Top Influencers In The UK

An influencer is someone who is paid to promote a product or service on social media sites such as Instagram, Facebook or TikTok due to their elevated level of authority or celebrity status within a particular community.

With legions of loyal and highly engaged followers, influencers are able to reach ready made target audiences for any type of company, from local business to global mega company. These pre-existing audiences allow an effective transfer of trust between the influencer and the products they choose to endorse, making influencers perfect for short term marketing campaigns where several can be deployed at once to launch a new product, promote an event or herald an announcement.

Check out our comprehensive Complete Guide to Brand Ambassadorships which covers off everything a marketer or brand manager needs to know when preparing to partner with a sports, media or entertainment celebrity for a Brand Ambassadorship.

Ready to get a customised brand ambassador strategy to help you achieve your marketing objectives now? Submit a request here and one of our celebrity marketers will collaborate with you based on your goals, budget and other info you tell us.

Don't worry, this is just the starting point and you can change any of the details at any stage and there is no up-front commitment to engage with us.

Read more here about the different benefits of short term vs long term relationships with influencers and brand ambassadors.

Through Pickstar of course! Click here to start your search.

But in order to both hire an influencer and effectively utilise them, there are a few questions you should ask yourself first:

• Am I looking for a short term relationship with an influencer or a long term relationship with a brand ambassador?

Each has their own uses and benefits, read the above FAQ for more info.

• How many influencers do I want?

Do I want to use one influencer or an army of 10 to make a splash with a new product or offering?

• Does the influencer’s values align with those of your brand?

This allows for a far more authentic promotion and relationship between yourself and the influencer, and opens the door for future collaborations.

• What do I want the influencer to do for me?

Your deliverables must be clear in order for the partnership to be successful. The number of posts, the timing of the posts, and the actual content you want posted are massive factors to consider before you choose your influencer. Allowing an influencer to produce the content themselves can make the promotion feel more authentic, but make sure they seek your approval before posting to ensure it is compliant with the industry standards set out by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), The Committee of Advertising Practices (CAP), and the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).

Yes.

As a new frontier in marketing, the rules and requirements of those within the influencer marketing industry have often been ambiguous. However, as the industry has continued to grow, so has the need for transparency in relationships between brands and influencers.

According to Section 2 of the Committee of Advertising Practices (CAP) Code, it is a requirement that all advertising be obviously identifiable. This consideration is particularly important in the new realm of influencer marketing, as consumers will have less experience distinguishing between advertorial content and organic user generated content on social media.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) provides a great summary of the steps required for both brands and influencers in order to adequately disclose that a social media post is an ad, these being:

Know when you’re advertising

If a brand gives an influencer any type of ‘payment’ (monetary payment, free loan of a product or service, any incentive and/or commission, or gifts), resulting posts from the influencer that promote the brand become subject to consumer protection law enforced by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). Also, if a brand has editorial control over an influencer’s content, the ASA can apply the CAP code as well.

Ensure influencer marketing is easily identifiable

Because consumers can have difficulty identifying when social media posts by influencers are ads, it is a minimum expectation from the ASA for such posts to include a prominent ‘ad’ label at the beginning, not buried under the ‘See more’ fold, to highlight that the post is a form of marketing communication.

Make sure the labels meaning is clear

The use of language in the ad label must make it obvious that the post is an ad. Prominently displayed labels such as ‘Ad’, ‘Advert’, ‘Advertising’, and ‘Ad Feature’ are likely to be considered acceptable by the ASA. However, labels such as ‘Sponsored’, ‘Supported by’, ‘In association with…’, or ‘#BrandAmbassador does not, in most contexts, adequately convey that a post has been paid for or that a level of editorial control exists to indicate that it is an ad. Similarly, abbreviated labels such as ‘aff’ (affiliate), ‘sp’ (sponsored post), or ‘spon’ (sponsored) are likely to be considered insufficient, considering an average consumer’s unfamiliarity with industry jargon.

Take into account differences between platforms

Brands and influencers need to take care to ensure that advertising posts are obviously identifiable to all consumers who encounter the material - prior to engagement - and should bear in mind any limitations and technical ‘quirks’ on the platform they are using (e.g. any limits on the number of characters, how much is visible and the fact that some social media sites cut off text placed after hashtags or other non-alphanumeric characters).

Don’t solely rely on the ‘bio’ or previous posts

Influencer marketing posts should be identifiable as ads without requiring prior knowledge of the influencer’s commercial relationships. Because social media posts are often viewed in isolation, the influencer’s ‘bio’ won’t always be visible to a consumer. This means that relying on an influencer’s ‘bio’ stating that they are ambassador will not be considered sufficient disclosure, and the post itself should include appropriate labelling.

Don’t forget that the principles apply to ‘new’ formats too

This idea relates to the way the principles of declaring advertising apply to the ever changing features of social media sites such as Instagram, Twitter and TikTok. For example, even though Instagram stories are short video snippets or images that are only visible for 24 hours, if an influencer were to post promotional content on their story they would be required to declare the advertorial nature of the post in the same manner they would as an in-feed post.

Remember that the rest of the code applies

If an influencer’s post falls under the ASA’s scope and is considered a marketing communication, it must also comply with the rest of the CAP Code. This means that the post should not, amongst other things, materially mislead consumers or cause serious or widespread offence.

For more information about your requirements when it comes to influencer marketing, visit the ASA’s guide to recognising social media influencer ads here.

While there is never a set amount that is required in order to entice a star to be a part of your online campaign, there are rough price brackets that can be used to determine how much money you might be looking to set aside relative to the clout of your desired star.

The amount of social media followers a star has will have a significant impact on the reach of your campaign, and will typically influence their asking price for taking part in any online campaign. The rough guide below provides an indication towards how much you might expect to pay per post for a social media campaign.

0-10K = Up to £1,500 per post

10K-50k = From £1,500 to £3,000 per post

50K-100K = From £3,000 to £4,000 per post

100k-200k = From £4,000 to £7,000 per post

200k-500k = From £7,000 to £10,000 per post

500k-1M = From £10,000 to £25,000 per post

1M-2.5M = From £25,000 to £40,000 per post

2.5M-5M = From £40,000 to £60,000 + per post

Thereafter £0.007 per thousand followers for celebrities with 5M+ followers is a good bench mark.

Keep in mind that budget guidance is just that. Guidance.

There is more than just cash that will determine an influencer’s desire to work with you. As discussed above, mutual values and clear deliverables are key factors in ensuring the formation and success of an influencer partnership.

Read here for more influencer budget details.

Not to worry! You can add them to your shortlist, and we will make every effort to put your request in front of them.

When a client and star agree to work together, Pickstar requires a 50% deposit to confirm the booking. Booking deposits are non-refundable if you cancel after booking a star. If a star cancels and Pickstar is unable to find a suitable replacement, we will refund the full amount you have paid us.

If you book within 14 days of your event, we will require the full payment within 7 days and prior to the event to confirm the booking. If the sports star does not turn up to the event, Pickstar will provide a full refund.

Marketing agencies and approved clients may qualify for customised payment terms. Contact us to discuss.