The Opportunity Gained (part 2 of 2).
As a content creator, you share your stories with thousands of people every single day. The Freestak platform was designed for content creators to gain new opportunities for themselves and for their audience. With Freestak, opportunity does not only present itself in the form of campaigns on the Freestak platform. Here we outline just two examples of opportunities that presented themselves when least expected.
Storytellers and sports brands
As influencer marketing continues to grow, brands are moving beyond the more traditional influencer/brand relationship. They are looking for more than reach, a beautiful image and a tag on social media. They want to work with the best storytellers, ideally on a longer term. The content creators who have been approved on the Freestak platforms are the best storytellers on social media.
At Freestak we are approached by brands that want to bring more awareness to their latest product or whole brand through collabs with influencers. Often, we find that the best way of doing that is through a campaign on our platform – with a clear brief and application process. However, sometimes the brand doesn’t have time to go through a full selection process, or the applicants they have don’t fit the brief. Sometimes they just need one person, and fast. So without the chance to put yourself forward for a campaign and answer the brand pitch, how do you get noticed?
Brand collab’ opportunities: beyond campaigns
We are always watching the content produced by our community and we love how all of them flourish and create. However, it’s the bit extra that makes some content creators stand out from the crowd – and often this is what sports brands are looking for. They want to see the whole story – the journey, the struggles, the joy. The unique story that has gained you a loyal and engaged audience. That’s why our job requires us to know each and every influencer on the platform. Because there are times when we are called upon to pick one content creator from the entire community and recommend that person to the brand, often at a very short deadline.
‘A life changing opportunity’ – Lee Grantham (@jungle.vip)
An example of this is the recent ‘Paid Opportunity with Major Sports Retailer/Brand’ campaign we ran on the Freestak platform on behalf of Nike’s Amsterdam PR agency Harriman Steele. The agency gave us a specific list of requirements, but when none of the initial applicants qualified for the agency based on the initial brief, these criteria were pushed aside and we looked to the rest of the Freestak community.
From this search, we put forward another 5 names who hadn’t applied to the campaign. One of them, Lee Grantham (@jungle.vip), grabbed the attention of the agency and their brand client through his content and personal story. That brand was Intersport, Nike’s partner retail company. Two months later, Lee is the face of Nike’s new shoe, the Nike Zoom Pegasus Turbo on all Intersport social channels. Lee’s unique portrayal of his running journey was a story that aligned with the brand ethos and was a story they wanted to share with their customers.
For Lee, who was trying to train full-time since he had been selected for team GB in the long-distance world championship, “the opportunity was life-changing: I get to do what I love – running and sharing my story and my advice with a passionate audience – while supported by brands who believe in who I am and what I’m doing. I can’t thank the Freestak team enough for bringing my profile to the brand’s attention.” It’s not a coincidence that Lee’s motto is “Buy the ticket, take the ride” – Hunter S.T.”
Juliet Elliott, public speaker
As part of the ambassador programme Freestak has been running for running shoe and apparel brand 361°, we organised a get-together with 25 brand ambassadors in Amsterdam. One of the workshops focused on content creation and we turned to our Freestak community of influencers to find the perfect speaker for this paid opportunity.
Enter @julietelliott, who fit the brief of having solid experience working for brands as their ambassador, while retaining her personal voice and style. We contacted Juliet, who said yes to the opportunity – despite not having done that before. Juliet delivered a motivating 2-hour workshop that left the 361° ambassadors pumped up and inspired. As a result, we’re hoping that Juliet might win more such paid opportunities with other brands.
Laura Funk, Freestak Community Manager, tells us how she helps brands pick influencers:
“When choosing influencers to work with various brands, I look for people who are motivated in their sport and produce inspiring content. It’s not all about having a high following or being a professional athlete but being able to create posts that are engaging and emphasize a passion.”
What can you do?
These are just two recent example of community members winning opportunities outside of campaigns. So how can you create the same opportunities for yourself? We look for content creators who have a unique angle, a unique story, who build genuine relationships with their audience. This is done most effectively by those who invite their followers to join them on their journey through life in the form of relatable, personality filled content.
“When I’m looking for influencers for brands, I look to see if their content is telling a story. It is easy to post content everyday but to create a page where you can see a journey of what that person is about, this is what excites me about choosing influencers.”
Romell Reddock, Campaigns Associate, Freestak
It’s perfectly acceptable to patiently wait for a campaign to appear on the platform then apply for it. Perhaps the brand will select you and you let the opportunity come to you. But equally you can push yourself further, strive to keep creating better content and grow your following. Opportunities come and go, you can either let them come to you or you can make them for yourself.
Love it!!!! Bravo!!!!