Insider Tips to Increasing Subscriptions
From meal kits to curated books, there’s a subscription service for everything. Subscription boxes are typically personalized to each customer’s taste and preferences, which is why they appeal to so many different audiences.
We spoke to Kate Artemyeva, Head of Influencer Relations at Scentbird, to understand how the fragrance brand leverages influencer marketing to boost ROI and increase subscriptions. Here are the main tips she shared.
1. Leverage YouTube
Scentbird leans heavily into YouTube, with nearly 90% of all influencer marketing efforts invested into the video platform. There are many reasons as to why the fragrance brand leverages YouTube for influencer marketing.
Because Scentbird is focused on performance-based influencer marketing, measuring everything from impressions to sales is important. The brand gives each YouTube creator a promo code with a trackable link, making it easy to see where the sales are coming from.
Additionally, YouTube content has a long shelf life. From recommended videos to loyal audiences, people constantly rewatch old videos. This has allowed Scentbird to see sales coming in from many previous YouTube collaborations over the years.
Lastly, video content has proven to be effective for ads. Scentbird repurposes influencer content from YouTube into ads on Facebook and Instagram, as well as organic posts on brand-owned channels.
2. Build relationships with different types of influencers
It’s a smart idea for brands to partner with different kinds of influencers. Whether it’s the size of their following, their location, or their niche, it’s important to diversify your pool of influencers and test out different brand partners.
Rather than looking at those with the most followers, Scentbird tries to find creators that have a good track record of channel health, and fit the brand in terms of their tone of voice and overall aesthetic. This has led to many successful collaborations, including a long-term partnership with fragrance YouTuber Cubaknow.
Scentbird started working with Cubaknow years ago when he had a small audience, because of his ability to describe scents in a unique and fun way. Since then, the brand has used his videos in its Facebook ads, which garnered over 10 million views, and has even shot an ad in a studio with him. Now, with nearly 60,000 subscribers, Cubaknow is an even better partner for Scentbird, especially when it comes to sales and engagement.
At the same time, Scentbird also works with reality TV stars with large audiences, such as those from The Bachelor or the Real Housewives franchise, who have very loyal audiences that buy the products they talk about. In fact, Scentbird has seen its sales skyrocket even when these influencers post just a couple of Instagram Stories about the brand.
3. Give influencers clear guidelines, but enough creative freedom
Scentbird knows that the more authentic the content, the more successful the partnership. While it’s crucial to give influencers clear guidelines and talking points, it’s equally important to allow creators to add their own voice.
Scentbird provides influencers with a generic brief that contains helpful information like subscription prices, instructions for how to use the fragrance containers, and scent descriptions, especially since fragrance is something that is difficult to convey online. That being said, the brand also encourages influencers to add their own flair to the sponsorship and talk about the product as naturally as possible. That way, the influencer is able to include the brand in their content seamlessly.
Take a long-term approach to influencer marketing
Nurture your relationship with influencers, as well as your customers. If you’re a subscription brand, take note from Scentbird to take advantage of YouTube, diversify your influencer pool, and give them enough creative freedom to create authentic content.