Pierre Cassuto: Why Influencer Marketing is More Than a Media Channel
The Global Chief Marketing Officer of influencer platform Humanz warns that influencer marketing is not a simple matter of buying follower counts. Brands must think beyond the buy to cultivate authentic relationships, because the strongest correlation to ROI is creator motivation.
“Creators are your VIP customers in many ways. Brands gain insight from their co-promoters—creators who are genuinely rooting for the brand and connected through human relationships. Start moving from transactions to relationships and watch your influencer marketing program thrive.”
Influencers have become a potent growth driver for marketers across platforms, but widespread misconceptions about measuring effectiveness still remain.
Pierre Cassuto has gone through the data. As Global Chief Marketing Officer of influencer platform Humanz, he shares insights gathered through statistical analysis of thousands of campaigns to encourage brands to take a more personal approach in their influencer program.
How did you become involved with influencer marketing?
I was born in Paris, France, and have also lived in South Africa, where I studied at the University of Cape Town. My background includes working at creative agencies, media companies, content production companies, and tech companies. I first worked at Ogilvy, where I managed client relations and projects for brands including Louis Vuitton and LVMH. Now I’m the Chief Marketing Officer at Humanz, an advanced and pretty incredible influencer marketing platform.
What are the two big misconceptions of influencer marketing?
One is that “I have more followers, so you should pay me more.” This doesn’t really make sense, because creators can create value from brands in one of four ways:
Insights - Consulting Fees
Content - Production Costs
Views - CPM/CPV
Sales - % Commission
Only two of these are potentially related to the number of followers, and there are more efficient ways to pay. Our data shows that the number of followers doesn’t offer a strong correlation with the number of views or any other part of the funnel regarding sales and ROI. Buying followers remains straightforward and cheap, and 3 out of 4 marketers and agencies don’t check for fraud. Brands must rethink how they base influencer pay and best track return on investment.
“Intelligent marketers will return to building relationships and understand that number of followers or engagement levels do not bring proportional value.”
The second lie is that “I can tell you exactly which creators will influence their followers to buy from you.” The variance in ROI of influencer marketing makes it a gamble for the average marketer. In our data, 20% of creators are responsible for 80% of sales, and past performance isn’t a good indicator of future performance. We must reinvent how we perceive and implement influencer marketing.
How can brands rethink their strategy based on these insights?
The indicator that shows the strongest correlation to ROI is creator motivation, making whom you pick less critical than how you treat them. The factors in unlocking creator motivation are transparency and real-time results, upfront expectations, clarity, fair incentives, personal connection, and freedom.
How has influencer marketing changed since its early days?
When influencer marketing started, it was relational and personal as we focused on an exchange of services and people and promoted the value of a brand. Influencers felt more connected and known by a brand because of the relationship and value-based interactions.
Over the last 7-8 years, agencies, technologies, and managers have begun to serve as intermediaries between influencers and brands, making the industry more transactional. Influencer marketing is now overly rigid and structured, and we haven’t seen an increase in ROI with this trend.
I think it is going to swing back the other way. Intelligent marketers will return to building relationships and understand that number of followers or engagement levels do not bring proportional value. Brands can have influencer marketing programs at scale, bringing in agencies to advise strategically. Still, the brand should maintain organic relationships with creators instead of relying on intermediaries for transactions. The data shows how an influencer feels about a brand matters remarkably. Humanz makes the relationships between brands and creators more transparent, so both parties see what value they bring to one another.
Two-sided openness is a catalyst for building trust and feedback loops in marketing. Introducing transparency empowers the brand and the creator, making it more likely that a creator will continue to promote a brand long after a single campaign, and even motivating them to do that.
How do influencers differ from other kinds of media buys?
Influencer marketing is not just a media channel but an opportunity to network and cultivate relationships.
Traditionally, brands, marketers, and agencies buy advertisements and deliverables in bulk like bags of potatoes, which can damage influencer relationships. Marketers have missed the many ways that impact the business landscape.
It is easier than ever before to launch your products and services, and creators may end up competing against brands in business and marketing The creators take the money they earn from their work with brands and turn it into seed money to fund their innovative products and services, and they already have the loyalty of their audience. Traditional brands will buy these companies from influencers for a high premium, or if they are smart, they will nurture relationships early rather than treat them like bags of potatoes.
“When influencer marketing started, it was relational and personal. Agencies, technologies, and managers have begun to serve as intermediaries, making the industry more transactional. Influencer marketing is now overly rigid and structured, and we haven’t seen an increase in ROI with this trend. it is going to swing back the other way.”
How can marketers implement this change?
I advise marketers to invest in an army of people who believe in the brand and will help them convince others to buy. They can start small by building relationships with creators who organically bring other creators as they remember that their most significant recruitment force is those who love them and speak highly of them.
At Humanz, we do this by starting with one person who downloads our app, is very active and vocal online, and aligns with our brand values. We then ask them to be a part of the Humanz Insiders Program. We invite them to our office to meet and ask what they think about the platform and program. Typically, we start paying them to create content to tell other creators what they like and don’t like about us, and we maintain that connection with them. We want them to remain themselves while also providing feedback to our team.
At times these relationships lead to other creators in that one person’s network, sometimes well-known creators, and we begin to see a flurry of inquiries from them. The introduction happens, and the program grows
“influencer marketing is not just a media channel, but an opportunity to network and cultivate relationships.”
How should brands rethink their approach to influencers?
It is essential to continue the feedback process and have people in the business who focus on those creators because the creators are your VIP customers in many ways. Rather than going to a market research agency, you can utilize the direct feedback from customers.
On LinkedIn, I have noticed a shift in beauty brands where new titles emerged for creator and community manager roles. Having this person in-house is vital so the relationship grows. Feedback is continual and becomes priceless because brands gain insight from their co-promoters, creators who are genuinely rooting for the brand and connected through human relationships. Start moving from transactions to relationships and watch your influencer marketing program thrive.
July 13, 2022