Company ambassador - do you need it?

More and more companies use the functions of the company's ambassador. In the online world, it's much easier than it used to be. Today, not only the largest corporations have their ambassador. 

The company's ambassador is a topic that from time to time finds its way to the largest media in the world of marketing. There are often mistakes on this occasion, because a small percentage of readers are aware of the difference between an ambassador, the face of the brand and a person employed under an advertising contract. Brands founded by celebrities additionally introduce confusion to the classification, because is the actress who produces cosmetics their ambassador?  

Who is a company ambassador?

A company ambassador is a person who represents and gives it his authority in a given field. Usually, such cooperation is paid, although financial ties are sometimes not visible at first glance. For example, an athlete may receive equipment, and an actress uses the services of an aesthetic medicine clinic in exchange for being its ambassador. A related concept is brand face. He is supposed to do the same, but more often he only gives ... a face - without being involved in business management or speaking as an authority.

The face of a cosmetic brand can be, for example, an actress or a model. Such cooperation is always paid. The company's ambassador is usually an outsider, while the face of the company can also be a charismatic founder or famous investor. We can also mention the ambassador of an action, charity organization or social campaign, who more often does not receive any remuneration for his work. It induces people to get involved in helping or makes them aware of the problem pro publico bono. Currently, these boundaries are sometimes blurring, as enterprises see an opportunity here.

It happens that a company sets up a foundation or gives charity, and the star becomes the face of this particular campaign. In the public perception, he is the ambassador of the entire organization. In all this, you also have to include the sponsorship contract. Here, the benefits for both sides are more visible and spread equally, while the company's ambassador works for it on a purely commercial basis.  Sponsorship offer for an athlete or a musician, he puts his needs first. A brand may be associated with it for a certain period of time, but due to its service function - it provides, for example, instruments or musical equipment. For the creator, such cooperation is a bit less risky, because from the very beginning he cooperates for pragmatic reasons.

The company's ambassador has more difficulty withdrawing from cooperation when it loses its good image, because he is, in a way, guaranteeing for it. It also happens that a competition is organized, as a result of which a person holding this function is selected. Then it can be an ordinary person who, for example, is a sympathizer of a given product. For a manufacturer of curly hair shampoos, this can be a person gifted with extremely curly curls. For a garden shop - owner of a garden channel on Youtube etc. 

Cooperation with the company's ambassador

The aim of cooperation with the ambassador is to give the brand a more human face. Personification allows you to take root in the awareness of potential customers to a greater extent, and the desire to become similar to a given person, to a large extent, encourages you to take advantage of the offer promoted by him.

Cooperation with an ambassador makes sense if it leads to the creation of a real, honest and engaging relationship. This form of promotion should be based primarily on trust. The ambassador should feel comfortable enough to be able to decide on the forms and nature of promotion and responsibly not to make moves that could harm the image of the represented organization. These issues, as well as the duration of the cooperation and the non-competition clause, should be included in an appropriate agreement that will protect both parties against possible image crisis.

The ambassador can create a world around the brand in which his faithful observers will be happy to immerse themselves. It can create specific needs and at the same time propose ready-made solutions. The fact that he is the first to test new products allows him to effectively build interest around an offer that is yet to appear on the market.

We can cooperate with the ambassador both when promoting a new offer, and also use it in crisis situations, when defending the brand from the position of opinion leader may save the damaged reputation of the company. One of the most interesting and very effective forms of cooperation with ambassadors is the launch of a special line of products bearing his name. Because nothing engages ambassadors in cooperation with brands as much as actually influencing the process of shaping the offer or the selection of specific ones.

How to get a company ambassador?

The choice of an ambassador requires an extremely thorough analysis, because his image directly translates into the image of the brand that he promotes with his person. Sometimes the ambassadors themselves fall into the hands and hearts of business owners, sincerely engaging in promoting the offer in their own social media and public forms, Most often, however, it is companies that persuade certain people to cooperate. Both forms of acquiring ambassadors have their advantages and disadvantages. The decision to choose an ambassador is not the easiest one, because brands not only shine with the brilliance of their ambassadors, but also have to deal with his faults and weaknesses.

If you want to acquire a specific ambassador, you should carefully analyze his image, which has been shaped over many years. Every public figure already arouses some emotions, so it is worth knowing which ones, as they will directly translate into our company.

A brand ambassador should use his character to confirm the characteristics of the brand with which he / she connects. At the very beginning, it is worth listing the values followed by the brand and similar values to look for in the world of celebrities and opinion leaders. It is a mistake to succumb to the momentary "popular face" fashion. It is so popular that one quickly becomes bored and irritates the audience with his person. Then someone who was supposed to add shine to our company puts a shadow, discouraging potential customers from further interaction.

It is also worth looking for a company ambassador among loyal fans. Each of them operates in their own environment and is able to effectively convince their recipients to take advantage of a specific offer. This type of ambassador will gladly agree to cooperation in exchange for the possibility of e.g. modification of the offer, in line with his suggestions. Often these are changes for the better, so the benefits are sometimes mutual. Therefore, monitor social media on an ongoing basis and check who and how shares their experiences of using specific products or services.

What are the basic tasks of a company ambassador?

The scope of duties of a company ambassador can be very wide. It all depends on what the brand expects, whether the cooperation is to bring any specific, additional benefits, etc.

In most cases, the main task of an ambassador is to represent the company externally, presenting it in a positive light in various situations. The ambassador helps to create a brand that is friendly, created by people and with people in mind. The ambassador's task may be to create blog entries, product reviews or newsletters, as well as participation in industry and marketing events, where he will represent the brand and create a positive atmosphere around it. His duty may also be to build awareness about the brand through word of mouth marketing. What is word of mouth marketing? It is "whispering" on blogs, forums or social networks about the company, its services, products and advantages. This is a way to evoke the most natural, unforced conversations about the brand. Subtle brand promotion in a way adapted to the context of the discussion.

An ambassador is an opinion leader in his community. This is a person who promotes the brand through their personal social media accounts. It shows the human face of the brand. It uses its products or services in everyday life, which strengthens its credibility and increases the trust of recipients in it.

The ambassador provides information about new products launched by the brand, and issues opinions about its products or services. Engages in the so-called referral marketing. By using its authority, it can influence the purchasing decisions of recipients. Interestingly, this form of marketing can bring spectacular effects - properly carried out can be much better than traditional advertising.

The last, but no less important, task of the company's ambassador is to identify himself with the promoted brand. The ambassador knows and supports the brand. He trusts her. She is enthusiastic and open to her activity. Thanks to this, his actions are sincere and bring the expected results. Recipients take his message seriously. They believe in its authenticity.

Influencer as an ambassador

Influencers are celebrities today. They are people who have enormous power to influence the Internet environment. They are often authorities for their audience. No wonder that influencer marketing enjoys constantly growing popularity.

Influencer can be an excellent company ambassador. There are still new creators on the internet market who quickly unite masses of fans. It's easy to find a person who will perfectly match the brand's profile, identify with it, and its followers will meet the guidelines of the brand's target group. Thanks to influencers, information about new products or services of the company reaches a wider audience - which may have a positive impact on sales and profit. Influencer, using its reach, spreads positive opinions about the brand. It increases the interest of recipients in the services and products of the brand. As we mentioned before, he can be an authority on his fans. Observers admire him, they want to be like him. They appreciate what it does, how it develops, what steps it takes. This perception of the creator by observers can bring benefits to the company they promote. Influencer brings the brand closer to the people. Brand accompanies him every day. It becomes an element of his image.

Cooperation with an influencer is a way to create a creative, extraordinary form of advertising. The creators do not lack charisma, openness and crazy ideas. Influencers create engaging, interesting content. They can interest recipients, awaken various emotions in them, and create behaviors. They go beyond the usual patterns and are not afraid of being different. Thanks to them, the marketing campaign can take on an interesting character. Advertising with the participation of an influencer will make fans perceive the brand as modern, keeping up with the times, committed to creating positive relationships with customers, and focusing on creativity. An advertisement prepared by an internet creator can be much more effective and much more interesting than a traditional form of promotion.

How to choose an influencer to cooperate with?

Cooperation with influencers it can be really profitable. The key is to choose the right creator! How to do it? The recipe for success is proper research. The company's ambassador must match its profile. This will allow you to create a coherent image, which will translate into increased trust in the brand and enhancement of its authenticity. A good ambassador will identify with the brand. Its assumptions will coincide with the assumptions of the company. He should know the brand, its mission, products or services perfectly well. He should like her and would gladly take advantage of her offer. If he has not had contact with the company before, it is worth giving him time to familiarize himself with the offer and test the products that he would be promoting. Only on this basis should a decision on possible cooperation be made. Influencer will not build a positive image of the brand, and its opinions will not be credible if he does not know much about it. Internet users will quickly sense the falsehood, and the brand will lose instead of gaining.

When looking for the perfect influencer to work with, you can't just be guided by the number of followers. What matters most is the creator's involvement in online activities and his relationship with the audience. A real influencer unites with his fans, interacts with them. It is human. He treats observers as friends, online acquaintances with whom he has a loose, positive relationship. He does not exalt himself, he creates a positive atmosphere around his person and his activities. He does not take part in internet scandals, he does not take controversial steps that could cause a wave of outrage among the audience. He is known and liked. His online activities are fair and natural. It is not worth working with someone who advertises something different every now and then. Such an influencer will not be credible to their followers.

The content created by the influencer is also important. Its social channels need to be consistent, readable, valuable and creative. Publications should appear regularly. Longer breaks may have a negative impact on its range, which unfortunately will translate into weaker effects of ambassadorial activities.

Choosing the right influencer for a company ambassador is a real challenge. Before making a decision, it is worth following the activities of various creators for some time - getting to know them well with their activity, subject matter, interests, and the past. You have to get involved in the world of social media, observe what is happening in the online world and draw conclusions. A carefully conducted process of searching for the perfect ambassador will certainly bring the expected results.

The benefits of having a company ambassador

A company ambassador can bring you big benefits and profits. If such a person has a good image, it can translate into the brand image. Its successes make the entity famous and put it in a positive light. Besides, the referral mechanism works here. We believe relatives or friends who persuade people to buy a product more than the person in the advertisement.

We treat a liked sportsman or satirist as a trusted person, because they are already well known, staying at home, even on a TV screen. In the flood of information, any differentiating factor works to the advantage of the brand. Mention in social media or on the celebrity's website gives you an advantage over the competition that is not visible in these places.

If, in addition, the person performing the role of the ambassador in the enterprise is an authority in a given field, then he is even more credible. Here, however, professional ethics must be mentioned. Today, these boundaries are blurring, but a doctor or journalist can still harm himself in the long run by using his professional authority to explicitly recommend, for example, only one brand of products. 

Differences between a company ambassador and a brand ambassador 

A company ambassador is a broader concept. A brand ambassador advertises only one thing or a product line, for example, and the former advertises the entire company. It often depends on the specifics of the industry which will work better. For example, Doutzen Kroes has been L'Oreal's ambassador for many years, but the company also employs other style icons from time to time as ambassadors of individual cosmetics. He also has ambassadors in individual countries, including Poland. Another industry in which both formats work is, for example, aviation. A brand ambassador can advertise an airline - a specific destination, only the carrier's low-cost flights, or on the contrary - first class.  

Is the company's ambassador only pluses?

If the company's ambassador has a good reputation, such cooperation does not pose a great risk. On the other hand, in the world of social media, a single Tweet can destroy an image, so you have to constantly control the image of an ambassador. In case of problems, it will have to be implemented crisis management and decide whether it is better to wait out the storm or say goodbye to the ambassador. You also need to balance the ambassador's popularity gained at any cost with good taste and other values adhered to by the brand.

For example - Kim Kardashian has already advertised dozens of products, from underwear, through slimming cocktails, to morning sickness pills. If only the reach counts, it is worth taking advantage of the recognition of such a celebrity. However, when it comes to a specialist or premium brand, a less known person who has authority in their field and enjoys an unblemished reputation is better suited.

How to increase the positive impact of a company ambassador? 

Sometimes a company ambassador is hired, his photo appears on the website, and this is where the cooperation ends. Sometimes it is only by reading company materials that you can learn about the existence of such a character, but the purpose or basis of the cooperation is not always clear. It is worth approaching the issue creatively and adjusting it communication channels so that the ambassador's potential can be used in the best possible way. Counts communication strategythat informs and inspires, but is not artificial. The original scope of joint activities can benefit both sides. For example, a cook in cooperation with a brand can create an innovative culinary show, and a trainer can publish an inspiring e-book. Such ideas can be multiplied, and in the online world, the potential of each of them can be tested on a research sample. contact us - we will propose the best solution tailored to your needs.