It's time for another edition of the Post Performance Report (PPR). This series explores the social media posts and campaigns that inspire us. We reveal how brands can use these examples to generate unique, scroll-stopping ideas while making the most of their budget and doing more with less.
According to a Sprout Pulse survey from Q3 2023, 81% of marketers agree that influencer marketing is an important part of their overall social strategy, but nearly half We struggle to measure effectiveness. With the influencer marketing opportunity looming large, we decided to round up some of our favorite recent influencer campaigns to demonstrate how they're helping executives drive business results .
Let's take a closer look at the lineup of brands that excel at influencer marketing and the points you can use to generate compelling results.
Plot: Great Brands on LinkedIn
Plot, an up-and-coming creative management platform, has mastered influencer marketing on LinkedIn, a platform that even big tech companies struggle to leverage. And they are only in the beta stage of product launch.
The brand collaborated with trusted voices in the social media industry for the #PlotPartner program to preview its launch and encourage people to sign up for the waitlist. Like Chi Thukral, a Forbes His 30 Under 30 honoree who works in social at HubSpot. In her recent post about her brand, she points out how she uses the brand on a daily basis and mentions specific pain points that social marketers are familiar with.
Another post by Lia Zneimer, Teal's VP of Marketing, shares her candid feedback on how great this product is and goes into more detail about the product itself.
The influencer buzz surrounding the new product comes as Plot has raised a $3 million investment round, which the brand plans to use to accelerate product development and bring the brand to the public. . It's the moment we've all been waiting for on LinkedIn.
play: Consumers are discerning. They know that influencer marketing is not the same as word-of-mouth recommendations from friends and family, and they don't take an influencer's word for it. But by allowing an influencer to explain how to use a new product in her own words and take consumers on her BTS journey, you can get real excitement.
However, especially if you're in the tech industry, always remember to look for influencers and partners who actually use your product and understand how it works.
YSL Beauty: The perfect date for Valentine's Day
Luxury skincare and makeup brand YSL Beauty rained love on influencers this Valentine's Day to promote the launch of its new lip product Candy Glaze. From gifts to quality time to acts of service, YSL has covered every language of love.
Ahead of the product launch, the brand sent heart-shaped candy glaze gloss press boxes to various beauty influencers. Every video is an influencer's unique style, suggesting that YSL gives influencers honest product feedback and empowers them to put their own creative spin on the videos.
We also hosted the Influencer YSL Beauty Party during New York Fashion Week, which was attended by celebrities and influencers alike. The YSL event featured lip gloss carving, lipprint reading, and a performance by Jack Harlow. The event was also attended by YSL influencers and spokespeople, including Dominic Sessa and Noah Beck.
The beauty brand wrapped up its Valentine's Day activities by sponsoring makeup looks for internet personalities like Amelia DiMoldenberg. DiMoldenberg's YSL Beauty post was one of her most liked posts in February.
According to Sprout Social Listening data from February 4 to March 5, 2024, mentions of the new Candy Glaze lip gloss and YSL Beauty increased by 3634% from February 11 to 12, and remained flat after Valentine's Day. became. During the week of Valentine's Day, the post generated over 40 million impressions and over 554,000 engagements on X and YouTube. That week, the brand and #CandyGlazeLip boasted an impressive 100% positive sentiment.
play: YSL Beauty's campaign launch was an elaborate ecosystem of influencer content that made a huge impact on awareness. For your next launch, remember to make influencer marketing an integral part of your marketing strategy, rather than a peripheral strategy.
Disney: “Echoing” what the audience wants
Disney's latest Marvel miniseries, Echo, tells the story of Maya Lopez, an antagonist-turned-protagonist who fights a criminal organization while embracing her Choctaw family and community. Maya Lopez is a deaf, indigenous woman who has lost her limbs, an identity she typically doesn't have much representation in superhero series.
To generate hype for the series premiere, Disney strategically partnered with indigenous and deaf influencers who praised the series' depiction of the Choctaw and deaf heroes. This included a roundtable discussion between the show's influencers and stars.
@ohkairyn Dive into the dark and thrilling world of Echo with @marvelstudios @disneyplus @hulu! I'm already so excited after watching some great clips. 😍 Maya Lopez's journey as a deaf Choctaw superhero is groundbreaking and the action scenes are truly creepy! This is the representation of Indigenous and Deaf people we need right now. 🦸♀️💥 The series is currently streaming on Disney+ and Hulu. Let's have fun.Who will join us for her first TV-MA rated show in Marvel? #Echo #DisneyPartners🎬🖤 #Marvel #Superheroes #Indigenous #Choctaw #NativeAmerican
♬ Original song – Kaoru
@og.Robinson #DisneyPartner Oh my gosh, it's a great little round table where I was so lucky to sit down with Alaqua Cox (who played Maya Lopez) and Sidney Freeland (director) to talk about Marvel Studios' new series Echo 🤩 I'm excited to finally see it. You can watch it too! Check out @Disney+ and @hulu and tell us your favorite character in the comments 👀 #echo #disneyplus #hulu
♬ Original song – Hayley Robinson
According to Sprout Social's Tagger data from January 1st to March 5th, 2024, social media conversations generated over $1 million in earned media value, and like this post from @TheDeafFamily, 10% Some posts received an engagement rate of .
After its release, Forbes reported that the show performed better (for audiences and critics) than recent higher-budget Marvel Cinematic Universe ventures.
play: A series like Echo has been a long time coming for Disney and MCU fans. However, without the collaboration of Indigenous and disability communities, the series may not have been able to provide a fair and accurate portrayal of the characters. Disney took care when telling Echo's story. That includes choosing which influencers to partner with for promotions. When finding influencers to partner with, remember that representation matters.
Porsche: Luxurious and exotic content competes for the top
When you visualize influencer marketing in the auto industry, you might think of luxury cars and idyllic adventures. You probably don't think of a stylish grandpa or an adorable gray cat. But these are exactly the influencers German automaker Porsche is partnering with on his TikTok. It's very different from the slick, car-centric content you'll find on other channels like Instagram and Facebook (as well as content from our competitors).
User comments, both on the influencer's page and on their own, suggest that a brand's fans like it. Partnerships with these influencers help Porsche create unique cultural moments and reach young consumers.
Porsche's quirky TikTok content helps it soar above its auto industry competitors on social media. So far this year, Porsche's influencer marketing content has driven $56 million in earned media value in social data from January 1 to March 5, 2024, according to Tagger by Sprout Social data. Porsche drives more engagement and earned media value than the other top three car brands. Social, according to Tagger data.
play: Highly edited promotional content doesn’t get the most out of a brand’s influencer content efforts. Especially if all your competitors are doing it. It's important to find influencers who can introduce your products in new and creative ways.
Reform: Vote in style this election year
In a surprising move that has taken the internet by storm, the Reformation has named political icon Monica Lewinsky as the face of its new campaign, “You've Got the Power,” in partnership with Vote.org. The campaign aims to raise voter awareness while also launching a new line of high-quality workwear with “strong silhouettes, superior tailoring and sustainable deadstock materials.”
The response to the campaign was overwhelmingly positive, with influencers, creators, and internet culture commentators weighing in on its importance. TikTok user @BlakelyThonton said, “This is the most culturally relevant thing the Reformation has ever done.” Every brand that exists today has to create an emotional reason to exist…[Lewinsky] It's the perfect vessel to convey a message about workplace dynamics. ”
The first post announcing the campaign received over 39,000 likes on Instagram and approximately 17,000 views on TikTok. According to his Sprout Social Listening data from February 26, 2024 to March 11, 2024, this launch was so symbolic that his positive sentiment rate was 100%. Even brands celebrated the success of their campaign launch on their Instagram carousel, reposting some of their best fan reactions.
play: The originality of Reformation and Lewinsky's partnership lies in how well they communicate specific issues that their audience cares about. Even at a time when many brands shy away from the political spotlight, brands can still use influencer marketing to make their value known. Be sure to work with influencers who have a high “follower rating” with their audience.
Influencer Spotlight: Corporate Erin
Although not strictly an influencer marketing brand deal or campaign, we were so inspired by the humor, satire, and realism that Corporate Erin brings to our social presence that we decided to include her in our lineup.
Her humor pinpoints the pitfalls of corporate culture, including corporate jargon, unrealistic expectations for employees, and poor work-life balance.
Learn more from Corporate Erin (aka Lisa Beasley) in Sprout's on-demand webinar on building a data-driven social strategy.
play: The best influencer content feels authentic, conveys relatable truths, and captures the creator's unique artistic style. Erin's video for businesses is a reminder of why overly prescriptive creator summaries tend to lead to lackluster content, while authentic posts work well. Influencers know what their audience wants, and it's not just well-scripted, overly promotional content.
Increase discoverability with influencer marketing
That concludes this month's PPR coverage. Stay tuned for next month's issue, where we'll take a deep dive into brands using AI to power their social content. Until next time, keep these things in mind.
Key points of the post-performance report
- Remember: Influencer marketing isn’t just a “nice to have.” This is essential to reaching your audience and should be a core part of your strategy.
- When looking for influencers for your next campaign, look for people who are familiar with your product and represent the values of your target audience.
- Think beyond your industry's deeply held beliefs to make a breakthrough and appeal to younger audiences.
Want to learn more about the ROI of influencer marketing? Read this six-point framework to unravel the influencer ROI equation.
Also, if you see a social post or campaign worth highlighting, tag @sproutsocial and use #PostPerformanceReport to feature your idea in a future article.
