When you’re starting a new company or launching a new product, you need to rely on brand recognition and advertising to spread the word. If you don’t have a big advertising budget, you’ll need to find creative ways to share your message and get people excited about what you have to offer.
One solid way to market your brand on a budget is with the use of brand ambassadors. Brand ambassadors are people who are vocal about your brand. They engage others in conversation, tag your business on social media, and find ways to engage with the community. Brand ambassadors can be paid professionals or enthusiastic customers, but they must embody your brand and act as an active touchpoint for your business.
Here are three fantastic examples of brand ambassador success.
Corner Bakery
When Corner Bakery Cafe opened a new store in Maryland, they knew they needed to go local. After all, not many people are going to drive from out of state for a bagel and a cup of coffee; their market is their immediate neighborhood.
The fast casual restaurant hired brand ambassadors ahead of their grand opening to build enthusiasm and to promote the company’s catering services. Brand ambassadors walked up and down the neighborhood streets wearing jetpacks filled with coffee. They offered free coffee and catering menus to business owners and passers-by. They were able to make a strong impression in the community while building relationships with future customers.
More specifically, they were able to build relationships with local decision makers who plan events, meetings, and conferences. Overall, it was a very effective way to announce their grand opening and introduce themselves to the neighborhood.
Fiskars
You may think that a brand known for its scissors wouldn’t have the most exciting brand ambassador program. You would be wrong. Fiskars is already a staple in grade schools across America, but they found another enthusiastic market when they started reaching out to scrapbookers and other crafters.
Fiskateers (Fiskars brand ambassadors) have access to a thriving online community where they share creative ideas, show off their work, and have lively discussions. Fiskars ends up with excellent content for their social media campaigns and a massive army of enthusiastic customers willing to share their experience with others.
In addition to being a great way to spread the word about Fiskars scissors, the Fiskateers program is also a helpful resource for company executives, who get to hear first hand from the most dedicated customers about what they love (and don’t love) about Fiskars’ products. This enables them to continuously improve their products and keep their loyal customers happy.
Google uses brand ambassadors to encourage recent college grads to join up with the tech giant. On paper, the brand ambassador job sounds pretty standard. It requires employees to “build relationships with the campus team, organize events” and perform other activities you’d expect from a “hype” team.
But Google brand ambassadors are anything but standard. In fact, this program used to be called the “Google Pizza Program.” The job of a Google brand ambassador is to wander through study halls of elite engineering universities and offer the hard working students some pizza. It’s a creative way for Google executives to show these students that Google is “one of them.” They appreciate hard work and are willing to encourage their efforts on the company dime. Often leaving behind “swag” like t-shirts and mugs, the Google Pizza Program is a cheap, fun way to get in front of their ideal audience.
There are so many ways you can use brand ambassadors to promote your business. The most important thing is to find people who are genuinely excited about your brand and leverage them in a way that is most beneficial for your particular market.For more information about brand ambassadors, or to hire a team of brand ambassadors for your next product launch, contact Auctus Agency today.
