Working with influencers is an essential part of growing your brand. They can help spread awareness, garner press, and introduce you to a whole new audience. Here, our partner Digital Brand Architects (a.ka., DBA), a digital talent agency that reps some of the top talent in the influencer sphere, put together some tips for building great partnerships and successful relationships that will keep everyone happy.

1. Identify goals for your campaign.

Setting goals is one of the easiest ways to ensure your brand’s relationship with any influencer is a smooth one, and most importantly, a productive one. Be it brand awareness, product sales, or heightened engagement, make sure you have a clear outline of what it is you are trying to accomplish before the start of any campaign.

2. Investigate before you take the leap.

Do your homework. Ask for media kits, and consider influencers and content creators who have a track record of helping brands reach their goals.

3. Mind the details.

When you do your initial outreach, have as many details ready to share as possible. This helps avoid surprises and keeps all parties on the same page.

4. Set a timeline.

Timing is everything and that is especially true when working with influencers. Always be sure that your contract outlines set times for content previewing and posting. And don’t forget to be specific about which time zone the deadline lives in.

5. Provide a briefing document.

A brief creates sets the guidelines so creativity can flourish and it’s a very necessary tool when working in the influencer space.

Make sure your brief includes:

• All image requirements (do assets need to be in portrait or landscape?)

• Styling directions

• Copy guidelines (key messaging, hashtags/tags, FTC disclosures)

• Do’s and Don'ts (do they need to avoid competitive products? Does the outfit need to be head-to-toe? Can talent use affiliate links?)

6. Understand your influencer’s creative lens.

When you work with influencers, you do so to capture their unique spin on your product or service, so keep in mind their voice and the types of content they are known to produce. Most importantly be sure to identify the style of post you are envisioning (a collage board, a personal-style post, etc.)

7. Set up a kick-off call.

This should be done before any work is done by the influencer.

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This story was originally published on March 4, 2019, and has since been updated.

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