Done right, brand ambassador campaigns can drive big engagement and awareness on Instagram. Here are five content ideas for ambassadors to make it happen!
How do brands promote themselves on Instagram without getting buried by the algorithm?
Given that most paid campaigns only reach 5% of their target audience, ads aren’t the answer.
And that’s exactly why we’re seeing more and more brand ambassadors on Instagram.
After all, ambassadors add a human element to your promotional posts. They know how to show off your products in creative ways, too.
If you want more engagement, ambassador posts can do the trick. Creator partnerships are crucial now that the new algorithm favors personal accounts over brands.
Not sure what your creators should post? Below we’ve broken down five brand ambassador content and campaign ideas to inspire you.
Chances are there’s no “right” way to showcase your products, right?
Working with ambassadors allows you to tap into the creativity and styles of multiple people. The bigger your ambassador program, the wider of variety of content you can produce.
Content creators know best when it comes to which qualities of a product to promote. After all, they need to make sure their posts speak to their audience.
Skincare brands have mastered the art of letting ambassadors sell products in unique ways. Check out the two brand ambassador posts from Kiehls below.
Source: @arina.negishi / @sarazucker
Notice how one creator highlights how the clay mask fights acne while the other talks about dry skin. Although both creators are promoting the same product, they’re emphasizing different benefits.
And despite taking different approaches, they manage to paint the brand in a positive way.
See how that works? Beyond the captions, their photos provide multiple product views. Seeing a variety of product shots from different people goes hand in hand with higher conversions.
What should your creators emphasize in your posts, though? Start by brainstorming brand ambassador post ideas based on:
Let’s look at another example, this time from Gatsby Chocolate. The first creator hypes how Gatsby’s bars are low-calorie, vegan and awesome for baking.
Source: @juseparavic
Meanwhile, this creator shows off the product “in action” and out of the wrapper.
Source: @donnaleahful
While either creator could have simply posted themselves snacking on a bar, they decided to go the extra mile with their photos and captions. This is why it’s so important to balance guidance and creative freedom when briefing influencers or ambassadors.
Ambassador-run contests are a brilliant campaign idea because of how they drive interactions.
After all, who doesn’t love free stuff?
Consider also how giveaways and contests with ambassadors can expand your reach beyond your brand’s account.
There are two ways you can approach running an Instagram giveaway or contest:
What does a brand ambassador contest look like, though?
First, your ambassador(s) will kick off the promotion with their own promo post(s).
They’ll then ask their own followers to participate based on your established rules and guidelines for entry. You can then cross-promote the ambassador’s post on your own account to maximize the contest’s reach. Pro-tip: Instagram Stories are great for this!
These contests usually require entrants to follow the brand and the ambassador’s Instagram accounts. Then, participants might do a combination of the following to enter:
Below is an example of a detailed brand ambassador post for a SmartSweets giveaway.
Source: @destiney.schriver
Here’s another example of a brand ambassador giveaway from TooFaced. Entrants were required to follow both the ambassador and brand while also tagging two friends for a chance to win.
Source: @ionmakeupofficial
There’s no denying that contests do require careful planning to set up. To make content ideas like this count, you need to be thoughtful about the fine details of your campaign. Ask yourself:
Giveaways are unique on our list of brand ambassador campaign ideas because of the creator's level of involvement. If you can take care of the prizes and technical details, you’d be surprised at what ambassadors can come up with.
3. Host an Ambassador Takeover on Your Account
Ambassador account takeovers are fun to watch and represent a break from your usual content.
The concept is simple enough. That is, a brand ambassador “takes over” your brand’s Instagram by publishing their content on your page. Of course, this is a collaborative effort rather than a true “takeover.”
A well-done takeover represents a win-win for brands and ambassadors alike. Done right, both parties boost their exposure and awareness.
And thankfully, you don’t need a dedicated brand ambassador program to run a takeover.
Let’s look at an example. Publishing house Little, Brown and Company let their authors serve as ambassadors to host takeovers. This introduces readers to new authors and generates buzz for upcoming books.
Source: @littlebrown
In terms of ambassador post ideas, you’re spoiled for choice during takeovers. For example, In-Feed Posts, Reels and Stories are all fair game. Many takeovers involve creators livestreaming, demoing products or conducting Q&As with followers.
Again, the best takeovers encourage interactions between ambassadors and brands. Sending your followers to their content and vice-versa is like candy to the Instagram algorithm.
It’s no secret that Instagram Stories are among the platform’s most popular features.
Since Stories feel authentic and off-the-cuff, they’re an awesome place to showcase your ambassadors. This serves as an opportunity to promote your best creators and likewise empower them to show off your products in action. Stories lend themselves to day-in-the-life-style posts.
Many brands use their Stories Highlights as a place to republish their ambassador’s content. Doing so means getting more mileage out of your creators’ content after the initial 24-hour period.
.For example, Glow Recipe publishes Stories featuring ambassadors showcasing their personal skincare routines. These “evergreen” Stories can be seen by old and new followers alike as they’re static on the brand’s Instagram page.
Source: @glowrecipe
Aerie is a brand known for their robust ambassador program indicated by the #aerieREAL tag. These ambassadors range from Olympic athletes to everyday fans of the brand. Below is an example of how an ambassador uses Instagram Stories to show off products:
Source: @jennacurran
In this case, the ambassador also has a Stories Highlight feed for her branded content. This includes Reels, Posts and Stories featuring her #aerieREAL product recommendations.
5. Encourage Relatability in Your Brand Ambassador Posts
The best ambassador campaigns aren’t always in-your-face about products.
Ambassadors can create a connection with your target audience by telling relatable stories. Done right, this can make product mentions more subtle. Talking about pain points or simply showing off products in real-world situations can help.
For example, this Lamer ambassador shows off her human side by explaining how excited she is to partner with the brand.
Source: @julie_khuu
Below is another example from an Orgain brand ambassador. Although this post isn’t trying to hide that it’s a promotion, the caption doesn’t make it feel “salesy.” The conversational tone and relatable details make the post feel much more meaningful. This highlights how compelling simple storytelling can be.
Source: @_mochahontas
These brand ambassador content ideas all highlight how working with real people helps you speak your audience’s language. When in doubt, give them the creative freedom to do exactly that.
If you’re stuck on what your ambassadors should post, hopefully our content ideas have inspired you!
These are just a handful of brand ambassador campaigns to test drive, by the way.
But no matter which promotions you pick, partnering with a high volume of relevant creators is crucial to making your it all work. Brands today need hundreds of creators on deck, not just a handful.
We know firsthand just how time-consuming it is to build an ambassador program from scratch. Sifting through applications and cold-pitching creators probably isn’t the best use of your time, right?
If your brand needs creator content at scale, Statusphere’s software can help.
Our micro-influencer marketing platform matches brands with creators using 250+ first-party data points. Through our vetted creator community and streamlined fulfillment technology, Statusphere helps brands earn guaranteed content at scale.
We built our software specifically to support brands with an always-on influencer strategy. We’ve already generated 75,000+ pieces of content for 400+ brands.
Want to learn more about how our platform works? Get in touch with one of our experts to see how we can optimize your consumer marketing campaigns with guaranteed content at scale.
This article was first published in October 2018. It was last updated July 2, 2022.
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