Long vs. short-term partnership with influencers: expert’s experience

What is the most effective way to collaborate with influencers from your experience? Are long-term collaborations or one-off influencer partnerships best, and why?

Here is what eight leaders had to say:

• Long-term collaborations

• Influencer collaboration is easy and effective

• Sponsored content is a fair deal

• It depends on the influencer

• Do you take this influencer to be your partner?

• Start with one campaign and build it up

• Seek long-term, intermittent influencer engagements

• Collaborate with complementary influencers

Paw Vej, Caroline Lee, Janice Wald, Natalia Brzezinska, Jason Reposa, Ashley Howe, Dennis Consorte, Gino Louise Reichert

Long-term collaborations

Long-term collaborations are the best option because they allow consistent communication and feedback, which can help improve your content and grow your business.

Additionally, influencers will likely become loyal to a long-term collaboration. On the other hand, one-off collaborations can be effective in the short term but may not result in long-term success because influencers are often busy and may not have the time or energy to devote to only a short-term collaboration.

Ultimately, the best way to collaborate with influencers is to ask them how they would like to work together. If they are open to cooperating, then it is likely that collaboration will be successful.

Paw Vej, Financer.com Ltd

Influencer collaboration is easy and effective

You can meet many influencers in your niche on Twitter. Retweet the influencer’s content. Comment as well, so the influencer gets to know you. Include the influencer’s quote in your web content. Link to them, and let them know. Ask to guest post for the influencer’s website or offer to be a guest on their podcast. Interview each other in YouTube videos. These strategies are free and could result in long-term collaborations and even friendships with influencers.

Janice Wald, Mostly Blogging

Sponsored content is a fair deal

Using influencer marketers for creating sponsored content is the best way. It’s an easy and fair way to engage the influencers because businesses can pay per campaign or event. Even though it can be a bit pocket pinching, it helps you understand whether the association brings the best results. However, the problem with many influencers is that the audience is less engaging. So, businesses must gauge their impact on the audience before investing.

For the same reason, a one-off influencer partnership works fine. Also, social media trends and people’s interests change faster than anything. One content type raving today can end tomorrow. So, you can ensure that you always get the best with a one-off situation.

Caroline Lee, CocoSign

It depends on the influencer

It depends on the influencer. Some may appreciate a one-off collaboration, while others prefer a longer-term relationship.

Some tips for collaborating with influencers:

1. Do your research and determine which influencers would best fit your brand or campaign.

2. Reach out to them directly, and explain what you’re looking for.

3. Be prepared to offer something of value in return, such as a free product, exposure, or money.

4. Follow through on your promises and be sure to deliver what you promised.

5. Keep in touch with the influencers after the campaign and stay top of mind so they’ll be more likely to work with you again.

Natalia Brzezinska, PhotoAiD

And do you take this influencer to be your partner....?

Long-term partnerships with influencers in the audio-visual industry (podcasts/YouTube channels) have shown the best results, whereas “one-off” broad influencer promotions rarely lead to strong conversion rates. Collaborating for six months to two years allows the influencer to feel invested in your company and see a mutual benefit from your growth. Additionally, trust is integral to an influencer’s followers. If they hear or see the influencer continually promoting a product or service, it shows loyalty and reinforces its dependability.

Deciding on an influencer to partner with is the hardest part. Use long-term collaborations to see the highest return for your company and the influencer once you have decided.

Jason Reposa, Good Feels

Start with one campaign & build it up

The most effective way to collaborate is long-term. However, the influencer must have an impact on your goals. So first, try an influencer with one campaign. If that works well and the data shows they are helping with your goals (sales, brand awareness, reach, etc.), you can move the relationship to a longer-term brand ambassadorship. This way, you know that the influencer made an impact, and you are not going in completely blind.

Ashley Howe, Tapfiliate

Seek long-term, intermittent influencer engagements

The longer you work with influencers, the better they understand your brand and how to present it to their audiences for the best possible engagement. Long-term engagements also make the influencer’s support of your brand feel more authentic than a one-off. However, fans may become blind to your logo and other brand identifiers when they see it too often. In this case, try an intermittent approach. For example, you could have an influencer with a relevant audience who promotes your brand for one month every quarter. Then each time you reengage their audience, you can present a different product. It will keep the content feeling fresh while also building trust over an extended period.

Dennis Consorte, Snackable Solutions

Collaborate with complementary influencers

The most effective way to collaborate with influencers depends on what you want to achieve through the collaboration. Working with influencers who have complementary audiences is a great strategy if you want to grow your audience and expand your reach.

For example, if you’re a fashion blog aiming to reach a wider audience, working with an influencer in the beauty space makes sense because you can access their followers who may not be aware of your brand.

Long-term collaborations are more expensive and require more commitment from both parties. But they can also be much more effective because you can develop a real relationship and connection with the other brand. This often leads to a deeper, more meaningful engagement with customers and fans.

Gino Louise Reichert, LSAT Prep Hero

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