Working with influencers is like a blind date

Interview with Katharina Brunsendorf Head of Content – Scalable Capital

Working with influencers is like a blind date

It is becoming increasingly difficult for companies to get their messages across to their target groups. According to the Reuters Digital Institute, almost 40% now actively avoid consuming news. This is why influencers are increasingly coming into play to effectively address target groups. We talk to Katharina Brunsendorf, Head of Content at Scalable Capital, a digital investment platform, about the opportunities and limitations as well as the use of technology in influencer marketing.

AG CommTech: Katharina , why is working with influencers important for Scalable Capital? How are you set up for this?

Katharina: We attach great importance to collaborations with influencers. That’s why we explicitly have a team that takes care of and handles the relevant collaborations directly. We have deliberately built up the expertise internally and have not used an agency as an intermediary. This is also due to the fact that we are part of a very top group in the investment sector and pay particular attention to personal relationships.

AG CommTech: In your opinion, what is the biggest challenge in identifying influencers?

Katharina: The point is complex. To make the selection easier, however, it is important to have a clear objective and also to know what the account’s community should look like so that it suits us and our goals. When making the selection, we must not forget that the profile is the vehicle through which we reach our desired target group.
But risk analysis is also a big issue. Internal rules need to be defined here, if they do not already exist. Companies often already have guidelines or values according to which they operate, but regulatory requirements must also be observed. This is why the analysis and selection part is extremely important and should always be reviewed through personal contact and collaboration. It is essential to analyze the postings and the reaction of the followers.

AG CommTech: What role do digital tools and AI play in influencer management? What are the most important tools & fields of application? Does artificial intelligence already play a role?

Katharina: With the wide range of accounts available, digital tools have become an integral part of our daily work. You get suggestions, the most important key data and initial analyses at the touch of a button. They help in the influencer search to make a data-based and, if necessary, AI-supported (pre-)selection and to check whether the influencer’s community actually corresponds to the desired target group in terms of age, interests and brand affinity. This significantly speeds up the search for the right influencers. In my opinion, the use of AI will, on the one hand, make it more interesting for smaller companies to operate in this field, as they can outsource tasks. On the other hand, larger companies or agencies can benefit from even more detailed insights, analyses and forecasts.

AG CommTech: How is the success of collaboration ensured? According to a survey by Statista, 76% of respondents say it is difficult to measure the ROI of a campaign. How do you ensure this?

Katharina: We set clear targets that are measurable and track them accordingly using our own tools. We also put together performance packages that have a fixed and variable performance component. This makes it possible to measure success in purely numerical terms. Nevertheless, for me there is always an aspect of the success of collaboration on a personal level. No matter how good the planning and analysis is. What you experience in the end is just like a blind date – sparks can fly immediately and everything fits or go in a completely different direction.

AG CommTech: What advice would you give to communications teams that do not yet have any resources for influencer marketing but still want to get involved? Is working with a specialized agency an option from your point of view?

Katharina: Absolutely! I myself had great experiences working with an agency in the past. So regardless of the size of your internal teams, I would advise you to think about what you want to do yourself and what you want to outsource. Whether directly or with a partner, using influencer tools is a good way to identify suitable cooperation partners and get a feel for the market and target group.