Unboxing the Power of Influencer Marketing for Consumer Packaged Goods

Traditional marketing channels are becoming less effective, and the cost of acquiring new customers is skyrocketing. The rise of ad blockers and increasing competition has turned targeting consumers into a complex digital puzzle. Traditional marketing channels like TV and print are becoming less effective, and consumers are quick to skip ads the moment they get a chance.

So, how can your CPG (Consumer Packaged Goods) brand reach your target audience and stand out in a crowded marketplace?

Influencer Marketing might be the answer you’re looking for.

But with so many different approaches to influencer marketing, it can be overwhelming to know where to start. In this blog, we'll provide a comprehensive guide to help you understand the unique effectiveness of influencer marketing for CPG brands and show you how to implement it step-by-step.

What's a CPG brand?

CPG brands typically sell products that are used in our daily lives and are often considered to be routine purchases.

These products are typically low-cost and are sold in large quantities to retailers who then sell them to consumers or on the brand's website. Examples of CPG products include household items such as cleaning supplies, personal care products like shampoo and soap, food and beverages, and over-the-counter medicines.

Popular CPG brands are Oatly, Goli Nutrition, Drizly, Halo Top.

2 Reasons Why Influencer Marketing is Effective to Promote CPG Brands

Influencer marketing is scalable

The great thing about influencer programs is that they can scale easily as you have a wide pool of influencers to partner with.

For example, let's consider a snack food brand. This brand could partner with fitness influencers to promote their products as a healthy snack option for those who are trying to maintain an active lifestyle. Alternatively, they could partner with parenting influencers to position their products as a convenient and nutritious snack option for busy moms on the go.

In both cases, the brand is able to tap into a different audience, with different interests and needs. This means that the same product can be marketed in multiple ways, by partnering with influencers who have different types of followers.

Because CPG is usually something everyone can consume in one way or the other, you can be creative with how you position yourself to influencers and have an endless supply of creators to promote you.

The way you do this tactically is to come up with a Hashtag Research Strategy for your brand. Here’s a template you can duplicate for your brand, along with a walkthrough video.

‍

Influencer marketing speeds up the customer journey

When was the last time you took days to contemplate buying a pack of gum or a bottle of extra virgin olive oil?

Never… These packaged items are practically begging to be snatched up on impulse!

With the usually affordable price tag of CPG products and perceived everyday use, it's no wonder they're so easy to add to the cart without a second thought.

The only hurdle is getting in front of the customers before your competitors and building a strong connection QUICKLY.

That's where influencer marketing helps. By showcasing the product, highlighting the benefits, and providing a glowing testimonial, influencers can make the buying process even faster. You piggyback off the trust that creators have built with their audience over YEARS!

Additionally, influencers often offer special discount codes or promotions to their followers, which can create a sense of urgency and encourage consumers to act fast. All of these factors combined make influencer marketing a powerful tool for CPG brands looking to drive quick sales.

5 Essential Steps to Successfully Implement Influencer Marketing for Your CPG Brand Without Spending Money Upfront

1 — Find influencers that align with your brand and can drive results

When looking for influencers, you need to find ones who match your brand's audience and values. It's not enough to partner with someone just because they have a lot of followers. Your influencer should be able to reach the right people and share your message in an authentic way.

If your brand values sustainability, don't work with influencers who promote fast fashion. It's not a good match.

Find influencers who share your values and beliefs. They'll be able to connect with their audience and promote your brand message in a way that resonates with them.

Finding the right influencers is tough. There are so many out there, and it's easy to get overwhelmed. It seems like a long, ugly process involving hours of data entry and spreadsheet management.

But with tools like SARAL, you can find and save hundreds of best-fit influencers in just a few clicks. You'll never run out of influencers to contact.

You can also use the free chrome extension that lets you see a creator’s stats, predict a fair fee to pay, and save them directly to your list without any copy-pasting. So you can spend less time managing spreadsheets and more time working on your marketing campaign.

2 — Reach out to influencers and remember to follow-up

Once you have the list of influencers you want to collaborate with, it's time to connect with them whether it's via email or DMs.

But before you hit "send" on that email, it's important to do some research and make sure you're approaching the influencer in the right way. Personalize your outreach by taking the time to learn about them and their audience.

Here's a template you can use to email influencers

Hey {{influencer.first_name}},

I hope this message finds you well. As the {{job-title}} at {{brand}},
I've been following your content on {{platform}}, and I'm impressed by your
unique voice and style.

We're on the hunt for standout influencers to join our new ambassador program,
and we think you'd be a perfect fit. Our brand/product is all about
{{one line describing your brand/product and how it aligns with their audience}}.
We believe your audience would be interested in learning more about us,
and we're excited to see how we can collaborate to spread the word.

In terms of compensation, we're happy to offer you {$$} for every {{conversion}}
you drive. But more importantly, we're looking for a long-term partnership that
benefits both of us.

Would you be open to discussing this further?

I'd love to learn more about your thoughts and ideas on how we can work
together. Let's chat!

--
{{Signature}}

SARAL also automates follow-ups, so you don't have to worry about influencers missing your initial email. If they don't respond, SARAL will automatically send a follow-up message to keep the conversation going.

There are more templates available for you inside the platform so you don’t have to come up with one from scratch!

If you don't hear back from them after your initial emails, don't lose hope.

Add them to a once-per-month email drip that provides them with updated ambassador results, posts, and other exciting news from your brand. This keeps your brand top of mind and helps to build a relationship over time - it shows that you’re committed to working with them.

And if you really want to work with them, go the extra mile by occasionally commenting on their posts.

SARAL also automates follow-ups, so you don't have to worry about influencers missing your initial email. If they don't respond, SARAL will automatically send a follow-up message to keep the conversation going.

3 — Send your product and onboard them as ambassadors

Once you've got a positive response from the influencers, now it's time to ship your products to them so they can get a taste of what your brand has to offer.

Whether you're sending it for them to try, be sure to make the unboxing experience amazing. Write a custom note, add something for their pet or kid, or personalize the product for them. Use tools like Slippy to send handwritten notes to your influence-partners.

By showing genuine care and attention to detail, you'll create a great first impression that could lead to a long-term partnership.

Once you start shipping products to influencers each week, it will get hard to create orders manually, generate a tracking link using a third-party tool, and create coupon codes for the influencer’s audience. But if you use a tool such as SARAL, you’re able to ship dozens of products at once by connecting your Shopify, and generate tracking links & coupon codes so you track sales and ensure you’re profitable!

No more juggling different tabs and losing track of your data. Just focus on what matters (the relationship between your brand and the influencer!) while automating the boring work with SARAL.

4 — Track performance

Managing and tracking your influencer marketing campaigns is crucial for success. If you're using Shopify to manage your store, you can easily create a discount code for each influencer you onboard. But if you're not using Shopify, don't worry! Just use UTM codes to track conversions inside your Google Analytics.

Tracking can get as simple or as complicated as you want it to be. We like to keep things simple here! Remember, Simple Scales — Fancy Fails!

Of course, it's not enough to simply set up tracking and hope for the best. Make sure you have the right Google Analytics set up and test it out yourself before launching any campaigns. This ensures that you're collecting the right data and that it's accurate.

Tracking is arguably the most important aspect of the whole pipeline, as it helps you make informed decisions about which influencers are a good fit, what type of content resonates with your audience, and more. So take tracking seriously and invest the time and effort to set it up properly. It will pay off in the long run!

If you’re tracking your sales in a tool such as SARAL, it’s able to show you the traffic and revenue each creator generates while also giving you a wholistic view of what your ROAS has been.

Imagine having the transparency of paid media while doing influencer marketing. Leverage the right platforms and it’s no longer a guessing game!

5 — Build long-term relationships

It's important to remember that influencers are not just a sales machine that you can tap into for revenue. They're real people with their own interests, values, and goals.

To build a genuine relationship with influencers, catch up with them regularly and get to know them on a personal level. This means going beyond just sponsored content and finding ways to offer value that aligns with their interests and needs. For example, you could offer them early access to new products or invite them to exclusive events.

Here’s what Griffin Thall, the CEO of Pura Vida has to say about this:

"I can personally say that I’ve met 90% of our influencers in person and have either gotten food with them, been traveling with them, or done something where it’s not just about a photo or a handshake."

By investing time and effort in building a real relationship with influencers, you'll create a sense of trust and loyalty that can translate into more impactful campaigns. When influencers feel connected to your brand on a personal level, they're more likely to be genuine and authentic in their content and recommendations.

B2B companies maintain relationships with their clients using a CRM. We can learn from them and maintain all our relationships in an Influencer Relationship Management platform, so you never miss out on following up or checking in with one of your long-term partners.

You’d be surprised how much impact it has on your bottom line too!

No more headaches from keeping track of packages, setting reminders, or responding to emails across different systems. With SARAL, it's all in one easy-to-use platform. Plus, you can even add special tags to your influencers to help you stay organized and on top of your game.

3 Examples of CPG Brands That Are Using Influencer Marketing to Grow Rapidly

Liquid Death

By leveraging ambassador programs, Liquid Death successfully made canned water a trendy and desirable product among Gen Zs.

They've gone beyond the typical social media partnerships and recruited a diverse range of ambassadors, including students, creators, and even celebrities.

They work with unique and talented creators, like skydivers and skateboarders, to create viral content that perfectly aligns with the brand's identity. And with reposting creator content on their social media channels, they're maximizing the impact of their efforts.

Athletic Greens

Athletic Greens mastered influencer marketing for maximum ROI and went on to become a $150m brand.

Athletic Greens' influencer marketing strategy is a great example of how to create authentic partnerships that drive engagement and sales.

They've created a dedicated partner page that helps them get inbound leads for influencers and offers customized partnerships. They focus on partnering with creators who are also customers, creating natural advocates for the product.

Athletic Greens creates landing pages that are themed for specific creators and offer reviews from health experts and other customers, adding social proof. The brand also creates unique promo offers for each of its creators and uses whitelisting to reach new audiences with paid ads that uses the influencer's social credibility.

Glossier

Glossier utilized an ambassador program to make their skincare and makeup products a staple in the routines of five million individuals.

Glossier's ambassador program strategy involves creating customizable products that inspire customers to create high-quality content, which Glossier then shares and reposts to build a sense of community.

This approach also attracts talented content creators who are then invited to join the brand's ambassador program and earn a commission on sales.

By leveraging the barbell strategy of influencer marketing, Glossier balances low-risk, low-upside affiliate-only deals with micro-influencers, and high-risk, high-upside celebrity endorsements to maximize impact.

Glossier's early strategy also involved creating landing pages for each of its ambassadors, although they have since discontinued the practice. Overall, Glossier's approach is a lesson in partnering with creators for long-term impact and making them the hero so they keep promoting the products.

Key Takeaways for CPG Brands

• To get your business up and running quickly, start investing in building a network of influencers early on. It will help you stay profitable and bootstrapped.
• Instead of paying upfront for one-off campaigns, CPG brands can benefit from running long-term ambassador deals that are commission-based. This allows brands to build a lasting relationship with the influencer, tap into their loyal audience, and generate ongoing revenue while keeping marketing costs under control.
• By partnering with influencers with a variety of backgrounds, experiences, and creative approaches, CPG brands can bring a fresh perspective to their marketing campaigns and appeal to a wider range of customers.

Next Steps

With the growing importance of social media in our lives, CPG brands can no longer afford to ignore the potential of influencer marketing in their overall marketing strategy.

By partnering with social media influencers who have a strong following and credibility, CPG brands can create a genuine connection with consumers and build trust around their products. Moreover, influencer marketing provides an opportunity for CPG brands to showcase their products in an authentic way and tap into new audiences, ultimately leading to increased sales and revenue.

But let's be real, the process isn't easy - unless you have a tool like SARAL to automate the entire process. Check it out here and don't miss out on the potential of influencer marketing for your brand.