BYE-BYE BARTER.
Travel brands have long built influencer marketing programs on a foundation of barter collaborations, working with creators to experience and cover properties for their audiences in exchange for complimentary travel experiences. Put simply, “free trip = free social media content” is a formula that has worked, for the most part, for years.
Not anymore. It is time for influencers to be compensated with pay – like everyone else.
Consider how the influencer marketing industry has grown over the past few years – to just over $16.4 billion in 2022, in fact – as media consumption models leaned more towards the mobile and social experience and marketers recognized the value of creator collaborations for brand awareness and audience acquisition with content that feels personal, authentic, and relatable. Essentially, if you’re not activating influencers these days, you’re missing out.
Of course, with industry growth, reallocation of marketing budgets previously reserved to more traditional means of communications, the rise in influencer management agencies, and a track record of ROI, changes to compensation models and best practices in the creator economy were bound to follow. The resulting shift is one we now see day in and day out as we communicate with content creators, tastemakers, and micro and macro influencers for campaigns on behalf of clients ranging from boutiques to the big brands: free trip ≠ free social media content – not always, not anymore.
Why? Influencers are business owners who need to be compensated fairly. As one of our influencer partners put it via email: “I cannot participate in a marketing campaign with outlined deliverables that does not have a budget. I wish I could afford to work for free but landlords and grocers expect cash, it's a funny thing.” And another: “Unfortunately, I don’t do non-paid trips. I have a team of 9 and salaries to pay so if it doesn’t bring in revenue, we don’t do it. Sorry.”
So, how to proceed, you ask?
As influencer marketing experts adept in the nuances of the creator economy, we recommend that brands put their money where their prospective audience is, dedicating a portion of their marketing budget towards creator fees beyond the cost of the travel experiences they provide. Having a set budget allows your agency partner to enter the conversation with the tools they need to succeed, opening the door to conversations with established creators and enabling the negotiation of a higher volume of deliverables as well as a wider diversity of content formats to maximize the impact of each individual collaboration.
If you’ve already set your marketing budgets for the year, don’t despair! There are still collaboration opportunities within reach – so long as you’re willing to adjust your expectations. Should an out-of-pocket budget be unavailable, be willing to consider up-and-coming influencers and smaller content creators and be flexible with deliverable negotiations. And if compensation truly isn’t an option for your brand, provide value another way, such as offering an all-inclusive, over-the-top travel experience that can be shared with a loved one.
However brands choose to work with influencers and creators in 2023, the most important element is to approach campaigns with realistic expectations, respect, and a collaborative spirit.
TRAVEL GOES GREEN.
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THE AGE OF THE VIDEO ENTERTAINER.
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