Successful branded video marketing without a big name creator

Collaborating with a big social media creator is often seen to be the ideal partnership for branded video.
There are advantages, namely that the logistics and production process in general are simpler as you are just dealing with one point of contact and that in one video you have access to a huge audience.
However, there are drawbacks too as often you will be dealing not directly with the creator themselves but their team so there is room for miscommunication.
And also a lot of the time these big creators have quite strict policies when it comes to considering edits to their video or indeed what they are prepared to do on the creative side which may not tally with your ideas.
Many brands, especially those working with a test budget will find collaborating with big creators too expensive.
So if you don’t have the budget for a big creator, can you still do branded video marketing in a meaningful way that delivers a successful return on investment?
One solution is to work with several smaller creators who charge a significantly smaller cost per view than the big creators.
By selecting a few of these cheaper creators it is possible to mirror the reach you would have achieved by working with a big creator.
In addition there are actually several advantages to taking this approach than collaborating with a big creator.
In the first case it is easier to select creators who are talking mostly to your target customers.
Big creators tend to be more general, appealing to many different types of people.
Smaller creators tend to work more on niche topics that appeal to more specific interests.
Therefore you may not only be getting the same reach as with a big creator but actually have a larger proportion of your audience likely to take an interest in your product or brand.
Bigger creators also usually have a lower engagement rate for their content.
That is, compared to their views, fewer of their viewers are interacting with the content — either by sharing, liking or commenting on it.
The engagement rate is very important in determining the success of your branded video campaign as it is the best indicator of your click through rate, which will ultimately lead to your cost per order or cost per install results.
Smaller creators on the other hand can have very high engagement rates. Their audience is generally more active with the content and small enough that the creator can really foster meaningful relationships with them and encourage said engagement.
Finally, an endorsement from a smaller creator is likely to carry more weight with your target customers than from a big creator.
This mainly comes down to authenticity. Creators who are growing and have won the trust of the audience they are building are less inclined to take it for granted or jeopardise it by recommending something they do not believe in, and this perception is shared by their audience.
Therefore, it is possible to carry out very successful branded video marketing even if you can’t afford to work with a big name creator. Working with more cost effective smaller creators, you can establish a similar reach to what you would have achieved through the big creator more pinpointed to your target customers and more engaged and likely to follow through on your call to action.
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