Instagram Series: Tips on Becoming a Brand Ambassador

I almost never purchase something (for Bentley or for myself) without scavenging Instagram for a discount code first. Companies are realizing that Instagram is a great platform for advertising and are putting lots of resources into how they can best show off their products. You may have gotten messages from companies asking you if you’d like to be an ambassador or a rep for them, or you might be asking yourself how can I become a brand ambassador for a company that I really like. Read on to find out what exactly it means to be an ambassador and my tips for becoming one!

Let’s start with the case where a company has approached you to be a brand ambassador for them, but you’re unsure what that entails. It’s important that your’s and the company’s expectations are clear before starting a partnership. These partnerships aren’t written in stone. If you want to modify an agreement with a company to what you feel comfortable with, all you have to do is ask! Here is a list of examples of some common agreements while being a brand ambassador:

•  The company sends you a product, and you are obligated to share on your account. Make sure you set a frequency to this. Are you sharing monthly, weekly, daily? Via stories or a feed post?
• The company gives you a discount code to share with your followers and every X times it is used, you get a free product! This gives you more incentive to share your code regularly.
• The company gives you a discount code to share with your followers and you make a commission every time it is used! Usually the commission is on the order of 10% or so.
• The company gives you a discount code to share with your followers and a larger one for you to use for personal use. This is awesome for companies that you love and buy from regularly!

As I said, these are just some common examples that I’m aware of. You should have the freedom of discussing with the company and establishing something that works well for both of you. Remember during this process that you’re agreeing to start this partnership because you want to support and promote a company that you truly like. It is perfectly acceptable to be choosy and turn down a company. If a company approaches you that you are not interested in, you are of course allowed to say no.

One additional thing to keep in mind is to not sign up for more than you can handle. If you enter into five brand ambassador relationships and each require that you post once a week, you are going to have your hands full trying to take pictures and getting posts set up. Make sure you’re being true to yourself in what you can handle so that it’s also fair to the companies that are relying on you to get the word out about their products!

Now let’s touch on the case where you have a company that you’d like to become an ambassador for. Please do not reach out to companies that you’ve never supported solely because you’re hoping to get a discount code/free items from them. You should have supported and purchased items from this shop several times and are familiar with the item quality and can help when people have questions. I get several questions daily asking about item quality and specifics while people are online shopping the stores. For a company that you truly love and support, it is simple enough to reach out the company and ask if they could consider you for a brand ambassador/affiliate. You can pitch your thoughts about their items and how often you’d be willing to share with your followers. The worst that can happen is that they say no, or not at this time.

A word of caution when companies approach you…unfortunately, something that is becoming prevalent these days is companies that have developed scams while asking accounts to be their ambassadors. If a company requires you to purchase items, this is likely a scam. I know of a few companies who have a very large (fake) following on Instagram who reach out to new accounts asking if they’ll be an affiliate. They promise that once they buy their items and share on their account, they will share your picture with their followers. If you follow my advice above and become ambassadors for companies you know and love, this should never be a problem.

Oh yeah, HAVE FUN WITH THIS! Didn’t we all create an Instagram for our pets because we love them and genuinely enjoy sharing them with the world? This is an added bonus to show off your pets with awesome products that you and them both love, so keep it fun and carefree!

Kelly Madsen

I’m Kelly and I am the human that pretends to be my golden doodle on instagram all day (@minidoodlebentley)! I’m a math nerd and CrossFit enthusiast who has recently married the man of my dreams. My love for travel, dogs, and prosecco is unmatched and it would be a life dream to travel the world with Bentley!

http://www.instagram.com/minidoodlebentley