blog

Unsolicited influencer posts: Ensure perfect brand alignment

November 5, 2019

Have
you ever wondered what to do when an unsolicited influencer makes an
unsolicited post about your brand and tags you? Every brand appreciates
unsolicited influencers posting positively on their behalf. But how can you
ensure that those posts are perfectly aligned with your brand positioning,
optimised for positive engagement, and designed to protect the brand equity if the
post was unsolicited?

Do
you realise that there is a strategic economic advantage in bringing your paid
and unpaid influencers together to train and form a formidable social advocacy
team for your brand?

R-Squared offers an
innovative world-class solution – the R-Squared Influencer Academy, a
white-labelled program personalised for brands, established to mitigate risks
from unsolicited posts while increasing brand alignment and positive engagement.

A
chronology of how the need arises – 

–
An Influencer posts an unsolicited piece of content and tags the Brand.

–
On seeing the post, the brand weighs the value and is either happy about it or
not.

For instance, a wrong engagement question like ‘Why do
you think that this brand’s product is awesome?’ could trigger negative
comments, including comments from the audience driving other audience members
to a competitor product.

–
Either way, Brands wonder what they can do to encourage or improve on these
pieces of unsolicited content.

So
what can brands do? Brands can take advantage of the R-Squared Influencer Academy,
designed to coach and give tips, hints and advice to influencers who post
unsolicited brand content, so as to mitigate risk, increase quality and brand
alignment for unsolicited posts that would have gone live anyway without the
added value of the coaching. Brands can thus reward their most ardent advocates
with coaching from R-Squared experts.

1. Brand and R-Squared agree on the service to be
provided (e.g., which category of influencer qualifies for assistance, etc.)

2. Brand fully briefs R-Squared on brand and product
positioning

3. R-Squared sets up a white-labelled contact centre
for the brand (email and WhatsApp)

4. Influencers submit the content by email or
WhatsApp to the point of contact for the influencer’s academy setup for the
brand

5. R-Squared coaches and guides the influencers for
risk mitigation, and increased brand alignment 

6. Post goes live

7. Influencers and brands are happy

Some of the brand benefits  include:

• Increased brand awareness
• Increased brand loyalty
• The facilitation of valuable customer feedback loops
• Increased sales

But who is
R-Squared?

R-Squared is the top leading Influencer Marketing
Agency in South Africa, and also a leading Influencer Marketing Agency internationally,
responsible for innovative influencer campaigns. R-Squared is comprised of
experts with one passion only – Influencer Marketing. R-Squared is responsible
for masterful management and industry expertise in designing, executing and
managing influencer marketing projects that are engaging, authentic and
protective of brand equity. The CEO of R-Squared is also the IAB SA Council
lead for the digital and influencer space, providing guidelines and best
practices for influencer marketing. 

Contact us now to get started – partners@r2digital.co.za

*written in October
2019. *Michelle Marais and Emmanuel Okonkwo, R-Squared Digital.