Thread by @andrewjfaris

1/15 Using Influencer Giveaways To Generate Revenue With Conversion-Optimized FB Ads: My Guruiest Ad Strategy

One of my big ecom questions right now is how to REALLY get value out of digital influencer partnerships. Pay-for-post doesn't work (and I, like you, hate that content).

2/ Organic social reach is so low that I've come to think of influencers less as content distributors and more as content creators. 100k followers is nice, but if I'm only going to reach 5% of them, the CPM on pay-for-post sucks.

So what if I handle the distribution?

3/ So here's what we did for @SlickProduct: the best dirt bikers in the world (including @RickyCarmichael and @PCraceteam) use Slick to wash their bikes. So we had them host giveaways via organic social posts, then we amplify the distribution with conversion-optimized ads.

4/ It starts with the influencer giving away two things: (1) something of unique value to their audience, like a signed jersey in this case, and (2) the best product Slick sells. The video promotes both, in that order. Here's Ricky's video: instagram.com/p/Btd-oxonMii.

5/ The influencer posts, with a link in bio to a landing page with an email capture. In and of itself, this works, and the usual digital marketing accoutrements are part of this: the email capture triggers a product-focused automated flow, and you get brand awareness & equity.

6/ But it isn't just email addresses and awareness. On the landing page, under the email capture, add your product info. The influencer repped your product. Now sell it.

We had the email capture under the video where the "and the winner is" part is here: slickproductsusa.com/pages/austin-f…

7/ Great. That's all good. But here's the guru magic: take that giveaway offer content and turn it into a CONVERSION-OPTIMIZED FB ad. To be clear: optimize for purchase, not email capture. Not a lead gen ad. Say nothing in the ad about buying. Like so: facebook.com/41323037873061…

8/ This effectively does a couple things:

(1) You get super cheap clicks. My all-in CPC on these campaigns has been about $.47, with my cheapest at $.24. My other ads during this same time period run at about $.87. That's nearly 50% cheaper on average, and 73% in the best case.

9/

(2) You acquire way more email addresses/click (and per/$) than usual. I haven't totally backed the math out here, but I think I'm collecting email addresses on at least 80% of my clicks. That's ~$.58/email address. Again: while optimizing for purchase!

10/

(3) Most importantly: I do this while prospecting at almost exactly the same ROAS as the rest of my ads. But since I'm doing so with way more clicks/$ (which I can remarket) and way more email addresses/$ than my normal prospecting traffic, it's much more valuable long term.

11/ Here's the thing: because it's so email focused, you'll realize that ROAS a little slower than usual. Lots will be delayed attribution via email. This screenshot is my 1-day click and 28-day click ROAS on these campaign. That's a 2.73 delayed attribution multiplier!

12/ In all of this, I'm pretty convinced there's more upside. These campaigns represent about 3 real attempts at this. There's lots to be done to dial in the offer, creative, email flows, landing page CRO, and so on. I'm just scratching the surface.

13/ Two plugs: first, if you're interested in trying this, the "creator-first, distributor-second" way of thinking about influencers is core to my friends at @kynshipco. I'd highly recommend checking them out if you want to get some influencers and get after it.

14/ Also, I'll be laying this out in detail at an event at @Shopify L.A. alongside some real smart folks (including @TaylorHoliday and @social_savannah) from @CommnThreadCo in a couple weeks. Come hang: la.shopify.com/products/paid-….

And it'll be livestreamed: attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/35737…

15/ Now someone help me out and tell me how to do it better. I'm pretty convinced that this is just the beginning of something that could go to new levels.