I’ve been hearing a lot of chatter about ambassador relationships lately and whether or not they make sense. (Podcast listeners will remember that Casey and I talked about this a bit on The Art of Sway podcast a couple of weeks ago.)
There are some articles and pundits proclaiming that 2025 is the year of the ambassador.
And then there are others saying that ambassador programs don’t work well and we should go back to one-offs.
My hot take is…
It depends.
Ambassadorships are not a fit for every brand. Here are some things to think about if you are trying to decide if ambassadors are a smart element to add to your influencer strategy this year:
- Is your product or service line robust enough to support multiple posts? You don’t necessarily need to have more than one product, but you need more than one STORY. Does your brand have different uses/functions depending upon the time of year/season? (think: back to school, new year/new you, holiday time, summer holidays). Do you perhaps have multiple products that an influencer could discuss?
- Do you like to form deep, long-lasting relationships with the creators you work with? Or do you like to keep things fresh and new? This isn’t a trick question! We worked with a client team a couple of years ago who was very excited by the idea of an ambassador program. We contracted with a group of influencers for multiple posts over the course of the year, but by the time July rolled around, our client was BORED AS HELL with all of the ambassadors. (This is a good time to remind you to make sure that any influencer contract you sign includes the ability to terminate at any time.)
- Related: What will you do to nurture your ambassador relationships and make them as valuable as possible? A true ambassadorship should be more than just a contract for a series of social media posts. Here are some ideas:
- Create an online space for your ambassadors to connect with each other and your brand. This doesn’t have to be a big expense. Facebook groups and Slack communities are free or inexpensive and work great for these purposes.
- Develop a system for soliciting product feedback from your ambassadors and their communities. This can be as simple as a survey or as complex as 1:1 interviews or focus groups.
- Schedule an in-person event to bring your ambassadors together to meet in real life. Nothing takes the place of meeting someone in the flesh!
- If you sell a product online, designate a high commission affiliate level for ambassadors. Their content is going to reflect their deep understanding of your brand. Commissions should reflect this.
How are you thinking about ambassadorships when it comes to your influencer relationships? I’d love to hear how you are incorporating them (or not) into your 2025 plans.
Danielle