Tasks of an influencer marketing agency: This is how successful campaigns are created

Although around 59 percent of German companies now use influencers in marketing, there is still a widespread misconception around influencer marketing agencies that their services start directly with creator bookings. The work starts much earlier: in strategy development. Your most important task is to translate marketing goals into concrete measures. An agency is

• far more than a mediation between influencers and brands
• a strategic partner who supports brands in the long term
• professional support from strategy to optimization of campaigns

Concrete tasks start with the development of goals and the strategy, continue with the operational implementation with scouting and placement of influencers and only end with optimization and learning for subsequent campaigns. The goal is always to learn from every project and constantly improve the results in order to make influencer marketing a predictable channel that generates long-term growth. We work according to this principle in every single influencer campaign and draw on experience from over 10,000 campaigns that we have implemented with e-com brands such as Emma or HelloFresh.

The basis for successful influencer marketing lies in 3 clearly defined phases: strategy, scouting & campaign planning and tracking, reporting & optimization. In each of these phases there are different tasks that your agency implements together with you.

We have also packed all the information about the 3 phases of collaboration with influencer marketing agencies for you in a detailed video.

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The first phase begins well before selecting an influencer and content creation for social media, YouTube or Twitch. First, we lay the foundation on which the entire campaign and influencer marketing strategy of your brand is built.

Define goals Most brands approach an agency wanting to book influencers. The first task is therefore to derive goals from this desire:

• Should influencer marketing increase sales?
• Is it about more reach and followers for the brand?
• Is the focus on generating qualified website visitors and customers?

Individual goals lead to individual strategies that are tailored to the wishes and ideas of your brand. The agency's job is to ask the right questions and then define how influencer marketing can be used sensibly.

Planning budget & time frame

What is often missing before working with influencer marketing agencies? A realistic assessment of which budget is necessary for which desired outcome. That's why a good agency develops a concrete budget and time recommendation based on the previously defined goals. It gives you guidance by explaining the price levels of the different platforms, how budgets can be divided between different influencer reaches and what performance and reach is realistic in what time frame.

Ad Specialist Tip: Would you like an initial assessment of what success you can achieve with your budget? Then check out our ROI Calculator!

Platform and target group analysis

The next step is to find out which platforms bring your brand together with your target group. Not every platform is suitable for every product - sometimes stories via Instagram achieve the desired result, sometimes YouTube integrations or good placement in the Twitch stream are needed. Your agency finds out where potential customers are and where influencer campaigns offer the best opportunities.

At the end of the first phase there is a clear and measurable strategy that really suits your brand. Things should get easier from now on, right? Wrong thinking - in our experience, most brands despair in phase 2. This involves scouting, outreach, negotiations and contracts with influencers and ultimately campaign planning and go-live.

• Iinfluencer scouting is one of the most important tasks in influencer marketing. Good agencies work here systematically and based on data. You look at engagement rates, views, audience and previous collaborations in order to make the right choice depending on performance, target group and brand fit. In practice, this can mean, for example, booking smaller creators who have fewer followers but better engagement and conversion rates. Your biggest advantage in working with an Influencer Marketing Agency: Professionals quickly recognize whether a profile can really be successful or just looks pretty.
• Negotiation & contracts are on the to-do list after selecting the right influencers. An agency negotiates prices, draws up contracts and clarifies usage rights and deliverables so that brands and influencers know what is expected.
• The influencer briefing provides guidelines that the influencer can follow when creating content. It provides information about dos, don’ts, possible storytelling ideas and CTAs, ensuring that the content authentically fits the brand.

Campaign planning is ideally based on testing structures instead of isolated campaigns, so that after go-live it quickly becomes clear which methods work and where there is potential for optimization. To do this, timelines are planned, different platforms are tested and storytelling approaches are developed across multiple touchpoints.

After the go-live, can the brand and agency finally sit back, relax and let the campaign work for them? Definitely not – the work of a good agency is just beginning. It's about tracking, reporting and optimization potential for the following campaigns. From our point of view, everything else is not marketing, but rather more like gambling. For us, there are no successful campaigns without reliable figures.

• Analysis of Forecast & Reality: An influencer marketing agency compares the predicted results with the actual values achieved. The focus is on key figures such as reach, CPM (cost per thousand contacts), link clicks, purchases, proportion of new customers and profitability. If the results differ, she analyzes the reasons: Was the CTA not clear enough? Was the creator selection not a good fit? These questions are the basis for the subsequent optimization.
• Live Monitoring & Optimization: The agency takes over monitoring during the ongoing campaigns by checking content before publication, monitoring performance in real time and making adjustments directly if necessary.
• Reporting & Learnings: At the end of each campaign, you will receive a report with a transparent evaluation. What worked? Where can follow-up campaigns be carried out? The goal is to build a data-based learning process that leads to profitable influencer marketing.

Probably the most important point about the tasks of an influencer marketing agency: It's not about simply implementing individual campaigns. The greatest added value an agency brings to your brand is building a data-driven and scalable performance channel. It develops a strategy that can be continually tested, optimized and scaled, creating a cycle of learning, adapting and growing. Ultimately, this is what distinguishes professional performance influencer marketing from simply trying things out. A predictable marketing channel, security in budget planning and long-term profitability are created for your brand.

Whether strategic planning, live monitoring or briefing creation: If you work with an influencer marketing agency, much more happens than just connecting influencers to your brand. In a good agency you will find a strategic partner who makes influencer marketing a reliable channel in the marketing mix. The common goal is to move your brand forward – measured against clear goals and KPIs.

Would you like to find out more about how influencer marketing can be structured systematically and how Ad Specialist can support you? Then simply arrange a non-binding conversation with us and get to know us and how we work!