer’s recommendation before purchasing a product.

Thus, brands collaborate with influencers in various ways: gifting strategy, paid partnership, product placement, etc. The objectives remain more or less the same: to build a relationship of trust with the influencer, benefit from their visibility on social networks, their expertise in the sector, and showcase the brand and its products/services through high-quality UGC (User Generated Content). Partnerships with macro-influencers are preferable to those with micro-influencers when brands are looking to quickly gain visibility.

But to reach a targeted audience, maximize engagement and conversions, we recommend turning to micro or nano-influencers.

Why? 👀

They have a good reputation on social networks like Instagram or TikTok: even if they have fewer followers (between 10 and 70K), their community is much more engaged, as the content shared is considered authentic and devoid of financial interest.

This is where gifting comes into play.

Gifting, for Which Influencer Profiles?

A gifting strategy is based on giving your products or services to influencers or top contributors, without imposing any obligation. In other words: the influencer is free to talk about the received product (or not), they are not contractually obligated (but invited to give their opinion and share their experience!).

Why is it interesting? The persuasive power of micro-influencers is often underestimated by brands. They don’t receive mass partnership proposals, even though they benefit from strong engagement from their community. This makes their publications appear “more authentic” in the eyes of internet users, and sometimes carries more weight than a real Instagram post shared by a famous influencer.

The Benefits of This Strategy?

• Recruit brand ambassadors 2.0: engaged and interested ambassadors in your universe;
• Benefit from increased brand awareness and products/services;
• Receive sincere feedback to better understand product improvement areas.

Quick reminder: the influence law of June 2023 still requires internet users to indicate commercial collaboration in their publication, even if the receipt of the product was not subject to any financial compensation.

Gifting Strategy: The Advantages Compared to Traditional Brand Ambassadors

Product Sending: The Economic and More Authentic Option

Yes, the brand ambassador remains an excellent way to shine a brand’s image. But it comes at a price, and not a small one. The ambassadors of major Luxury or beauty sector brands (Chanel, L’Oréal, Dior, Estée Lauder, Lancôme, Givenchy, Guerlain, …) obviously earn more than other brands: checks with at least 6 figures, and we’re being kind.

For example, Natalie Portman’s contract for her appearances in Miss Dior advertisements is said to be around 28 million dollars over 3 years. For Cate Blanchett, her contract with Armani is reportedly 10 million dollars according to information from the New York Post.

With the gifting strategy, there’s no need to spend a large budget. Product sending is generally done from available stock, and their value represents a few tens or hundreds of euros depending on what your company sells (and shipping costs). No organization of photo shoots in iconic Parisian locations either!

In summary: a limited budget investment, but generating results that are often very significant.

The Ambassador, the Brand Ambassador 2.0: High-Quality UGC as a Result!

When you give free rein to the ambassadors’ imagination, they generally offer relevant and quality content. This content is UGC (User Generated Content): it represents a huge advantage for companies.

UGC allows internet users to read an objective and authentic review on social media before making a purchase:

• They enhance the credibility of the brand’s messages,
• They ensure better online visibility,
• They allow creating an engaged community around the company and its development.

Upon receiving the package, the influencer can share an unboxing video in stories or in real-time, give their impressions, recommendations on usage, or even talk about the brand’s history.

These are valuable publications for the brand, as a product endorsed after testing by an influencer has a high chance of quickly taking off in terms of sales.

Useful to know: products sent as part of ambassador missions via the Trustt tool comply with influencer law, and the generated UGC is royalty-free for brands.

Sending products to brand ambassadors: how to approach it for optimal results?

Just as you wouldn’t send a gift to a stranger without explanation in private life, sending a product to an influencer requires tact and preparation for it to be understood and well-received.

After selecting the influencer based on affinity criteria, contact this person in a personalized way, explaining why you’re interested in them. Don’t hesitate to send them a message on social media or an email to prove that you know and appreciate their work.

Make them want to know the brand better by talking about your history, your products, and the values that can bring you closer.

Also remember to provide them with the necessary elements for creating their content, particularly detailed information that allows them to highlight the sent products and give relevant advice on usage. Don’t forget to humanize the product shipment and personalize the package to boost the influencer’s motivation (handwritten note, goodies…)

You can also give your influencer the opportunity to offer a gift or an advantage to their community to build loyalty and convert them to your brand.

We weren’t going to let you leave without mentioning it: the Trustt solution offers its users the possibility to make a custom selection of ambassadors, based on your criteria, for each launched mission.