You might be wondering how so many of your favorite bloggers or influencers gain brand collaborations, well one of the answers is through influencer marketing platforms.
You may have heard about these platforms but do you know exactly what they do and why you need to join one?
In this article I breakdown what an influencer marketing platform is and why they are so important for bloggers and influencers. I also dive into the differences between an influencer marketing platform and an influencer marketing agency, what the benefits of influencer marketing platforms are, and the 10 best influencer platforms to use.
What Is An Influencer Marketing Platform?
What exactly is an influencer marketing platform and how does it work? An influencer marketing platform is an online service that matches brands and businesses with influencers within their database for influencer marketing campaigns.
Brands have recognized the importance of using influencers and it is predicted that by 2022 brands will spend up to $15 billion on influencer marketing – many have turned to these influencer platforms as an easy way to find influencers that are reaching their target audience.
These marketing platforms are used by influencers to find brands to partner with, create campaigns and monetize their social media channels. This helps influencers increase their engagement and in turn helps brands reach more potential customers within their target demographic and niche.
Many brands also prefer to find influencers through these platforms as they know that to join these platforms influencers or bloggers have undergone a vetting process, to ensure they don’t use influencers who have purchased followers or provide inflated engagement rates.
What Does An Influencer Marketing Platform Offer Its Users?
Influencer marketing platforms offer users on both sides ample benefits. Ultimately it helps brands gain a better understanding of an influencer’s following or a blogger’s following.
By joining an influencer marketing platform influencers and bloggers gain exposure to brands, it will also help them match with brands that fit their niche. Most of these platforms have a search mechanism that allows the brand to search and match with influencers based on the needs and requirements they have.
These platforms are a great way of setting up communication between an influencer or blogger, to discuss campaigns, talk payment, and create a contract. This keeps everything professional and ensures both parties are drawing up contracts professionally. The payment process can also be made through most platforms, ensuring prompt payments are made and this gives influencers and brands the security that they will receive payment.
Everything is kept professional as communication is directly between parties, to discuss the campaigns, send drafts, draw up the wording, graphics, text, mentions, hashtags, campaign duration, and final approvals.
Promotion and amplification of an influencer ad content can also be achieved through most platforms, this will help promote the campaigns and reinforce the impact.
Influencer marketing platforms in this way also connect with the influencers social media channels and provide analytics and reporting of campaigns. This gives both parties enough information to analyze the return on investment (ROI) of each campaign and identify the results and effectiveness of the collaboration.
Influencer Marketing Platforms Vs. Influencer Marketing Agencies
An influencer marketing platform and influencer marketing agency can often be mistaken for being the same thing but the two are different.
An influencer marketing agency is a team rather than a service. This team provides expert consultation to help brands identify the best influencers to achieve their marketing goals. Each agency will have a set of influencers on their database and they will match brands with influencers that reach their target audiences and those they believe would be a good partnership.
These influencer agencies create the campaigns with the brand’s objectives in mind and everything is tailored to the individual campaign. They set up everything from detailed briefs for influencers to adhere to, in addition to clear reports at the end of the campaign. They will also provide management of the campaign from the beginning to the end and take a commission from the campaign price.
The influencer marketing agency resembles an actor having an agent: the agency will manage pitching, negotiation, and payments for the campaigns.
An influencer marketing platform is more impersonal, it is a technology service that matches both brands and influencers on their databases. It is more automated than an agency.
What Are The Benefits Of Using An Influencer Marketing Platform?
There are many benefits of using an influencer marketing platform and one of the main ones is to allow bloggers or influencers to get in touch with brands that they know have budgets for collaborations.
It also shows that these brands are interested in working with bloggers or influencers, which saves time reaching out or sending hundreds of emails in hope that they want to collaborate with an influencer or blogger with no return on investment. Instead, it brings the brands right to you.
As a blogger or influencer, having a profile or your details on an influencer marketing platform opens up new opportunities to work with brands you might have not found otherwise.
From the brand perspective, the benefit of an influencer marketing platform is that they can find the right content creators, influencers and bloggers for their campaign and have the campaign managed efficiently all within one platform.
The 10 Best Influencer Marketing Platforms For Bloggers And Influencers
There are so many different influencer marketing platforms for bloggers and influencers, so it can be hard to decide which platform is best suited to your needs.
While ultimately the platforms all offer similar services, they do work with different brands and are suited to different niches. Some platforms specialize in one social media channel or niche, but many work across multiple platforms and niches.
Each platform has its own sign-up and approval process and some will have follower requirements.
I have identified 10 of the best influencer marketing platforms to narrow down your search and make it easier to choose which one is best suited to you.
Collectively
Some of the brands they work with are Pandora, HP, GMC, LinkedIn, Aperol Spritz, Malibu, Absolut, Sephora, and Patagonia.
Collectively accepts influencers who have an organic and engaging audience. Each influencer is reviewed in detail once they have completed the application form. The application form requires links to social media channels, content categories, rate, professional skills, previous brand collaborations, and brands you would like to work with.
Obviously
Obviously has worked with brands such as Google, Fujifilm, Coca-cola, Calvin Klein, Sephora, L’Oreal, Tommy Hilfiger, and Amazon.
Any influencer can sign up and choose their prefered account level – Studio Preferred or Studio Basic. Upon signing up you can connect your social media channels and the work begins.
AspireIQ
On the platform, hundreds of brands showcase their campaigns for influencers to connect with. Influencers and brands can chat directly, request payment, and build relationships.
AspireIQ has worked with brands such as Hello Fresh, BodyBoos, Aura Frames, Sony Music, Bed Bath and Beyond, Walmart, Stanley. Balck and Decker, Nike Swim, Samsung, and more.
To work with AspireIQ all you have to do is sign up, which you can do with a social network or email address.
Cohley
This platform prides itself on exclusivity, with hand-picked influencers. But this allows them to connect high-quality influencers with top brands, and it allows them to gain higher profile brand partnerships.
Some brands they have worked with are Samsonite, Google, CVS, Bumble, Shutterfly, Paypal, and Unilever.
Each creator is chosen and there are requirements, likely to be accepted criteria and things to consider to avoid being rejected. These conditions include engagement rates, image quality, and authenticity, that need to be met before you are allowed to submit your application. Upon applying there is also a $25 application fee.
Fohr
This platform provides influencers with education, opportunity, technology, and events. They hold classes on how to grow your audience, and other helpful tips and advice. Fohr works with lots of brands and offer instant visibility, along with other benefits such as stats, demographic information, PDF press kits, and influencer profiles.
They have a signup form that allows you to create your influencer profile.
Popular Pays
On Popular Pays an influencer can sign up and create a portfolio of previous work, from there they can apply for campaigns as content creators or influencers.
The platform has a search section, a favourites section, 1:1 threads to talk with brands directly, an insights report, and even an area to create content. The platform has over 60,000 influencers, within various social media channels including Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and TikTok.
Different kinds of creators are encouraged to sign up from micro-influencers, macro-influencers, and mega influencers.
Popular Pays works with brands such as Nike, Macy’s, Banana Republic, Amazon, Target, Kind bars, Google, and many more.
The platform is available in an application from major app stores and you can sign up from their website with your email address and by creating a password.
Tapinfluence
On Tapinfluence influencers can create a free profile and the platform will give influencers an idea of how much they can earn and invite them to pitch to brands.
Tapinfluence works with food industries, fashion, beauty, and lifestyle brands.
On the platform, you can create a profile, and strengthen your profile with rates and content. Then you can bid on projects you would like to work on, ultimately partnering with brands.
Tapinfluence also offers benefits such as a media kit, payment platform, free resources, and brand exposure.
You can create a free profile by completing a form with your information or connecting your Facebook page.
Boksi
Boksi is a marketing influencer platform for nano and micro-influencers, which is free to join but takes a commission of 20%.
Their platform is easy to use and there isn’t a follower limit. They have an easy to use tool, which includes communication between brand and influencer.
They have both content and influencer campaigns for custom content such as images, video, and collaborations.
Brands they have worked or are working with include MTV, Burger King, Lidl, Paulig, and more.
It’s easy to register with a simple form to complete with generic information.
BrandSnob
BrandSnob is for influencers with over 5,000 followers and it connects influencers with brands like ASOS, Women’s Best, MAC, Tinder, and Tom’s.
This is an app that gives influencers access to new campaigns, divided into three categories – Instastories, Licensed Content, and more than stories.
On the app, you make a profile where you can receive collaboration invites and make offers. There is also a section where you can find ambassador roles and the app even lets you receive payments.
This influencer marketing platform also has BrandSnob VIP, which is a community of influencers who can communicate to swap contacts, support each other, and get advice.
To start working with BrandSnob you can download the app and sign up.
Tribe
Tribe is a marketing influencer platform where brands post their campaigns and details for influencers to apply if they believe they fit with the brand.
The platform has an app, which lists campaigns from brands, that you can create a submission for. You show the brand your content idea and set your price. If the brand likes it they will approve it and then you can publish it to your social media channels.
Tribe works with brands like Adidas, Lego, Uber, Disney, Vodafone, Cadburys, eBay, Qantas, and Land Rover.
You can sign up to the platform directly from the app after downloading it.
How To Stand Out From The Crowd For Brand Collaborations
All of these platforms have thousands of influencers in their catalogs and standing out from the crowd will allow you to collaborate and work with well known brands. With thousands of influencers on these platforms, you have to make your channels and brand stand out from the rest to receive the best collaborations.
A tip to help you stand out from the crowd is to include a great media kit. These show the brands you have previously worked with, social media stats, blog viewer numbers, introduction to your blog and brand, your demographics, number of email subscribers, and contact information.
Examples of past collaborations will help you to stand out, along with showcasing your distinct niche that brands can connect with. This will help them know that by working with you they will be able to reach their target audience.
It is also a great idea to keep your page and profile up to date with collaborations, contact information, and to review your statistics regularly.
Want Done For You Media Kit Templates? Check out Plan.Pitch.Partner. my bundle of customisable templates, workbooks, tools and calculators to help you save time and charge more for brand partnerships!
Putting It All Together
Now you should have an idea about 1) Influencer marketing platforms, 2) The difference between platforms and influencer marketing agencies, and 3) 10 examples of great platforms and how to apply to join them.
The great thing about these platforms is that you can find which platform suits your niche and which one aligns with brands you want to work and collaborate with.
If you start using influencer marketing platforms you won’t have to worry about sending out thousands of emails to brands that might not even work with influencers or bloggers, instead you will be able to communicate with those that do instantly!
I hope that you found this article helpful to understand more about Influencer Marketing Platforms and why you need one as a blogger and influencer. If you have any questions about brand partnerships drop them in the comments.
Read Next
Pin For Later
This website may use affiliate links in our articles. Please see our Disclosures for more information.
Leave a Reply