Pros and cons of having a brand ambassador

Building a strong, credible, and trustworthy brand is crucial for any business. However, many businesses find it challenging to be consistent with their messaging and how they want the public to perceive their brand. A brand ambassador can help you achieve this goal, however, is this approach correct for every business? Does every business need one? Below, we will discuss the pros and cons of having a brand ambassador.

At Embryo, we understand the importance of maintaining a reputable brand, and as your business grows. You can sometimes get lost and lose track of your business’s identity. That’s why we’re specialists in this field and we’re good at identifying the best places to reach your potential customers. It’s not a one-fits-all approach. If you have multiple social platforms, you might present yourself differently on TikTok where it might be less formal, and more of a culture, as opposed to LinkedIn where you will be more formal and more professional.

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What Is a Brand Ambassador?

A brand ambassador is an individual who has influence and is paid to endorse or promote a particular company’s products or services. Ambassadors may be celebrities, influencers or employees who embody the company brand’s ethos. But, what’s the difference between a content creator and an influencer? To put it simply… Content creators will create high-quality content to inform and engage users about a product or brand. Whereas, influencers are simply sharing how they live their lives, promoting the products and services they use along the way, and influencing their community to purchase.

With content creators usually being so low cost (as an assumption), they will have little effect on your brand in comparison to an influencer.

Why you should have a brand ambassador…

1. Increase brand awareness: You’re able to increase exposure and visibility to the business. Increased PR or awareness can help to generate sales, leads or prospecting customers/clients.
2. Trust: If you partner with influencers or familiar faces, users are usually loyal and trust their judgment, over a paid campaign which isn’t personable at all.
3. Long-term relationships: When a customer sees an ambassador promote your products, it can lead to consistent and ongoing exposure which is great for brand recall and customer loyalty.
4. Short-term success: If you have a new product or an unknown business, forming partnerships with celebrities can help you penetrate that industry much easier and faster. For example, if you have a baby product, choosing a celebrity like Stacey Solomon would be great, as she is a mum, in the public eye, and has a very strong/loyal fan base of mums.
5. Access targeted audiences: You can target highly engaged, specific audiences. This can make your targeting more selective, instead of running a broad approach which would lead to lower conversion rates.

…and why you might not want one

1. Expensive: Hiring a high-status brand ambassador can be very expensive as they usually charge fees for promoting products, attending events or creating. This therefore means that this isn’t accessible for smaller businesses who have smaller budgets.
2. Attribution: Unless you use codes, it’s hard to attribute sales to that particular channel therefore meaning that it can be challenging to determine if it’s worth the cost. How do you measure success? Increased engagement and footfall to your website? Or harder metrics such as purchases or leads?
3. Brand Safety: It’s crucial to consider brand safety and any risks associated with content creators, especially influencers.
4. Damaging: If a business heavily puts all its eggs in one basket with a celebrity, you’re relying on their actions/behaviour in the public eye. If any serious allegations or claims come out about them, your business could fall by association which can literally destroy your business overnight and it can be difficult to come back from.
5. Risk of misalignment: Finding the balance between your brand and a personal brand. If an ambassador rebrands or gets a new clientele, their interests may not be of value to you.

So you’ve decided to bring on an ambassador, what next?

That’s why when you bring an influencer or content creator on board, you must do your fact-checks.

Selection

1. Note a list of 20 ambassadors we think could suit your business and our clients strategy.
2. Heavily research each ambassador.
3. Refine the list of 20 to 10 and then pick the top 7 to form the collective.
4. Present the collective to the clients you wish to use them for.
5. The client picks their favourite.

Outreach

1. Hold a session with each ambassador and their clients about ideas and direction.
2. Then liaise with the client and discuss payment (discussion – no binding agreement).
3. Assemble a package of payment.
4. Propose the package to the ambassador and await their response.

Legality

1. Once all are agreed, write up contractual agreements.
2. Both parties agree on contract terms.
3. Get both Documents signed.

Conclusion

Brand ambassadors can provide huge benefits to your business, from overnight success to increased visibility. However, there are also a lot of challenges such as expense, attribution, and the potential damage they could do.

If you are looking to partner with a brand ambassador, it’s essential that you do all the necessary steps that are required. At Embryo we specialise in helping brands develop and grow. Whether you’re looking to increase brand awareness, build trust, or create engaging content, our expert team can help you navigate the pros and cons to find the perfect ambassador for your brand.

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