Tasks of a brand ambassador

The brand ambassador must appear as a reference expert in a specific field before their equals.

Being a brand ambassador means having a prominent or privileged position, but it also comes with many responsibilities. Nowadays more companies are opting for starting brand ambassador teams to improve the connection with the clients through a horizontal communication strategy of vast impact, great reach and high credibility.

Carrying out a program of brand ambassadors starts by selecting those who are more motivated and have better aptitudes. Then, we must design multiple essential elements such as a value proposition, an acknowledgment program, a training plan, a content plan, a dashboard, etc. A program like this should list the brand ambassador tasks clearly, and they should be carried out with precision. After a few weeks of preparation, this activity will bring those chosen to the arena of social media under the supervision of the communication team of the company and the expectations from the managing team behind their backs.

That is when doubt may appear. We have come a long way to be part of the team of ambassadors, but… what now? Nobody said the tasks of an ambassador would be easy. As a nod to a popular TV show in the 80s: “You want fame? Well, fame costs, and right here (in your social media) is where you start paying!”

Frequently, it is said that ambassadors must appear as reference experts in a specific field. They must prove their worth and earn respect and interest from their followers, and this depends on their credibility and, consequently, the efficiency of the ambassadors program. Allow me to introduce some tips to make the tasks of a brand ambassador more successful.

Choose one subject

It may seem obvious, but it is the foundation, and many neglect it. We cannot be experts at everything, we must select a field with which we are comfortable and for which we have a genuine drive, that way we will be willing to sacrifice a significant part of our energy into it. The variety of subjects will depend on the type of companies we work for, of course. If we act – for example – as brand ambassadors of a winery, we could talk about production processes or maybe about the role of wine within gastronomy, about wine in literature/arts, etc. We will have a vast variety of subjects at our fingertips, but wine would be the protagonist in all of them. Maybe, we are brand ambassadors for an insurance company that sponsors sport events, art exhibits or humanitarian activities, and our list of possible subjects could probably be much wider. It is important to focus on whichever subject we like, we must never talk about everything without going deep into any subject.

Don’t just speak about your company

Your community manager will probably help you select specific contents that might interest your audience but also have your company’s products and services in the background. You must not limit yourself to using those messages on your social media. “Hidden” ads interest about as much as proper ads. A true expert will speak about a specific subject without the fear of covering other brands, products or ways to do things. Obviously, giving visibility to your competitors should never be your priority, but you have to be objective about the subjects you cover, even if you emphasize the strong points of the brand you are defending. The idea is thinking about your audience’s interests, even if that exceeds the information from your company.

Connect your content with the present

Those who read you will be more interested if you speak about what they know or are familiar with, and this will be easier if you connect your words with the present. You can look for ideas that have a connection to your subject in each day’s news and explain the keys, showing your whole potential. If you open your followers’ eyes and bring them a new vision of something they thought they knew, you might make them adhere to your opinions.

Give your opinion

So easy, yet so hard. Giving information is not enough when you want people to like your message. That information should be presented along with your own opinion on the matter. This will segment the audience, meaning you will gain the trust of those who think the same as you and others will dislike your point of view. However, nowadays adding an opinion to any message has two essential advantages:

• It will make your message different from the rest. If all you do is sharing knowledge or commenting news, anyone can go to your sources and find that same content you are showing them. That said, your opinion cannot be found anywhere. After all, if someone follows you on social media, it is because in some way they are interested in your opinion.
• It generates conversation. Plain information attracts less audience, which generates few interactions. Your opinion will make those who think the same as you validate your ideas, while those who think differently will manifest their dislike. All those conversations will increase the visibility of your content exponentially, since every time someone comments on them, they make them visible to their audience, which makes your opinion fly free on the internet, escaping your closed circle of contacts.

Giving information is relatively easy. Creating an opinion is a talent only a few can reach. How original your opinion is and how well you justify it will show your expertise in your field and, therefore, will determine your credibility as a brand ambassador.

If you want to know more information about anything surrounding brand ambassadors, do not hesitate to contact us.