by 1. Influencer Branding Strategy
This approach focuses on spreading brand awareness rather than driving immediate sales through the influencer’s call-to-action (CTA). The goal is to establish the brand name within a specific market. For example, if you’re launching a new energy drink called “Holy,” the aim might be to ensure the brand is widely recognized. This strategy was successfully employed by the real-life energy drink brand “Holy” in Germany — a small company that was launched by a couple young folks from their living room!
However, by partnering with a large number of influencers to simply talk about the product, the brand quickly gained recognition and is now mentioned alongside major players like “Red Bull.”
Succesful Influencer marketing of the energy drink manufacturer “Holy” with nano influencers.
In this strategy, immediate sales figures from influencer promotions aren’t the primary metric of success. Instead, the focus is on long-term brand recognition and creating a large, engaged consumer base. The resulting after-sales from millions of new potential customers far outweigh the costs of influencer partnerships, making this approach highly valuable for sales afterwards.
In fact, brand marketing through influencers is often far more effective than conversion-driven campaigns. Branding strategies build a larger, more engaged audience and lead to sustained, long-term success.
Two companies that exemplify this approach are DJI and Insta360, both of which were virtually unknown in their respective markets before using influencer marketing to catapult their brands into prominence.
DJI entered the drone market by investing millions in influencer marketing at a time when they had little to no recognition. Similarly, Insta360, a once-unknown manufacturer of 360-degree action cameras, rose to industry prominence by giving away thousands of free devices to influencers, paying them to promote the product without any conversion-focused CTA. These brands didn’t focus on immediate sales but instead leveraged influencers to build powerful brand awareness, transforming themselves into market leaders.
Major companies have also used influencer marketing to outmaneuver their competition. Canon, for example, became a leading brand among video creators worldwide by giving cameras to massive influencers like Casey Neistat, positioning him as a brand ambassador.
Sony followed suit, executing successful campaigns for their mirrorless cameras, and is now poised to surpass Canon in market share.
On the other hand, Nikon failed to recognize the power of influencer branding. Instead of engaging with influencers, Nikon focused on traditional product placement in Hollywood films.
Product Placement of Nikon in the Superman Movie “Man of Steel”
Thus, Nikon dismissed the idea of giving away free products or paying influencers. This misstep led to a sharp decline in their revenue — from $4.12 billion in 2015 to just $1.05 billion in 2021, a 75% drop.
Today in 2024, Nikon is seen as irrelevant among social media creators, who have become the dominant force in the digital camera market.
2. Conversion-Driven Influencer Marketing
This strategy focuses on driving immediate sales by placing a call-to-action (CTA) in the description of a YouTube video where the influencer advertises the product. The goal is typically to at least break even with the cost of booking the video, while generating enough sales to make the investment worthwhile.
While not as impactful for long-term brand building as a branding-focused strategy, conversion-driven influencer marketing can still be effective. Many companies find success, gaining traction and making a profit, often surpassing their break-even point. This approach is particularly valuable for smaller businesses looking for quick sales and short-term results, providing a viable option for those seeking immediate returns on their marketing investment.
This approach is a powerful tool nevertheless, often surprising companies with how well an influencer’s audience responds to the advertised products. Numerous articles and research have highlighted the success of this method, emphasizing the trust influencers have built with their followers. When an influencer promotes a product, their audience is more likely to engage and make purchases because they view the influencer as a trusted source of inspiration. This deep connection between influencers and their audience is a key driver behind the success of conversion-driven marketing.
In this article, I’ll explain later below how to create a successful conversion-driven influencer marketing strategy by creating an effective CTA and Landing Page.
Should You Hire an Agency or DIY for Influencer Marketing?
Influencer agencies are professionals in term of communications because their primary role involves managing influencers on a daily basis. Engaging with influencers presents unique challenges, as the traditional business-to-business (B2B) communication methods cannot be applied directly on an influencer. When working with an influencer, you’re not just collaborating with a creative professional; you’re interacting with someone who wields significant influence over their audience. Mishandling this relationship can have severe consequences for your brand. If an influencer feels disrespected or treated unfairly, they have the power to tarnish your reputation publicly.
Relying on contracts or NDAs to prevent influencers from damaging your reputation offers little real protection. While these legal documents may include clauses intended to prevent negative public comments, they are often ineffective. Influencers, particularly those based in the U.S., are protected by free speech laws, making such clauses potentially null and void. Furthermore, attempting to sue an influencer can backfire, especially with laws like SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) designed to prevent frivolous lawsuits. These counterclaims could result in your company facing millions in punitive damages.
Pursuing legal action against an influencer is almost always a losing strategy. Not only are you unlikely to succeed, but the influencer will likely take the conflict public, rallying their followers against your brand. In this situation, the damage to your reputation could be far greater than the initial issue. Developing strong conflict-resolution skills is essential when working with influencers, as resolving disputes diplomatically is far more effective than resorting to legal threats.
Although influencers may be working for your brand, they are not like typical freelancers such for example as graphic designers or consultants. You cannot simply assign tasks and move on. The influencer holds considerable leverage, and any missteps could result in a very public fallout. This makes working with influencers a delicate task that demands careful handling.
For these reasons, partnering with an influencer agency is crucial. These agencies specialize in managing these creative individuals, who can sometimes be challenging to work with—think of them as artists, with all the complexities that entails. If you’ve found working with engineers difficult, be prepared for even greater challenges when managing influencers. My advice: think carefully before taking on the responsibility of handling an influencer relationship on your own.
Influencer Contracts 101: Aligning with Industry Standards for Success
When working with influencers, it’s essential to craft a contract that the influencer views as fair and aligned with industry standards. Unrealistic demands, such as asking an influencer to dedicate an entire video or include lengthy segments about your brand, are likely to be met with frustration or outright rejection. Understanding and adhering to the norms within the influencer marketing industry is critical to establishing a successful partnership.
Below are a few important points to consider when creating a contract with an influencer:
- Video integration times
The standard duration for brand integrations in videos is typically 60-90 seconds. Expecting anything significantly longer may be unreasonable. - Placement within the video
Ideally, the integration should appear within the first five minutes or the first third of the video. However, influencers may structure their content differently, incorporating cliffhangers or other creative elements. Be flexible if the influencer has a unique approach that could benefit your brand, even if the timing isn’t exactly as you expected. - Revisions
Handle requests for revisions with care. Video production involves multiple complex elements—writing, filming, studio & setup involving light and camera technology, sound design, and editing—making it one of the most demanding forms of content creation. Unless there’s a major issue, avoid asking for significant changes. A reasonable approach is to include a maximum of two revisions in the contract, but ideally, revisions should not be asked. - Response time
Influencers often create content on short notice, so providing feedback quickly is crucial. A response window of no more than two days is standard. Expecting influencers to produce videos weeks in advance is generally unrealistic and can lead to issues. - Click-Guarantees
Some influencers may offer guarantees based on consistent performance. For example, an influencer who consistently achieves 30K views per video might agree to a 30K-view guarantee. If the target isn’t met, they may offer a “make-good” video featuring another ad at a later date. However, be cautious with these requests—most influencers are unlikely to provide such guarantees, and pushing for one can strain the relationship. To mitigate the risk of underperforming videos, it’s often better to book multiple videos, spreading the potential for reach and engagement across several campaigns. - CTA Placement
It’s standard practice to request that an influencer include your call-to-action (CTA) at the top of their video description and also pin a comment with the CTA to ensure it remains visible. - Sponsored Ad Watermark
It’s unreasonable—and legally risky—to ask the influencer to hide the fact that the content includes an ad integration. Doing so violates YouTube’s guidelines, could lead to the influencer being banned from the platform, and is illegal under various laws:
1) Federal U.S. Law: FTC: Endorsements, Influencers, and Reviews; FTC: Consumer Review Fairness Act
2) EU Law: EU Directive 89/552-EEC
3) Google’s Guidelines: Paid product placements, sponsorships & endorsements
To ensure compliance, it’s best to include a clause in the contract requiring the influencer to clearly mark the video as “Sponsored.” This not only adheres to the rules but also fosters transparency with the audience, which builds trust.
The Power of Consistency
Influencers have little control over which of their videos will become successful or go viral. Every video they create is a hopeful attempt at gaining traction, filled with the aspiration that it will be the one to take off. Influencers invest a great deal of time and effort researching their audience’s preferences. They analyze data, export CSV files from their YouTube Studio dashboard, create pivot tables, and read through tens of thousands of comments. They also conduct competitive research, comparing their strategies with other successful YouTubers to better understand what drives engagement.
In addition, influencers regularly connect with their peers to exchange insights, and many stay updated by following YouTube’s creator channels for the latest platform trends and guidelines. One excellent example of how much research and analysis goes into YouTube success is highlighted in Jenny Hoyos’ interview, where she breaks down the complexities of audience analytics and content strategy:
However, despite all this effort, the bottleneck lies with YouTube itself. Factors such as the ever-evolving algorithm, the timing of the video’s release, and the broader video landscape at that moment can all affect reach. A video’s success can hinge on external events, like breaking news, which may shift viewer attention elsewhere. Additionally, given the volume of content uploaded to YouTube — over 500 hours of video every minute — an influencer cannot predict whether the landscape will be favorable when their video goes live.
With so many variables, it’s unreasonable to ask an influencer to guarantee that your ad will be placed in their most popular video. Instead, it’s more practical to approach influencer marketing with a longer-term mindset. Investing in multiple campaigns rather than a single video will increase your chances of success. Booking at least two or more videos in advance offers greater security and allows for a more comprehensive strategy with the influencer.
How to create the best CTA
In our earlier discussion above of conversion-driven influencer marketing as a secondary strategy, I will reveal in this chapter how to focus on the key success factors. One of the most critical elements is the CTA, though many companies struggle with getting it right. The CTA serves as a direct link to the landing page where the audience can purchase the product. For example:
Get 15% off [Product Name] with your first purchase at [URL] using the code “[CODE]”.
I often see companies making this mistake, and I have to remind them that research shows user attention spans are shorter than ever. A lengthy CTA decreases the likelihood that someone will click on it. The goal of the CTA is not to retell the story already conveyed in the video. At this point, the audience is already interested — now they just need a clear, simple link to click on. Avoid cluttering the message with unnecessary details that could confuse potential buyers.
In some cases, influencers may suggest a CTA of their own. Be open to their input — they know their audience better than anyone. As mentioned above, influencers put a significant amount of effort into analyzing their audience data and understanding what drives engagement. Trust their expertise when it comes to crafting a CTA that will resonate with their followers.
Many influencer videos are evergreen, meaning they continue to gain traction long after their initial go-live. When working with these types of videos, it’s crucial to avoid including deals or links to products that expire. Ensure the links remain active and that the products are available for purchase, even years after the campaign’s launch. Many successful influencers have videos that initially receive lower engagement but later, often unexpectedly, YouTube’s algorithm starts promoting them, leading to a surge in views. It’s not uncommon for a video that starts with 20-30K clicks to suddenly skyrocket to millions of views years after its release.
This phenomenon is driven by the constantly shifting video landscape, where current events, seasonality, and other videos published around the same time affect YouTube’s algorithm on an hourly basis. Everything can change quickly, and you don’t want to miss the moment when an old CTA suddenly attracts millions of clicks, only for it to no longer work.
For this reason, it’s important to avoid seasonal or time-limited offers, such as specifying an expiration date for a discount. I also strongly discourage companies from relying on time-bound deals in general. Everything you incorporate into a YouTube video should be evergreen and timeless.
Crafting the Perfect Landing Page for Maximum CTA Impact
As we delve into conversion-driven CTAs, there’s one key factor that can make or break your success: the Landing Page. If you’re aiming to drive sales, you need to get this element right, or you risk losing potential buyers. The Landing Page is where users land after clicking your CTA, and its effectiveness is critical to turning interest into action. I’ve previously covered the importance of landing pages in my article, “Importance of Landing Pages in SEM/SEO“, and I encourage you to read that for a broader perspective. For now, let’s focus on what makes a perfect landing page specifically for a YouTube audience.
- Meeting Audience Expectations
Your landing page must mirror the promises made by the influencer. Whatever the influencer communicated about the product or deal, the Landing Page should align exactly with those expectations. Never redirect users to a homepage or a generic page where they have to hunt for the advertised product. The deal, bundles, and product features should be presented front and center —delivered on a silver platter. - Influencer Branding
Whenever possible, incorporate the influencer’s branding — logo, name, or image — on the landing page. A great example is CyberGhostVPN’s CTA Landing Page, which prominently features the influencer who promoted their product. Since you’ve paid the influencer to represent your brand, using their name and image is a powerful trust signal. Neglecting this is a missed opportunity to capitalize on the credibility they’ve built with their audience. - Trust Elements
Astonishingly, many companies overlook essential trust elements on their landing pages. These are crucial for building confidence in your brand beyond the influencer’s endorsement. Incorporate badges like “30-Day Money-Back Guarantee,” “40 Years in Business,” or “ISO Certified.” Social proof, such as “40 million customers worldwide” or “99.8% accuracy,” and things like these are vital. Don’t shy away from prominently displaying these elements, and be sure to include customer reviews. Anything that adds credibility and aligns with your product’s values should be featured. - FAQs
FAQs are indispensable for answering common questions that may arise before a customer decides to buy. Include answers to questions like, “How does the 30-day money-back guarantee work?” or “Who is behind this company?” Tailor the FAQs to address any hesitations your potential buyers might have. Providing clear, upfront answers fosters trust and can help turn curiosity into conversions. - Long-Scrolling Page
In today’s online landscape, don’t shy away from designing a long-scrolling landing page. You want to avoid the scenario where a user reaches the bottom of the page—because we all know what happens next: they simply click away. Instead, keep users engaged by offering more interaction points throughout the page. Incorporate multiple CTAs between sections like FAQs and reviews to keep the purchase option top of mind.When they do reach the bottom, don’t let it be the end—offer featured products, similar items, best-sellers, or product categories. If available, include links to relevant blog articles or additional content to further engage them. The longer users stay on the page, the more familiar they become with your brand’s colors, products, and message, instinctively building trust. A long-scrolling page is an essential tactic in online marketing, ensuring continuous engagement and increasing the likelihood of conversion.
