Athlete Influencers + Sporting Events = Big Win for Brands

How Brands Can Win Big Partnering with Athlete Influencers During Sporting Events


The summer of 2024 is an exciting time in the world of sports. The success formula is as follows: Athlete Influencers + Sporting Events = Big Win for Brands, and we show you how.

Germany recently hosted EURO 2024, the 17th edition of the UEFA European Championship, which wrapped up on 14 July. The 2024 Summer Olympics, 33rd Olympiad, will take place in Paris from 26 July to 11 August. The UCI Road and Para-cycling World Championships will be held in Zurich from 21 September to 29 September. Looking ahead to next summer, Switzerland will host the UEFA European Women’s Championship, from 2 July through 27 July 2025.

Sports are always popular, but people seek additional sports-related content before and during these exciting global events.  We’ll provide tips for how your brand can score a “GOOOOOAAAAALLLL” with sports marketing. (Ha, couldn’t resist!) Throughout the article, we’ll also share Kingfluencers’ 10 best Swiss athlete influencers.

Benefits of Marketing with Sports Influencers & Creators

1. Increase your brand’s visibility

Many athletes create content on their own social media, so followers can enjoy watching their athletic prowess beyond official matches and races. Such athlete influencers are a natural fit with athletic brands, including shoes, apparel, and food and supplements. Followers of sports celebrities often engage in the same sport and therefore purchase the various gear required. Who better to recommend the best ski clothing than Swiss snowboarder Nicolas Huber? In addition to ski apparel brand Oneskee, Nicolas promotes health drinks and the Hürlimannbad & Spa in Zürich. He shares his global adventures, occasionally wearing make up like The Joker, complete with the purple suit. Pat Burgener is also a snowboarder and a two-time Olympian as well as musician and actor. He has worked with brands such as Swatch, FOCUSWATER, and Visa.

Athlete influencers provide brands with a way to stand out from the noise. Influencers give brands a real face that people relate to and help connect to consumers. Kickboxing champion Janosch Nietlispach shares adventures with his family and fitness routines in addition to promoting Gatorade, Migros, and BMW, or as Samsung ambassador, also for the Youth Olympic Games. Professional football player Ana Markovic is also an entrepreneur who is launching her own brand of innovative vegan protein water, RELOADZ.  With Kingfluencers, Ana is part of the Ochsner Shoes annual campaign

As followers enjoy both playing their sport and engaging with the influencers’ content, your brand can benefit from this connection. Athlete influencers can help you engage with their audience, sharing relatable brand messaging and building brand loyalty.

Tamara Glück Gonzalez, Teamlead Influencer Strategy & Relations at Kingfluencers, also states:

“It is highly advisable to integrate athletes into the influencer mix for certain campaigns. They hold significant PR relevance, and their followers, who admire them for their athletic achievements and image, view them as role models. These athletes often have a large reach and a strong connection to their community within their country, making them especially suited for long-term image campaigns. Additionally, their accounts become particularly attractive during sports events, as the momentum can be leveraged with creative storytelling.”

2. Connect with communities you may not reach otherwise

There’s no reason for sports influencers to limit their brand partnerships to the realm of sports. Athletes can be particularly helpful in connecting your brand with communities you may not reach otherwise.

From handbags and skincare to cars and travel, athletes consume many products and services, and their followers are interested in their endorsements and insights. But also values can be transported. For example, swimmer Noam Yaron uses world records in swimming to draw attention to the environmental pollution of the oceans. He has been collaborating with Kingfluencers for many years, including in the yallo campaign or Emmi Caffè Latte. Artistic gymnast and three-time Olympian Giulia Steingruber partners with Zak, the first real Swiss bank on your smartphone, or with Kingfluencers for Granini Hohes C. Swiss sprinter Sarah Atcho-Jaquier and two times Olympian partnered with Kingfluencers for the Gatorade campaign or Soda Stream. Snowboarder and three-time Swiss Olympian David Hablützel shares his athletic adventures as well as humorous content and promotes the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip6 phone or Dry Migros products. Some athlete influencers also partner with luxury brands. Tennis player and Olympic gold and silver medalist Belinda Bencic has worked with Mercedes and Bongenie Grieder. With Kingfluencers, she has been acting as a brand ambassador for L’Oréal Paris.

Sarah Schmid, Head of Marketing at Kingfluencers, makes aware of the role social media has played in making highlights, storylines, and community more accessible, breaking down barriers and allowing fans to watch any sport through infinite streams and channels:

“Niche communities are the heartbeat of sports marketing. By tapping into these passionate and engaged groups, brands can build authentic connections and drive loyalty that extends far beyond the game. It’s not just about the numbers; it’s about creating meaningful, lasting relationships.”

3. Partner with athlete influencers during major sporting events for a boost

Of course, brands can work with athlete influencers at any time, but partnering with athletes during major sporting events can result in a synergistic boost to your campaign. 

Even though these are competitions, the rivalries are generally friendly, and global audiences watch with good will. The huge visibility of these championship events delivers great opportunities for brands to generate buzz around your product or service in a fun atmosphere, surrounded by people enjoying themselves. #Euro2024 was tagged in more than 1.7 million Instagram posts and two million TikToks.

People also typically enjoy food and drinks while watching a sporting event. Conveniently, a football match lasts as long as Zweifel Chips’ new limited edition 90-minute pack. In a recent campaign, Kingfluencers’ creators demonstrated their creative ways to unbox this perfect snack for friends and family to enjoy together.

Member of the Swiss national women’s football team Alayah Pilgrim has promoted Coca-Cola. With Kingfluencers, she has implemented almost 60 influencer campaigns, including many for L’Oréal as brand ambassador for CeraVe and Garnier Skincare

Brands can also use influencers for pre-event promotions and live event coverage. In addition to excellent audience engagement, this can generate real-time interaction and feedback from fans.

Many major sporting events also stretch across several weeks and reach large worldwide audiences. Content creators can share authentic good vibes and promote your product in a way that doesn’t feel like a promotion. During Euro 2024, former football manager Harry Redknapp worked with LADbible and Walkers Crisps to promote its crisp pint for the summer of football, achieving a 2.51% engagement rate. According to CORQ., Redknapp also teamed up with Sorare to talk about its fantasy football league (0.04% engagement rate).

Digiday recently described Euro 2024 as “a big step change” for the areas advertisers will rely on. In addition to increases in television ad spending, “many brands are increasing their spend on influencer partnerships, and increasing paid social budgets to amplify influencer content and reach viewers on their second screens. That reflects shifts in sports viewing habits since the last Euros, which took place when TikTok was barely a feature in most marketing plans.”

Best Practices Marketing with Sports Influencers: Cross-Platform Activation

Maximize your reach by utilizing various platforms. In addition to social media channels like Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and X (formerly Twitter), consider incorporating OOH advertising options and TV. Partnering with Kingfluencers makes it easy to expand your campaigns. Kingfluencers’ TV Spots combine the power of video, TV, and influencer marketing. With our newest partnership and creation of a joint influence media network with Goldbach, we can extend any social media campaign to the content network – including online advertising in networks like 20 Minuten, TV, and even out-of-home, which covers a wide array of advertising options in Switzerland, such as billboards, digital displays, and megaposters.

The Link Between Your Brands & Creators

By working with athlete influencers, you can fuse the excitement of sporting events with authentic brand advocacy. With the proper strategy, the result is a synergy, with the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. Kingfluencers serves as a link between brands and creators. Reach out to us to explore how we can help you team up with influencers and creators  – ATHLETES or not –  to build campaigns that amplify your brand messages before, during, or after sports events, ensuring a seamless connection.

Kingfluencers’ 10 Best Swiss Athlete Influencers (no particular order)

  1. Member of the Swiss national women’s football team Alayah Pilgrim has also promoted Garnier skincare and Coca-Cola. With Kingfluencers, she has implemented almost 60 influencer campaigns, including L’Oréal as brand ambassador for CeraVe.
  2. Swiss snowboarder Nicolas Huber shares his global adventures, occasionally made up like The Joker – purple suit included. He works with brands including Oneskee ski apparel, health drinks, and the Hürlimannbad & Spa in Zürich. For Kingfluencers, he will be part of the new MSD campaign that goes live in summer, promoting the importance about HPV knowledge.
  3. Swiss sprinter Sarah Atcho-Jaquierr took part in the 4 × 100 meter relay at the 2015 World Championships in Beijing, the 2016 Olympic Games, and the 2017 World Championships in London and partnered with Kingfluencers for the Gatorade campaign or Soda Stream. She also partners with adidas, Maurice Lacroix or Raiffeisen.
  4. David Hablützel is also a snowboarder and three-time Swiss Olympian and shares his athletic adventures along with humorous content. Dave promotes the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip6 phone and Chiefs’ vitamin milk. For Kingfluencers, he did a cool brand activation for the Dry Migros Campaign
  5. Professional footballer Ana Markovic is also an entrepreneur who is launching her own brand of innovative vegan protein water, RELOADZ. For Kingfluencers, Ana is part of the Ochsner Shoes annual campaign

6. Kickboxing champion Janosch Nietlispach shares fitness routines, adventures with his family, and promotes different brands from BMW to Nivea personal care products. With Kingfluencers he has implemented over 70 campaigns, including as Samsung ambassador, also for the Youth Olympic Games, for comparis, Gatorade, and Migros.

7. Swimmer Noam Yaron uses world records in swimming to draw attention to the environmental pollution of the oceans. He has been collaborating with Kingfluencers for many years, including in the yallo campaign or Emmi Caffè Latte.

8. Tennis player and Olympic gold and silver medalist Belinda Bencic has worked with Mercedes and Bongenie Grieder. For Kingfluencers, she was part of multiple L’Oréal Paris campaigns.

9. Pat Burgener is a snowboarder and two-time Olympian as well as musician and actor. He has worked with brands such as Swatch, FOCUSWATER, and Visa.

10. Artistic gymnast and three-time Olympian Giulia Steingruber partners with Zak, the first real Swiss bank on your smartphone. With Kingfluencers, she was part of the Granini Hohes C campaign.

PostFinance Case Study

Check out our latest Case Study we did with PostFinance. To navigate the case study, simply click on the arrows in the document and enjoy!


Post Finance Success Story EN

Check out more of Kingfluencers case studies and build your own success story with us.

Kingfluencers presents an engaging series of “Case Study” articles, exploring successful collaborations with diverse brands from different sectors and industries. Consumer Goods, Beauty, Finance, Tech, Gaming, Retail, Fashion, Insurance or NGOs, we’ve got it covered. Explore these articles to discover how Kingfluencers helps companies achieve impressive outcomes in the realms of influence – from influencer marketing on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, LinkedIn or beyond.

The success stories with Mondelez for Oreo Batman, V6 or Philadelphia, as well as Nestlé for Cini Minis Churros, Paramount Pictures’ Babylon case study, Garden Gourmet, or hohes C Super Shots unveil the secrets of creating viral content and attracting new customers and follower growth while generating buzz for new product launches.

Our cases with L’Oréal on Instagram and TikTok demonstrate how Kingfluencers blends creative strategies with influence to promote a brand – from yearly campaigns to get-ready events.

Ever heard of our Influencer TV Spot and ready to make use an omni-channel marketing approach thanks to a brand new advertising format? Check out our yearly campaign highlights of our success story with Ochsner, that also includes our premieres of the Influencer TV Spot on SRF 2 with Alison Liaudat & Whiteny Toyloy and SRF 1 with Christa Rigozzi.

If you would like to learn more about specific sectors your brand is present in, make sure to check our our sector-specific case studies – covering:

Your brand is not only home in Switzerland but present in DACH? We’ve got you covered. Dive into one of our first cases for Germany with Neoperl and Miele Deutschland.

We’ve got even more news. Influencer marketing only works for B2C brands? Not for us. We assure you that B2B brands can benefit from influencer marketing and brand ambassador programs even more, see for yourself in our first B2B case with a Swiss Telecommunications brand.

Together, these case studies provide a comprehensive view of Kingfluencer’s ability to achieve successful results in various industries and sectors.

Finance Influencers Provide Education Consumers Are Clamoring For

Brands in industries like fashion, beauty, and travel have worked with influencers for years now to give their brands a real face that people relate to, stand out from the noise, and connect to consumers. People are increasingly turning to social media for guidance on a wide variety of topics, including finance. A “finfluencer” is an influencer who creates finance-related content that advises consumers on topics such as personal finance, stock market trading, and mutual funds.

Rise in Self-Directed Investing

“DIY” is an increasingly popular approach to investing. Inyova conducted one of the largest Swiss research projects on investment habits to date. When asked, “Who manages your investments?” 55% selected, “I manage it myself.”

Unfortunately, self-directed investing isn’t always conducted with a solid data-based strategy. According to a survey commissioned by the German financial regulator BaFin, 30% of people under 40 had invested money using “copy trading” in the past two years (copying the trading strategies of supposedly successful investors.)

There has been very little financial education geared toward helping the average consumer get up to speed, leaving people struggling with a lack of financial literacy. Finfluencers have been stepping in to fill this need. The Financial Times writes, “A jump in self-directed investing has been partly propelled by a surge in the sway of financial influencers.

Cynthia Hofmann, Senior Marketing Manager at PostFinance: We have noticed a growing interest in financial topics at PostFinance. This has been particularly evident in recent years with the increased focus on “women and finance”. At the same time, the crypto boom has also awakened young people’s interest in financial matters. The availability of numerous neobanks, which are primarily accessible via apps, has made banking simpler and cheaper. For example, pension accounts or funds can be opened with just a few clicks, often on more favorable terms than with traditional banks. The rising cost of living is also forcing many people to take a closer look at financial matters.

Significant Need for Financial Guidance

Income, assets, and savings rates have increased in Switzerland in recent years. According to a ZHAW study, three-quarters of Swiss people also feel comfortable with their financial situation. However, a staggering 44% of Swiss people have never made financial investment, despite 86% of Swiss people being willing to save and plan. 70% state their reason for not investing is a lack of financial literacy. 

Brands can fill this gap by serving as that trusted source of knowledge, which can empower consumers to feel comfortable making investments. By partnering with an established finfluencer, brands can benefit from their accessibility, trust, and reach to educate their target audience and turn them into customers.

Significant Need for Financial Guidance

Income, assets, and savings rates have increased in Switzerland in recent years. According to a ZHAW study, three-quarters of Swiss people also feel comfortable with their financial situation. However, a staggering 44% of Swiss people have never made financial investment, despite 86% of Swiss people being willing to save and plan. 70% state their reason for not investing is a lack of financial literacy. 

Brands can fill this gap by serving as that trusted source of knowledge, which can empower consumers to feel comfortable making investments. By partnering with an established finfluencer, brands can benefit from their accessibility, trust, and reach to educate their target audience and turn them into customers.

Finance Chat is Taboo

How to manage and grow your personal wealth can be a complex topic, one which many people are uncomfortable discussing. Only 26% of respondents to the ZHAW study would like to talk about finance, even with good acquaintances.These substantial gaps in both investments, finance knowledge, and trusted sources of advice represent huge opportunities for brands that can help educate consumers. Influencers who provide easily digestible pieces of content can help audiences gradually climb the learning curve.

Finfluencers Provide Needed Advice

Many influencers are already supporting their followers’ journeys to financial wellness for free. According to an October 2021 Bloomberg article, “Wall Street ‘finfluencers’ are earning more than bankers.” For example, UK-based “Self-made millionaire” Mark Tilbury provides “money and success tips” to 7.1M followers on TikTok and 2.25M subscribers on YouTube.

With people hungry for insights and guidance, finfluencers such as Faares Quadri can grow large followings. Quadri has over 2.7M followers on TikTok where he breaks common financial concepts and instruments down and walks his audience through the specifics. 

ellexx founder Patrizia Laeri shared her views on the advantage of finfluencers compared to traditional financial education: “At ellexx, we comprehensively empower women financially and guide them without any financial jargon, always at eye level with lovingly designed, appealing, and stirring articles, research, checklists, and tools.”

The SIX Group, which operates the infrastructure for Swiss financial centers including the Swiss exchange, has recognized the value of finfluencers. SIX asked Swiss financial bloggers, Stefan Huser, Melina Scheuber, Reto Stalder and Fabio Marchesin to participate in a panel discussion at the 2022 BörsenTalk Flagship Event with the mission of introducing the audience to their “infotainment” work. The group shared origin stories and discussed various, sometimes controversial, topics such as the tension between independence and commerce, and why the most important blog articles are not the most successful.

Cynthia Hofmann, Senior Marketing Manager at PostFinance: Finfluencers have become a central figure in the field of financial education. With information flooding the internet, they differentiate themselves through their independence and reputation for neutral opinion. This makes them a valued resource for many individuals. In contrast to traditional banks, which are often perceived as distant, finfluencers communicate in a way that is familiar to their followers.

Financial Feminism

The Inyova survey found that 65% of Swiss women have never invested, compared to just 20% of men – a fact that numerous finfluencers are working to rectify. This social shift inspired the establishment of companies like ellexx universe AG, who are focusing on closing the gender investment gap by encouraging women to learn to invest. The fintech company offers coaching, money hacks courses, checklists, financial products, and daily articles. 

Kingfluencers asked Patrizia Laeri about the increasing public interest in finance. “When we launched our platform two and a half years ago, ‘women and finance’ were hardly a topic in Switzerland. Now, more and more traditional banks are jumping on the bandwagon, trying to appeal to women. However, their executive boards and boards of directors remain predominantly male. This is ‘pinkwashing’ and not credible. In Western Europe and North America, women control 75 percent of purchasing decisions. Consumption means influence. And investing means even greater influence. Nonetheless, a lot has changed. The topic is present and the offerings for women are increasing. ”

Finfluencers Must be Credible

All influencers must disclose when posts are paid brand promotions, but financial content brings added complexity. Stylish influencers can recommend products such as eyeglasses, food, and makeup, sharing their photos and recipes. Exaltations that a product is comfortable, delicious, or beautiful are all personal opinions, but finfluencers are making statements which could be factually incorrect, particularly if they run afoul of investing laws.

Sortlist surveyed 1,000 users who follow health and financial influencers to understand their impact on purchasing decisions compared to the recommendations of experts from those sectors. 

1 in 5 users trust influencers more than their doctors and financial advisors. 46.51% of German respondents said that the help of financial influencers had a positive impact on their investment decisions.

The Sortlist study described the role specialists and influencers can both play in helping communities. “Overall, the easy access to influencers makes them the ideal source of inspiration, sparking the first desire to change lifestyle or develop a routine.” People turn to professionals for more details as well as the personalized service they can provide.

Money expert Tori Dunlap is a successful, inspiring finfluencer who doesn’t have a traditional financial background. Tori founded Her First $100K with a mission of leading the financial feminist movement. With a best-selling book, popular podcast, social media campaigns, and live speaking engagements, Tori and her team guide audiences through making more, spending less, and feeling financially confident.

Tips for Working with Finfluencers

Kingfluencers recently wrote about how to select and work with an expert influencer. When considering partnering with any influencer, it’s important to view their track record. With experts, including finfluencers, you should additionally evaluate their formal credentials. Do they have the requisite education?

Formal certifications give a finfluencer more credibility. However, a variety of laws cover what financial advice finance professionals are permitted to give publicly. Many finfluencers are simply individuals proficient in personal finance. In this landscape, it’s difficult for brands to determine who would be a good potential partner. Working with an experienced influencer marketing agency like Kingfluencers substantially lowers your risk of collaborating with someone short on credibility and ending up in a PR disaster.Brands may also want to consider providing some compliance training for finfluencers prior to campaign kick-off. CFA advises, “Investment companies that use finfluencers should provide them with compliance training if not already doing so and ensure that finfluencers clearly disclose when they are promoting content or are sponsored.”

Brands Succeed Partnering with Finfluencers

CFA took a deep dive into the world of finfluencers and wrote that some financial firms are hiring finfluencers to engage with young investors (those aged 18–25). The NAGA platform, a German fintech company, says it cooperates with up to a hundred finfluencers.

In India, the top finfluencers have more YouTube subscribers than new-age broking firms. Considering India’s low financial literacy rate of 27%, these content creators play a vital role in educating citizens. Leading broking firms are engaging popular finfluencers to reach out to potential investors.

A Swiss Success Story

Credit Suisse is a recent Kingfluencers success story with CSX App, a secure remote banking solution

  • Impressions: More than 2.2 M
  • Reach: More than 1.3 M
  • Engagement-Rate: 3.2%
  • The campaign reached 3.7k link clicks

Mobiliar with combining a creative contest with Influencer Marketing.

  • Impressions: More than 500 K
  • Reach: +26% vs forecasted
  • The inclusion of the creative contest generated more than 80k website visits.

Generali insurance’s podcast episode about women and pension.

  • Impressions: More than 240 K
  • Reach: More than 130 K
  • The campaign reached +70% vs forecasted on link clicks.

 View the case study to see successful campaigns from numerous Kingfluencers’ clients in the banking and insurance sectors.

Expert Influencers Raise Your Brand’s Credibility: Why & How to Work with Them

We’ve written often about the importance of authenticity and credibility. Expert influencers are uniquely suited to help elevate your brand’s credibility. We’ll explain what expert influencers are, how they differ from their traditional counterparts, and how to select and work with them.

What are Expert Influencers?

Experts are people with extensive knowledge and/or skills in one particular area. They’re viewed as authorities, but may not always have the largest social media following. With extensive professional acumen, experts are typically informative more than aspirational.

Focused on their primary area of study or practice, they may not often engage in activities that build an audience on purpose, such as posting new content frequently and following trends. Even experts with a smaller following can be valuable partners, as they lend their credibility to your brand, helping you gain trust from your audience.

Fabio A. Marchesin, better known as Finanzfabio, said, “As an expert financial planner, I feel a certain pressure to create more added value and, above all, to provide correct information. My aim is to create a clean basis and then go into more depth to provide thought processes that no one else can offer. While my work is intended to serve non-professionals, my colleagues in the financial sector also find it useful for further training or exam preparation.”

Quality Over Quantity – Expertise is More Important Than Follower Count

Many brands partner with celebrity influencers in order to reach millions while gaining the personal endorsement of a popular individual. However, some consumers have become disillusioned with outmoded influencers who can be artificial and unrelatable while excessively pushing products. According to Trustpilot, celebrity influencers have the lowest level of trust among consumers – two-thirds (67% in the US and 65% in the UK) describe their level of trust in this source of information as ‘low’.

Expert influencers can serve as an antidote. 41% of consumers trust expert reviews, whereas only 13% trust advertising.

Veronica Kiriak, Doctor and Content Creator, shared her views on how brands and followers have different expectations of experts as compared to classic creators. “As a doctor and influencer at the same time, you have to act a little differently than classic creators. I choose my collaboration partners very carefully and always pay attention to legal and medical principles. Brands often place particular value on the authenticity of my medical expertise, while my followers are primarily looking for reliable information. It requires a balance to meet the expectations of both sides.”

How Do Expert Influencers Help Brands?

Collaborating with people who bring the credibility of formal education and expert credentials can help brands stand out, and can be particularly advantageous in the beauty industry. As marketer Polly Petrova writes “the beauty sector has become more cautious when it comes to collaborating with influencers. It seems the industry is trying to lessen the ‘influence’ of influencers.”

Many beauty influencers post their personal daily skincare routines and preferred brands. However, a dermatologist brings exceptional credibility, with a trustworthiness that’s hard to beat. Dr. Liv Kraemer shares best and easy #skincare routine tips with her more than 243K TikTok followers. Dr. Liv also sells products made in Switzerland that she developed inspired by decades of dermatology insight.

When partnering with an expert, your brand benefits from their credibility in addition to gaining access to their audience. Experts can be especially skilled at explaining complex concepts and bringing clarity to technical jargon. “Finanz Fabio” provides financial education on his podcast and shares podcast snippets on TikTok, along with street interviews he conducts.

Expert influencers also fulfill the need for industry-specific knowledge that B2B buyers have throughout lengthy, complex sales processes.

Experts Influencers Continue Working in Their Profession

For many traditional influencers, social media content creation and brand partnerships are their primary sources of income. OTOH, experts make a living with careers distinct from social media. For example, dermatologist Dr. Liv still sees patients in her clinic and Fabio provides personal financial consulting services.

Continuing to work in their profession means expert influencers:

  • Keep their knowledge current
  • Have new real-world experiences
  • Must maintain a positive reputation

The need to maintain their reputation prevents experts from promoting brands they don’t believe in, further strengthening their trustworthiness with audiences. Regardless of what percentage of their income is generated by content creation, their influencer career relies on their professional credibility. It’s not worth risking any threat to that credibility for a questionable brand partnership.

Veronica Kiriak said, “My content creation process requires more research to ensure my medical statements are accurate. At the same time, I try to present the information in an entertaining and accessible way to keep my community’s attention. I have high expectations of myself, especially in terms of the quality and accuracy of my medical advice. It’s important to be transparent when it comes to the boundaries of my expertise and to always create a safe space for questions from my followers.”

How to Select and Work with an Expert Influencer

1. Start with your Marketing Goals

We’ve discussed how expert influencers differ from their traditional counterparts, but when partnering with any influencer, your goal is still to build digital brand equity. While some aspects may differ, it’s important not to abandon your existing processes for building successful campaigns.

Alter your Influencer Evaluation Criteria & Examine Their Credentials

When considering partnering with any influencer, it’s important to view their track record. With experts, you should additionally evaluate their formal credentials. Do they have the requisite education? Are they certified with the relevant board, such as with surgeons and architects? Can you confirm that after obtaining both the education and credentials, they also have real-world experience working in the field? 

2. Pitch Your Brand to the Expert

Considering their need to carefully guard their reputation, experts can be particularly discerning about the brands they work with. You may have to invest time in selling your brand to the expert. This could involve a more detailed, technical analysis of your product, such as examining ingredients or production processes.

3. Be Flexible with Payment Structure & Recognize Added Value

Again, brand promotions aren’t their primary focus, so you may need to compensate experts with a different type of payment structure. Scrunch advises, “…they might be more expensive as you are really purchasing their time, experience, and credibility. Almost think of it as paying a consultant, rather than an influencer.” The value you receive from working with an expert extends beyond access to their community. Your brand earns a seal of approval from a knowledgeable expert. These engagements might also be longer term.

4. Maximize Use of Their Expertise

Instead of asking them to merely promote your product, think of additional ways their expertise can benefit your brand. Ask them to sit for an interview, speak at a conference or webinar, write a blog with their top tips, or provide feedback on your new product innovations.

5. Make the Content Keep Working for you

Increase the value of these collaborations with performance marketing (boosting content to reach even higher KPIs). Consider multi-touch attribution models and use every channel strategically.

Get Started with the Best Expert Influencer Matches for Your Brand

As the leading full-service influencer marketing agency in Switzerland and beyond, Kingfluencers can help you select and collaborate with influencers of all types, whether B2C, B2B, expert, or traditional. We help give brands a real face that people relate to, stand out from the noise, and connect to consumers. 

air up Case Study

Check out our latest Case Study we did with air up. To navigate the case study, simply click on the arrows in the document and enjoy!


AirUp Success Story EN

Check out more of Kingfluencers case studies and build your own success story with us.

Kingfluencers presents an engaging series of “Case Study” articles, exploring successful collaborations with diverse brands from different sectors and industries. Consumer Goods, Beauty, Finance, Tech, Gaming, Retail, Fashion, Insurance or NGOs, we’ve got it covered. Explore these articles to discover how Kingfluencers helps companies achieve impressive outcomes in the realms of influence – from influencer marketing on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, LinkedIn or beyond.

The success stories with Mondelez for Oreo Batman, V6 or Philadelphia, as well as Nestlé for Cini Minis Churros, Paramount Pictures’ Babylon case study, Garden Gourmet, or hohes C Super Shots unveil the secrets of creating viral content and attracting new customers and follower growth while generating buzz for new product launches.

Our cases with L’Oréal on Instagram and TikTok demonstrate how Kingfluencers blends creative strategies with influence to promote a brand – from yearly campaigns to get-ready events.

Ever heard of our Influencer TV Spot and ready to make use an omni-channel marketing approach thanks to a brand new advertising format? Check out our yearly campaign highlights of our success story with Ochsner, that also includes our premieres of the Influencer TV Spot on SRF 2 with Alison Liaudat & Whiteny Toyloy and SRF 1 with Christa Rigozzi.

If you would like to learn more about specific sectors your brand is present in, make sure to check our our sector-specific case studies – covering:

Your brand is not only home in Switzerland but present in DACH? We’ve got you covered. Dive into one of our first cases for Germany with Neoperl and Miele Deutschland.

We’ve got even more news. Influencer marketing only works for B2C brands? Not for us. We assure you that B2B brands can benefit from influencer marketing and brand ambassador programs even more, see for yourself in our first B2B case with a Swiss Telecommunications brand.

Together, these case studies provide a comprehensive view of Kingfluencer’s ability to achieve successful results in various industries and sectors.

Greenpeace Case Study

Check out our latest Case Study we did with Greenpeace. To navigate the case study, simply click on the arrows in the document and enjoy!


Greenpeace repair Success Story EN

Check out more of Kingfluencers case studies and build your own success story with us.

Kingfluencers presents an engaging series of “Case Study” articles, exploring successful collaborations with diverse brands from different sectors and industries. Consumer Goods, Beauty, Finance, Tech, Gaming, Retail, Fashion, Insurance or NGOs, we’ve got it covered. Explore these articles to discover how Kingfluencers helps companies achieve impressive outcomes in the realms of influence – from influencer marketing on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, LinkedIn or beyond.

The success stories with Mondelez for Oreo Batman, V6 or Philadelphia, as well as Nestlé for Cini Minis Churros, Paramount Pictures’ Babylon case study, Garden Gourmet, or hohes C Super Shots unveil the secrets of creating viral content and attracting new customers and follower growth while generating buzz for new product launches.

Our cases with L’Oréal on Instagram and TikTok demonstrate how Kingfluencers blends creative strategies with influence to promote a brand – from yearly campaigns to get-ready events.

Ever heard of our Influencer TV Spot and ready to make use an omni-channel marketing approach thanks to a brand new advertising format? Check out our yearly campaign highlights of our success story with Ochsner, that also includes our premieres of the Influencer TV Spot on SRF 2 with Alison Liaudat & Whiteny Toyloy and SRF 1 with Christa Rigozzi.

If you would like to learn more about specific sectors your brand is present in, make sure to check our our sector-specific case studies – covering:

Your brand is not only home in Switzerland but present in DACH? We’ve got you covered. Dive into one of our first cases for Germany with Neoperl and Miele Deutschland.

We’ve got even more news. Influencer marketing only works for B2C brands? Not for us. We assure you that B2B brands can benefit from influencer marketing and brand ambassador programs even more, see for yourself in our first B2B case with a Swiss Telecommunications brand.

Together, these case studies provide a comprehensive view of Kingfluencer’s ability to achieve successful results in various industries and sectors.

Beyond Influence: The Powerful Opportunities within Digital Influence

At Kingfluencers, we understand that influencer marketing is part of a much bigger field. We encourage brands to think beyond influence to digital brand equity. In this blog series, we’ll cover how brands can establish, strengthen, and grow long-term brand equity through digital influence programs. First, we’ll explain what we mean by that and what lies beyond traditional influence.

What is Digital Brand Equity?

Digital brand equity is the value of brand recognition and brand perception in the digital space. Digital brand equity is a core pillar to competitive advantage. It has a positive influence on people’s purchasing decisions and is a key determinant of the brand’s overall success. 

→ Defining factors for a brand’s digital equity include:

digital brand equity

What is Digital Influence?

Digital influence is the online equivalent of brand equity. It refers to a brand’s ability to affect and strengthen people’s perceptions, opinions, preferences, and decisions related to your brand versus competing ones. Digital influence is the ability of a brand to take ownership of the influence they have to impact perceptions and – most importantly– decisions.

Like digital brand equity, digital influence is a key determinant of the brand’s overall success. Digital influence strategies enhance your brand’s ability to take that control and ownership to shape perceptions. It is a means to an end. You can build digital brand equity through a variety of digital branding and influencer strategies.

By impacting decisions, you can drive revenue by encouraging people to:

  • Purchase your brand over competitors by building competitive advantage and elevating brand preference
  • Increase expenditures through upgrades and additional purchases
  • Remain loyal customers over time to increase customer loyalty, generate more revenue, and improve profitability
  • Recommend your brand to their friends by sparking intrinsic advocacy and strengthening your brand community
  • Work for your brand, enabling you to recruit and retain the best employees and strengthen your employer branding
digital presence

Digital Influence = Huge Component of Overall Brand Equity

For many brands, the majority of customer interactions take place online. That means your digital influence is nearly synonymous with brand equity. Simply put, what people think of you online is what people think of you. Those brands who master their digital brand equity as first movers will gain an immense advantage and outperform their competitors moving forward.

Beyond Social Media

An influencer posts a positive review of your brand on Instagram. A content creator features your product in an entertaining TikTok.

Great! 

Influencer campaigns are excellent tactics for increasing awareness and connecting with your audience.

But that’s just it… they’re tactics – individual components of what must be a larger strategy in order to really make a long-lasting impact. So, what separates effective brands from those throwing campaigns at the wall and hoping something sticks?

How Can Brands Build a Foundation of Digital Influence?

A brand’s equity depends on your visibility, how you’re perceived, and your ability to connect in consistent ways to your audiences in today’s complex digital ecosystem.

Consumers rank trust as a top buying consideration. 81% need to trust a brand to consider buying from it. Nielsen reported that 92% of consumers trust recommendations from friends and family, and 70% trust online reviews from strangers. A strong digital presence and positive online reputation can help strengthen brand equity, in turn influencing purchasing decisions.

Consumer checking out a brand on social media

Proper digital influence strategies and tactics draw their inherent power from word of mouth (WoM) marketing principles. Building digital influence involves magnifying and elevating the impact of WoM through digital amplification. Digital influence enables brands to turn a 1:1 process into 1:many while maintaining credibility. Shifting from one to many amplifies a brand’s influence, which drives exponential gains, making digital influence extremely powerful.

Digital influence programs must focus on strengthening the brand’s digital presence and thereby positively influencing brand awareness and perception. 

consumer browsing on social media

The Amplification Effect

Individual marketing initiatives, such as SEO, can give your brand a boost. But the most powerful strategies work collaboratively to amplify one another.

With numerous people-centric tactics focused on advocacy, WoM, and authentic storytelling, you can achieve an amplification effect. More people will discuss your brand, activate audiences and communities, building more intrinsic advocacy and WoM from consumers and partners. Like the famous “Flywheel” model, customers become advocates and promoters who feed growth as they move through the phases of attract, engage, and delight.

Key Components of Building Digital Brand Equity

A strong foundation must run deep and wide. 

Doing these following things well and for enough time will improve your brand reputation and drive increased online visibility. You’ll be able to increase knowledge of your brand, and impact perceptions of your brand versus others.

  • Use your existing brand equity

Make use of the equity you already have. Build upon your brand’s reputation and standing in the market. Get ahead of the narrative and consistently convey your brand’s unique selling propositions.

  • Be consistent

Have consistent, coherent messages across all digital channels. Those messages should also be in line with consumers’ offline experiences. Consistency is key. 41% of consumers say branding (messaging) consistency defines brand loyalty.

  • Run people-centric campaigns

The participation of numerous voices, along with a consistent story, helps create positive digital brand equity and therefore digital influence. Work with multiple advocates and storytellers who can promote your brand authentically, including employees and senior leadership. Capture and make use of user-generated content.

  • Harness the power of advocacy & word of mouth

Advocacy is a key ingredient. Consider personal branding and working with corporate ambassadors. With an integrated approach, you can take control of the narrative surrounding your brand and boost competitive advantage and growth. 

An effective digital influence program will include multiple tracks such as social media, influencer marketing, brand and corporate ambassadors, personal branding, content creation, including UGC, and performance marketing. While these tracks can each deliver results independently, a program is stronger when they’re all in alignment. More to come in part 2!

How To Choose The Right Influencer Marketing Agency In 2024

So, you’ve decided to use influencer marketing to grow your business, and you want the support of an agency. Influencer marketing is a wise choice. 89% of companies say their ROI from influencer marketing is comparable to or better than other marketing channels.

The right agency will certainly be able to get you impressive results with influencer marketing. Now in 2024, there are numerous agencies to choose from. All of them are promising to be the perfect fit for you. Many claim they can help you achieve your goals – guaranteed!

Unfortunately, it’s not that easy. Not every agency is equally professional and effective. Even some that are excellent still might not be a good fit for your business, for different reasons.

Influencer Marketing Agency Red Flags

No brand wants to work with a service provider that isn’t capable of getting beneficial results. You obviously don’t want to risk launching campaigns not backed by a proven process, with a high risk of failure.

If an agency is focused more on their own revenue streams than understanding your business’ unique situation and needs, the campaigns they run for you might fall flat.

Another issue to consider is chemistry. If the process of collaborating with the agency is unpleasant and filled with friction, you can end up very frustrated. You want to be working with humans who are open, who care, and who you can talk to and contact with your concerns at any time.

Likewise, you don’t want to end up working with someone who doesn’t use the latest technology and is unable to capture all the analytics that are required for running effective social media marketing campaigns.

After all, when you hire an influencer marketing agency, you are making an investment that’s supposed to pay off – you don’t want to be burning money and time on something that ends up being ineffective. Learn more about effective influencer marketing campaigns here. It’s worth putting the work in up front to evaluate influencer marketing agencies, so you can pick exactly the right fit out of the high-quality agencies out there.

We have created this guide to help you in that process, so you can make the right choice and experience the amazing results that influencer marketing can create for your business, while avoiding pitfalls.

Let’s dive in.

1. Get clear on what exactly you need from them

If you know what you are looking for, the chance of finding it increases significantly. This saying holds true for influencer marketing agencies too!

Every influencer marketing agency has different specialties, budget, and project size requirements. This is exactly why you should know your marketing goals and the goals you want to achieve together with the agency.

Once you have defined your goals, you can evaluate agencies through that framework, see how well they fulfill your criteria, and rank them accordingly.


The right agency will also be able to show you exactly how they are going to help you achieve your goals and do so convincingly. Find tips from Universal how to make influencer marketing work here.

2. Get to know their team

You can learn more about a company’s team by visiting the team section on agency websites, and viewing agency staff on LinkedIn.

During the consultation, you can ask who exactly would be working on your project.

Do they have the experience? And the ‘people skills’?


Look for team members who have relevant experience in running the types of influencer marketing campaigns you will be requesting. The goal here is to find an agency whose team is both qualified and pleasant to work with – this includes the human aspect of the relationship.

Team Meeting

3. Examine their process

Now, you want to have a deeper look at exactly how the influencer marketing agency you’re looking conducts their work. Their approach to any new project will tell you a lot about how successful they will be once they’re working for your brand.

How do influencer marketing agencies evaluate a project?

Find out how the agency treats any new customer’s project. Look for signs that you will get a strategy that’s not cookie-cutter, but uniquely tailored to your brand. A good agency is supposed to be very creative in adapting their process to you in a way that makes sense.

How are agencies kept accountable?

An important piece of information to know is if the agency has senior professionals supervise your project. It’s fine if some newer people are going to also work on your campaign – as long as they are being checked by those with more experience. At Kingfluencers, every client is supported by at least one senior professional, with over five years of experience in social media and influencer marketing, to balance the diligent efforts of our newer marketers.

When and for how long are agencies available to you each week?

Also, you want them to be available and accountable to you directly. This means you can reach them easily and there’s always space in their schedule to discuss matters with you. At Kingfluencers, we respond to client emails within the same or the next day, the latest.

Are agencies readily sharing this info with you? Will they be able to make their process work for your needs?


If an agency is being very opaque about what working with them looks like, that could be a red flag. It probably means they will – in spite of their promises – not be able to take your unique needs into account and craft a strategy that will actually get you the results.

4. Study their strategies

The best influencer marketing agencies use strategies that work.

What does that mean?
Are they planning for the long term?

Yes, a one-off influencer marketing initiative can be impactful. But the best agencies also specialize in running long-term campaigns that get your brand to the next level, and make sure it stays there sustainably. Obviously this depends on your goals and budget. 

But brand strategists who have experience creating more comprehensive strategies are always at least considering the long-term impact of any campaign they’re involved in, which is definitely a plus. 

Do they consider the big picture, or is your campaign going to be working in isolation?

Influencer marketing should not be a stand-alone measure. Social media touchpoints should lead to specific actions taken in the context of your campaign. 

A holistic, or integrated, approach is key and vastly superior to isolated strategies.

Does the influencer marketing agency in question commit to combining different outlets and marketing strategies in order to serve you best, or is there no mention of such an approach? Read about Kingfluencers focus on holistic, omnichannel storytelling.

Are they creative, hip to trends, and versatile in their tactics?

Influencer marketing is evolving quickly. New trends are popping up all the time. Anyone playing in this field must be highly creative and adaptive. The best agencies show they can capitalize on these trends, and are always finding the right kinds of messages and campaigns that fit the times. Constant reinvention is the name of the game in influencer marketing. 

You can gauge which agency possesses these qualities by reading their marketing materials and looking into their history and portfolio. For example, the best influencer marketing agencies are creating influencer partnerships that are even more interactive and collaborative than typical social media content – they are encouraging the audience to participate in new and fun ways.

Are they using the power of storytelling to full effect?

Again, you can tell by looking at how an influencer marketing agency talks about what they do. Do they grasp the vital importance of good, creative storytelling?
Effective influencer marketing evokes the right emotions and creates a special connection with the audience, which is best done through telling captivating stories. In order to do that, the content produced for you must be both creative and authentic – not feeling disingenuous in the slightest. The right influencer marketing agency is doing just that, and creating a precious opportunity for your brand to be connected with an engaged audience, leading to the result that you came for.

5. Screen their technology

What is their campaign management like?

Starting a campaign for you is one thing – managing it successfully is another. Check out how the agency in question is going to handle managing your project. If they are doing it right, they will be using sophisticated technology in order to keep up with and manage your influencer campaign.

They should have the latest technologies and best practices at their fingertips. Digital marketing agencies need to be familiar with the latest software, because tools such as Upfluence, Modash or Creator IQ, for example, are useful to achieve faster results through deep insights. At Kingfluencers, we have our own developed tools with which we can simplify our work, because we do everything within the system, from influencer research and sourcing, to campaign reporting and beyond predicting ROI. Thanks to the advantage that our system is based on data truth – e.g., through creating automated briefings and analysis – both, influencers and clients, share and get insights, so every process and crucial step is happening within our system based on the included real-time data.

Are they performance driven?

This means they are paying attention to and tracking the correct metrics – and have processes and strategies in place to learn from these analytics and use their learnings to adjust and improve your initiative.

Familiarity with other third-party data sources and creative tools is also helpful. Ultimately, this helps your brand gain more popularity through better campaigns – both in terms of creativity and effectiveness.

Reporting von KPIs

6. Learn about their network of influencers

Technology, team, and tactics aside, what can really make or break your influencer marketing campaign is what kind of influencers you end up working with.

Of course, picking the right influencers for you should be a core competency of an influencer marketing agency!

But there is a little more to it.

Here’s how you can evaluate whether they will be able to connect you with the best people for the job, or whether there is a chance they’ll leave you with a mismatch that’ll end up hurting your marketing efforts:

How large of a network do they have?

While this does not directly ensure the quality of those contacts, a decent-sized network at least means that the agency has put in the work of creating many connections and has been working in this field for a good amount of time already. If the network they are working with isn’t large, they won’t have as many choices of influencers to find exactly the right ones for you. 

Are all the influencers carefully vetted? What’s their vetting process like?

It’s true, people trust influencers – but only those who have shown to actually be deserving of their trust. It’s the agency’s job to filter for influencers with integrity and who are not just out to make a quick buck while carelessly disrespecting their audience and the brands they represent.

A good influencer marketing agency will take the time to get to know each and every one of their content creators. They might accomplish that task with personal onboardings, influencer trainings, and co-creation workshops. That way they’ll make sure to connect you only with quality, committed, and authentic people to represent your brand.

Will they be able to pick the right type of influencer for the job?

Do they have access to nano-, micro- and macro-influencers and can they offer the type of channel that is right for your goals? For example, while nano- and micro-influencers have a much smaller following, they are able to create a much closer connection between your brand and their community, because they are highly trusted and their audience engagement is typically much higher.

When an influencer and their following are a great fit for your brand, you have the chance to create amazing content that leads to extraordinary results.

How do they ensure quality control and accountability for their influencers?

This requires functional working relationships with their network, as well as processes for managing the workflow. See if you can find out about their process for ensuring influencer accountability.

7. Review their portfolio & skills

The influencer marketing agency you hire should have the skills you need to achieve your goals, whether it’s generating more quality leads, increasing online sales, increasing store visits, or getting more website visitors.

Do they demonstrate a deep understanding of the relevant platforms and what good content looks like?

The only way to get results is to hire an agency that has mastered the art of creating engaging and targeted influencer marketing campaigns.

You can make sure this is the case by checking out the content they’ve produced in the past.

8. Check their social proof

The best way for you to check if the agency is reputable and gets results is to look at their history and portfolio of past work. Finished work, after all, is the best demonstration of skills – far superior to any marketing promises.

Do they have a high-caliber, diverse portfolio?

The portfolio is the ideal way for the agency to showcase their best work. This will help you get an idea of ​​what type of work they do and what type of clients they select.

What do their testimonials say?

Over 90% of clients look at testimonials before hiring an agency. Social proof is therefore an effective tactic for agencies to convert prospects into buyers. If you can’t find any testimonials on websites, it likely means:

  • The company may not have any previous customers
  • They are not the experts they claim to be

Good testimonials indicate that future customers may have a similar experience. Plus, agencies with happy clients shouldn’t have a hard time getting testimonials.

Be aware that testimonials on online review sites are easy to fake. Look for testimonials of past clients prominently featured on the agency’s website – they can’t afford to fake those!

Social proofs like testimonials and previous client reviews can be a great way to gain insight into an influencer agency’s work ethic.

Another great way to further vet an agency and ensure good collaboration is to get an idea of ​​the agency’s past customers. Get in touch with them and ask them about their experience working with the agency. In addition to helping you choose the right agency, these discussions could also give you insight into best practices to copy.

9. Discuss their prices

Finally, be sure to discuss prices and deliverables. This is the final piece of information that will tell you if an influencer agency can give you what you are looking for, in the right way, and at the right price.

It’s crucial to find the target groups that are most likely to be interested in your offer in order to keep the advertising costs per new customer as low as possible and thus win the most new customers for your budget.

Will they be able to align with your expectations regarding budget and deliverables?

Conclusion

Starting influencer marketing in your business can be a daunting task. If you don’t first get to really know the influencer marketing agency you’re going to work with, your efforts could end up being in vain and losses could occur.

It pays to hire the best, most experienced influencer marketing experts to help you achieve your goals. You need someone who can create exciting influencer campaigns and deliver them accurately to convert your audience into customers.

To keep up in a dynamic field like social media marketing and successfully work with third parties influencers, it’s best to work with an agency with proven expertise.

Check out our blog and follow Kingfluencers for our upcoming articles.

Author: Megan Bozman, Owner @Boz Content Marketing

What is a Social Media Influencer? Full Definition 2024

Table of Contents of a Social Media Influencers Definition article

  • The definition of “Social Media Influencer”
  • Who we could define as the first paid influencer
  • The definition of the modern influencer on social media
  • What qualifies someone as an influencer?
  • What is an example of a social media influencer?
  • The power of social media influencers – defined
  • What exactly does a social media influencer do?
  • Is being a social media influencer defined as a job?
  • Do influencers make a lot of money?
  • How influencers wield their influence: A definition
  • Defining the different categories of influencers
  • Influencers as defined by social media platform
  • Defining the most popular fields influencers work in
  • Conclusion

The term “influencer” is everywhere now, and it seems like every kid (even many adults!) wants to “work as an influencer” today.

But, is there any substance behind that term?

Or is “influencer” just another buzzword from the young generation? 

Let’s get rid of the ambiguity surrounding that word.

We’ll take a deep dive into the definition, what an influencer is, what they do, and how it all works.

Diving in… 

Who is an influencer? Broadly speaking, you’re considered an influencer if you have authority on a given topic. People listen to you and they’ll even emulate you because they respect and look up to you.

The definition of “influential”

What you do when you influence someone is “to cause someone to adopt or change a behavior, belief, or opinion.” 

When you’re an influential person, you can have this effect on a considerable number of people. You could call them your followers.

This influence can be used for many purposes. An influencer can steer his or her followers to take certain actions, start thinking in a certain way, or start taking out their wallets.

You can use influence for good or bad. While many influential people are ethical and responsible, some are not, and they can lead their followers to make bad decisions

Who we could define as the first paid influencer

While influencer marketing has been booming in recent years – its market size shot up from CHF1.7 Billion in 2016 to CHF13.8 Billion in 2021, the concept has been around for a very long time. The first recorded paid celebrity endorsement, what we could call the first case of influencer marketing in modern times, was Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle, who got hired to publicly endorse the Turkish cigarette brand Murad, in the year 1905.

The definition of the modern influencer on social media

The nature of media and celebrity has since transformed – but influencer marketing is going stronger than ever.

Nowadays, it’s no longer just celebrities who are acting as influencers endorsing products to their fans. Today influencers come in all shapes and sizes (as we’ll talk about later). Anyone with a sizable audience on social media who is trusted for their expertise, or even just liked for entertainment value, holds the power to change minds and should be considered an influencer. 

They can steer people’s opinions and buying decisions – because they are liked, and/or have authority in their niche. 

Brands love influencers, because their endorsements are a great way to generate awareness and build trust with an audience they might not otherwise be able to reach as easily and convincingly.

This has opened up great opportunities for those willing to put in the work to become social media influencers. Today, many have the goal of working in this unique type of “job.”

What qualifies someone as an influencer?

Anyone with at least a few hundred followers on social media, whose posts get good engagement from their audience, can be considered an influencer. Also, their content should be focused on a specific topic which they build authority around. 

This way, their audience knows to trust their opinion on this specific topic.

What is an example of a social media influencer?

Every niche has influencers. For example, Taulant aka T-Ronimo on TikTok stands out with over 168k followers. Zeki also focuses on comedy with his Instagram account Swissmeme. On it, he shares typical Swiss situations as memes, causing many laughs among his Swiss community. But other areas are also represented by great Swiss influencers, such as Mimoza in the fashion/beauty category or Martina Bisaz in travel. If you want to get to know more exciting Swiss influencers, you can find an exciting article here.

The power of social media influencers – defined

Influencers can do for a brand what a regular ad can’t do as easily. They can give an authentic endorsement that their audience will actually trust and follow.

“We want to do business with people or brands that we like and have forged a bond with over the years.” – Robert B. Cialdini, author of Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion.

This is why more and more brands are realizing the power of influencer marketing.

Alex Bolen, the chief executive of Oscar De La Renta, said: “It would not be an exaggeration to say that our handbag business has taken off through our engagement with the influencer community. Our production has doubled.”

Influencers get people to act – namely, to pull out their wallets in good faith. And that makes them very powerful. Even if they only have a modest-sized following.

What exactly does a social media influencer do?

It might look easy from the outside. Just take selfies with some products and rake in the money! Right? 

But there’s a lot that has to happen behind the scenes when you’re an influencer:

  • They create and manage their personal brand and their accounts
  • They craft their strategy and plan content
  • They prepare for shooting video and images – clothes, make-up, lighting, choosing the right locations and angles
  • They’re constantly engaging with their audience
  • They deal with existing brand partners and acquire new ones
  • In short: They run a legitimate, full-time business, often with multiple employees

Is being a social media influencer defined as a job?

If we’re being precise, influencers are not employees, but rather entrepreneurs. They are their own small, or in some cases, mid-sized, business. They themselves are responsible for creating everything surrounding their brand, managing it, and growing it. 

Even if they’re working with an agency or in a long-term contract with a brand, they have more responsibilities than many traditional employees. 

In this case, they are acting as a business that is contracting with another. 

Do influencers make a lot of money?

In many cases, yes. Typically, different-sized influencers make between CHF 200 and CHF 100,000 per post. A-list celebrities can even make up to CHF1 Million for one social media post! 

How much exactly they make depends on the niche, audience size, the influencer’s likeability and ability to sell, content quality and frequency, and what kinds of contracts they manage to get from brands.

Four ways influencers can make money

1. Doing affiliate marketing

The influencer endorses a product in their content, and they receive a percentage of any resulting sales.

This type of commission-based marketing is also performance-based.

The more sales the influencer drives, the more they earn for themselves. This is often done through giving out promo codes to their followers that they can enter to get a discount with a brand. The sale is then tied to the influencer’s affiliate account. 

Another way to do this is by providing a special link for the audience, but this works better on some social media platforms than others.

2. Getting money for each post

Content that is published as a collaboration between brands and influencers must be declared as a sponsored post for the transparency. The brand tells influencers which products/services they should talk about and how they should present their product. To ensure that the content is received by the target group, it is important that the influencer is given enough freedom in the creative design so that they can ensure that the posts fit into their feed and come across as authentic. The influencer is paid for the published content, which has been created in collaboration with a brand. How much an influencer earns depends on various factors, e.g. reach, Swiss Reach, content format, etc.

3. Entering into long-term contracts with brands

These relationships can last a year or more. 

The influencer agrees on a certain number of campaigns, pieces of content, mentions etc. and receives payments in return for the duration of the contract

This can be a nice stable income, which in many cases is quite welcome for the influencer who has to always be hustling for next week’s deal.

4. Receiving free products

One of the perks of the social media influencer lifestyle: 

You often get free products to try out and possibly recommend to your followers. In most cases, these products will be yours to keep.

How influencers wield their influence: A definition

Here’s how an influencer’s influence actually plays out in the real world:

Influencers are connectors

They are like nodes in a network that bring together their followers, fellow influencers, and brands.

Because they are experts and leaders in their industry, their power to connect others is immense

This comes with a lot of responsibility on the part of the influencer, by the way. If they start burning the people who trust them by repeatedly giving bad recommendations, their status as an influencer could become permanently damaged.

Influencers are informers

It’s what the internet has been all about since the beginning – efficiently spreading relevant information. 

Today, social media influencers play an important role in spreading information: They keep their fans up to date with new items, developments, and even breaking news. Usually the information being spread by individual influencers is organic and more trustworthy than corporate sources. 

According to a recent survey, influencers are the most trusted source of information and the most influential in the decision-making process, even more so than trade exhibitions or word-of-mouth recommendations.

Moreover, they curate information from different sources to make it more digestible for their audience.

And so, these influencers play a key role in spreading information and relevant messages!

Influencers shape opinions

Lifestyle Influencerin mit Kaffee

While engaging and informing are vital aspects of an influencer’s job, ultimately wielding power is about influencing people’s opinions. And influencers are great at it. They’re charismatic, authoritative, and persuasive. 

Their influence on the audience’s opinions can be immense, particularly if they stay timely, knowledgeable and relevant, make good content, and are careful to not misuse their followers’ trust.

Defining the different categories of influencers

Nano-influencer: Under 5000 followers

You can be a nano-influencer with some hundred social media followers, without much celebrity status. 

These influencers are still a welcome business partner for certain brands, because they don’t command high payouts, or are happy just to receive free products in return for endorsements. This means they can hire many nano-influencers for the price of one macro-influencer.

More importantly, their audience, often made up of mostly their close friends and family, are extremely engaged and trust their opinion greatly. When they recommend something, it holds a lot of weight!

Micro-influencer: 5k-100k followers

We know that bigger isn’t better with influencer marketing, and working with a micro-influencer is a sweet spot between authenticity and affordability on one side and popularity and reach on the other. 

Also, these small types of influencers are usually more available. While most of them do get a fair number of offers, they are usually not overwhelmed with brand deals flooding their inboxes. 

Micro-influencers are the definition of niche authorities. They are experts in their topic of choice and educate their modest following on everything surrounding it. Again, engagement is very high with these micro-influencers, because their audience feels more like a family than a huge disjointed crowd, as big celebrity accounts often do.

Macro-influencer: 100k-1m followers

This is where we get into the territory of massive reach. If a macro-influencer recommends your product, you can be sure that it’ll hit hundreds of thousands of eyeballs. Accordingly, macro-influencers have higher prices, less availability, and higher standards than smaller accounts.

But, crafting the right campaign with a macro-influencer can drive serious awareness and sales, so – done right – it can be an amazing vehicle for business growth.

Mega-influencer: Over 1 million followers

These are actors, musicians, and other A-list celebrities. 

Celebrities might have a huge audience, but often have less influence than smaller influencers: They appear less authentic and often don’t have as much authority and expertise in niche topics.

They are also picky, often difficult to work with, and very expensive. Many brands therefore prefer to work with multiple smaller influencers instead of one mega-influencer.

Influencers as defined by social media platform

Bloggers

The original online experts. Bloggers go deep on their chosen niche topic, and people rely on them for research and product reviews. Some blogs grow so authoritative that they turn into publishing companies rather than simple websites.

Yet, in the beginning, was the single influencer – the one you go to find out the latest and best information around the topic they’re an expert in.

YouTubers

YouTubers use the visual and auditory channel to do a similar thing to bloggers: Educate and inform their audience. But, YouTube videos also usually have more entertainment value than blogs – and influencers use that power to build huge, loyal followings. YouTube videos are usually longer than videos on TikTok and Instagram.

Brand sponsorship can take different forms: Brands can simply get a shoutout at the start and end of the video. In some cases, the influencer will make an entire video testing a product or incorporating a product into the story of the video. 

There are many opportunities for brands to appear – and they love it!

Podcasters

With podcasts being the longest form of online content, they draw a very interested and loyal audience. Hence, sponsoring a show can be very valuable for brands.

Instagrammers

The advent of Instagram’s platform for sharing images and short-form videos is when influencer marketing really blew up as a business.

Viral Instagram Reels are flashy, fancy, and engaging. A strategic product placement or endorsement by the influencer can do wonders for a brand’s marketing efforts

Sponsored Instagram posts are also a great way for influencers to get paid – often handsomely. 

So today most young people aspire to become influencers themselves because they see the cash and status it can bring.

TikTokers

This is the hot young platform, and home to a lot of up-and-coming social media influencers. While TikTok is a more fast-paced platform, people still grow to love and associate with their favorite creators. This opens the door to brand endorsements and influencer sponsorships, similar to other platforms.

Defining the most popular fields influencers work in

Here are some of the niches that influencers choose – most of these are trending, have a large audience, and can be very profitable to create content around.

1. The Business and Money-Making niche

Many people want to be an influencer in this niche, and their quality and ethics are on a spectrum. You can make a lot of money by teaching others about money. There are endless resources and tools to recommend that you can earn substantial commissions for.

2. The Beauty niche

One of the most popular niches for young, often female content creators to be an influencer in. But also becoming more and more important for male creators.  

3. The Fitness and Health niche

This niche is always going strong. It’s also competitive. Many different people have the goal of being health and fitness influencers. Fitness is also a very visual topic, so is well suited to social media.

4.The Cooking and Food niche

People love to look at recipes and cooking videos online – and influencers will provide! Some of these food and cooking accounts grow to millions of followers.

5. The Tech niche

There are always new and expensive products to review. This niche is quite competitive, but can offer great payouts to influencers.

6. The Travel niche

Travel seems to be an evergreen niche that is coming back in 2024 and beyond. Influencers can partner with tour companies, airlines, hotels, and car rental agencies to turn documenting their travels into a money-making activity.

7. The Fashion niche

Fashion modeling nowadays happens more on social media than it does at fashion shows or in print magazines. Consequently, there is good money to be made for influencers representing luxury clothing brands or as affiliates selling accessories, for example.

8. The Parenting niche

This niche is growing as more people get their information from trusted online influencers than from books or other traditional sources, even on topics such as parenting.

9. The Lifestyle niche

A broad, and popular niche. Creators can pick from a number of topics. Although it takes something special to stand out in this niche. An influencer has to be charismatic, successful, creative, or a combination of those in order to make it in this niche.

10. The Pet niche

It seems like cute kitten pictures and videos have always been the most popular thing on the internet. It now goes so much further. Pets have their own Instagram accounts, dog training gurus are everywhere. The growing pet niche is still a good niche to get into.

Conclusion

We hope this helped clear up the question of what an influencer really is! 
If you’re thinking about becoming an influencer yourself – or you’re a business curious about if using influencer marketing might be a good idea for your business – feel free to check out our other articles on these topics or join the email list to receive the latest news and trends around influencers and influencer marketing.

Author: Megan Bozman, Owner @Boz Content Marketing

Boosting Conversions: Performance Marketing with Influencer Content

In the dynamic world of modern marketing, the symbiosis of influencer content and performance marketing emerges as a powerful force. This approach entails a multifaceted strategy that melds the strengths of influencers, data-driven insights, and optimized ads. At its core, this methodology revolves around seamlessly integrating influencer content into performance campaigns, guiding potential customers towards online shops with finesse. Features like Instagram Shopping and Facebook Shop enhance the customer journey, optimizing the conversion process. This article explores the intricacies of this strategy, unraveling how it drives engagement and sales.

The Evolution of Performance Marketing with Influencer Content

Performance Marketing with Influencer Content, though not novel, has gained substantial traction in recent times. This method empowers advertisers to refine their marketing tactics, fostering user acquisition, brand recognition, and efficient return on ad expenditure. At its essence, creator-based performance marketing transforms authentic content generated by influencers and content creators into the driving force of performance campaigns. The resultant conversion-optimized ads propel sales in the domains of e-commerce and social commerce.

Harnessing Influencers and content creators in the Digital Era

In the contemporary digital landscape, social media has emerged as a dominant player in marketing. The convergence of influencer marketing with performance campaigns amplifies the efficacy of advertising strategies. Influencers and content creators wield the trust of their followers, endorsing products with research-backed integrity rather than contractual obligations. In contrast to celebrity endorsements, influencer marketing’s appeal lies in its laser focus on niche communities, facilitating profound engagement.

Crafting an Effective Creator-Based Performance Marketing Strategy

Within this realm, crafting an effective creator-based performance marketing strategy entails a multifaceted orchestration. The interplay of compelling content, astute audience targeting, and finely tuned ads constitutes the symphony of success. By assimilating influencers’ and content creators’ authentic perspectives, brands synthesize a resonant narrative that propels users towards online shops. This integration serves to humanize the marketing process, fueling engagement and driving conversions.

Empowering Campaigns with Influencer Creatives

In today’s digital tapestry, influencers and content creators have ascended to the role of modern storytellers. Their content possesses the rare ability to captivate and convert. Integrating influencer-generated content into performance campaigns taps into an authentic wellspring of relatability and trust. This integration imbues advertisements with an undeniable authenticity, fostering a seamless transition from interest to purchase. By embedding influencer and content creator insights into the journey, the trajectory from browsing to transaction becomes intuitive, catalyzed by the persuasive power of genuine endorsement.

Moreover, influencer content can be marketed on a much more authentic level. Which leads to the usage of diverse, creative and target group-oriented assets, instead of having to rely on or resort to monotonous, less authentic stock images. Customers are thus addressed on an emotional level, while at the same time a recognition value occurs, which increases the purchase potential immensely. This also leads to cost efficiency on the brand side, as the influencer and content creator campaigns created can simultaneously create a synergy for the usage and marketing on other channels.

A Seamless Path to Conversion

In bridging the inspiration-to-action gap, the pivotal role of influencer content takes center stage. Brands have leveraged ingenious features such as Instagram Shopping and Facebook Shop to facilitate frictionless conversion pathways. Merging influencer content with these tools elevates inspiration to actionable engagement. Audiences captivated by influencer- and content creator-endorsed products can seamlessly transition from captivating posts to tangible purchases. This harmonization ensures a seamless journey, transforming potential customers into steadfast advocates and fostering an enduring cycle of engagement and growth.

The Essence of Influencer Selection and Engagement

Optimal influencer and content creator selection is foundational to this approach. Establishing transparent agreements and briefing influencers and content creators on brand ethos are essential to fruitful collaborations. Legal safeguards and clear communication lay the groundwork. In scenarios where expertise is limited, partnering with agencies can streamline influencer and content creator interactions and campaign execution.

In Closing: Creator-Based Performance Marketing Unveiled

To summarize, the convergence of influencer content and performance marketing encapsulates a dynamic approach that intertwines storytelling with data-driven precision. Integrating influencer and content creator insights within this framework magnifies its impact. By aligning influencer and content creator expertise with e-commerce tools, brands sculpt a seamless journey from intrigue to conversion. This narrative-rich pathway augments user experiences, fuels engagement, and emboldens online sales, forging a harmony between authenticity and commerce.