This post was updated in April 2025 to provide you with the latest information.

Building an Influencer Marketing Strategy That Scales with Paid Media

Influencer marketing has become one of the most effective ways for brands to build trust, boost engagement, and connect with social-first audiences. With 72% of Gen Z and Millennials following influencers, and over half making a purchase based on an influencer’s post, it’s clear that creators hold real sway in the buyer journey.

However, not all influencer marketing strategies can drive equal results. Thus, to maximize impact, your influencer campaign must be designed with paid social in mind. In this guide, we’ll show you how to build an influencer marketing strategy that seamlessly scales with platforms like Meta, TikTok, and YouTube.

What Is Influencer Marketing?

Influencer marketing involves partnering with individuals who have built authority, credibility, and a dedicated following in specific niches. These influencers can shape opinions and drive purchasing decisions, especially when they share relatable, personal content across social media platforms.

By showcasing your product or service through someone their audience already trusts, you create a more human, attainable connection between your brand and potential customers.

Furthermore, influencer marketing thrives on long-term collaboration. When an influencer genuinely connects with a brand, their content becomes a cycle of trust: they use the product, recommend it authentically, and inspire action from their followers. This is the foundation of a successful social media influencer marketing campaign.

Organic Influencer Marketing vs. Influencer Advertising

Understanding the difference between organic influencer marketing and influencer advertising through paid social is key to crafting a strategy that performs.

• Organic Influencer Marketing: This approach is typically more casual and relationship-driven. Brands may send products or offer services in exchange for a review or mention, without a formal contract.
  
  If the influencer enjoys the experience, they may share a spontaneous Instagram Story, a TikTok mention, or a YouTube vlog. While organic posts feel authentic, they rely solely on the influencer’s reach and discretion.
• Influencer Advertising through Paid Social: This involves formal agreements where influencers are compensated for creating sponsored content. The content is then repurposed into influencer ads, extending its reach to more audiences.
  
  By using paid social ads, brands gain control over placement, targeting, and scalability, making this approach ideal for reaching broader, performance-driven objectives.

Effective influencer marketing strategies aren’t just about big budgets — it’s about building genuine relationships. That said, influencer advertising can still boost engagement by as much as 61% through paid social media.

Combining both approaches is the best way to maximize impact across social media advertising platforms. The authenticity of organic influencer relationships blended with the reach and precision of paid social advertising is a powerful engine to drive results towards your brand’s objectives.

Is Influencer Marketing Right for Your Brand?

If your brand already has an in-house creative team, you’re likely producing content that reflects your identity and voice. However, integrating an influencer marketing strategy can take that a step further, offering a native, authentic presence in social feeds that often outperforms traditional display or video ads.

It’s natural to feel hesitant about diving into influencer marketing, especially when it adds a new layer to your campaign strategy. But the benefits often outweigh the uncertainty. Here’s how to tell if it’s the right move for your brand.

Key Signs Your Brand Could Benefit from Influencer Marketing

• You want to build authenticity and trust: Influencers create content that feels personal and relatable—something polished ad creatives sometimes can’t replicate. In fact, 48% of consumers say they’re more likely to purchase a product recommended by an influencer they follow.
  
  This trust carries over to your brand, especially when the influencer’s values and voice align with yours.
• You want to reach niche or hard-to-target audiences: Many influencers and microinfluencers build communities around specific interests, demographics, or lifestyles.
  
  While platform tools like Meta’s Advantage+ Audience offer strong targeting tools, influencers offer something algorithmic targeting can’t: personal relationships with highly engaged followers. That makes influencer ads an effective way to expand your reach into niche segments.
• You’re ready to scale through paid social: Organic posts only go as far as an influencer’s follower count. But by integrating influencer content into your paid social strategy, you can unlock scalable growth across platforms like Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok. Influencer creative is often platform-native and performs well as sponsored content, giving your campaigns more flexibility and higher engagement rates.

In modern digital marketing, influencer ads enhance the entire media strategy by combining creative storytelling with high-performing ad formats. Adding an influencer marketing strategy to your campaign mix can pay off in both trust and performance.

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Further Reading

Which Social Media Platform Works Best for Influencer Marketing?

The success of your influencer campaign doesn’t just depend on the creator — it also hinges on the platform they use. Whether it’s TikTok, Instagram, or YouTube, each channel offers different advantages when it comes to reach, engagement, and ROI.

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How to Create an Influencer Marketing Strategy

Now that you’re ready to launch your influencer marketing campaign, it’s time to build your strategy. This quick-start guide outlines the core steps to help you kickstart expanding your audience across different platforms.

Step 1: Find the Right Influencers for Your Business

Start by analyzing whether the influencer’s audience aligns with your target demographics, such as their followers’ age, location, interests, and content themes. For example, a skincare brand targeting Gen Z should collaborate with influencers whose audience reflects that age group and a lifestyle that complements your brand identity.

Don’t just rely on follower counts. Examine engagement rates, content tone, and authenticity. With view counts now including replays and auto-plays, especially for YouTube Shorts views, it’s better to ask for engaged views to align better with your YouTube ad metrics.

Step 2: Build Relationships with Influencers

Initial campaigns are a chance to test content fit and audience reception before entering longer-term agreements. Look for how creatively aligned the influencer is with your brand, and how well their followers respond to branded content.

The goal should be to move from one-off posts to sustained partnerships. Long-term collaborations foster trust, turning influencers into brand advocates who drive deeper loyalty among their audiences.

Be clear on expectations early: align on objectives, content formats, timelines, and creative direction to build a productive and transparent relationship.

Step 3: Negotiate an Influencer Marketing Package

Your influencer marketing package should include:

• Defined deliverables (e.g. 1 video/week, 2 Instagram Stories, etc.)
• Usage rights (e.g. 1 product review post, 1 exclusive asset for paid ads)
• Exclusivity clauses (e.g. no partnerships with direct competitors during the campaign)

Rates will vary depending on the influencer’s tier (nano, micro, macro, or celebrity), platform, and content complexity. Negotiate based on both their reach and engagement, as well as the type of content you need them to produce.

Step 4: Optimize Content for Paid Social

Turn top-performing influencer content into influencer ads by adapting formats, hooks, and CTAs for each platform. Boosting organic posts can significantly expand your reach, especially when the content already resonates with followers.

• Use Spark Ads on TikTok when promoting influencer ads. Request an authorization code from the influencer to repurpose their post in your ad campaign.
• On Instagram, use Partnership Ads (formerly branded content ads). Similarly, the influencer shares an ad code, which you upload in Ads Manager for use in your campaigns.

Test variations in creative, captions, and CTAs to find what clicks with your audience, and continue refining as results come in.

Step 5: Measure Results and Scale

Using ad management tools, track KPIs such as reach, engagement, conversions, and video views. Make sure to distinguish between autoplays and engaged views, especially for short-form formats like YouTube Shorts, Instagram Reels, and TikTok.

Accurate measurement helps you identify top-performing creators and content styles worth reinvesting in. Use these insights to confidently and efficiently scale your influencer marketing strategy across multiple channels.

Making Influencer Strategy Work for Your Paid Media

Influencer advertising is no longer an optional add-on for brands; it has now become a core driver of digital marketing performance. As audience behavior shifts, authentic influencer content is what truly resonates and drives action.

By partnering with creators who authentically fit your brand, you can further amplify your reach by boosting it on paid social media. The combined credibility and relatability of influencers alongside the precision targeting and scalability of paid media can help you achieve your marketing goals.

Ready to develop and execute an influencer marketing strategy that drives results? Talk to our team of experts and start building your next high-impact campaign.

The post How to Build an Influencer Marketing Strategy That Drives Paid Social Results appeared first on Strike Social.

The Go-To Social Media Platforms for Influencer Marketing Agencies

Collaborating with a top-tier social media influencer not only reduces the workload on your creative team but also enhances brand authenticity. Utilizing user-generated content (UGC) creates a more natural and relatable ad experience, making your campaigns more engaging to your audiences.

Currently, there are over 12 million U.S. influencers across all social media platforms. Yet the real question is: Which influencer marketing platform delivers the best results when integrated into paid ads, and where do they perform best? From audience reach to ROI, several factors determine whether TikTok, Instagram, or YouTube is the ideal choice for your influencer marketing campaigns.

Top Social Media Platforms for Influencer Marketing

The competition between TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram is fierce when it comes to video advertising and audience reach. YouTube leads with over 250 million users, followed by Instagram at 138.5 million.

However, TikTok is not to be overlooked. The app saw a surge of 88.3% user growth in 2019 and continues to grow by 2.2%–2.4% annually through 2029.

But does a platform’s user base directly translate to its effectiveness for influencer marketing? Let’s take a closer look at the different platforms and how influencer marketing agencies maximize them:

TikTok

While many assume the platform caters only to younger users, our campaign data tells a different story. Despite the majority of U.S. TikTok users being under 30, our data reveals up to 37% CPM efficiency even among audiences aged 55 and up—demonstrating TikTok’s versatility in reaching diverse audiences.

So, how does this well-rounded strategy position TikTok as an influencer marketing platform worth considering?

Promoting your Brand with TikTok Influencers

Influencer marketing agencies choose TikTok for its ability to drive high engagement through viral, short-form videos. Its algorithm naturally amplifies content, enabling brands to reach wider audiences without relying solely on paid media.

Spark Ads further enhances this by boosting organic influencer content, allowing brands to connect authentically with target audiences through established influencer communities.

• Authentic and Relatable Content: TikTok thrives on raw, unfiltered content that feels genuine, bringing authenticity to each video. This “in-the-moment” vibe resonates with users across age groups, making influencer recommendations feel more like advice from a friend than a corporate pitch.

• Cross-Generational Appeal: Though TikTok’s user base skews younger, influencer marketing remains highly effective across all age groups. Audiences aged 55+ have an average engagement rate of 7.3%, surpassing the 5.3% average for younger users. This indicates that while they may be fewer in number, older users demonstrate higher intent and engagement on the platform.
  
  From Gen Z creators to senior influencers, TikTok offers brands a wide range of niche communities to tap into.

• Innovative Content Formats: TikTok offers unique content formats that amplify influencer campaigns:
  • Branded Hashtag Challenges: Brands partner with influencers to create viral trends, increasing user participation.
    
    HP’s #HPRadicalReuse campaign, featuring creators like @dreaknowsbest and @alisonsadventures, achieved an 18% engagement rate, with over 4 million video views from Spark Ads alone.
  • Interactive Add-Ons: In addition to promoting video ads, you can make them more engaging by adding interactive features such as gestures, gift code stickers, and pop-out showcases.

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Further Reading

Activating Authorization Code for TikTok Spark Ads

TikTok’s Spark Ads simplify collaboration with influencers, making it easier to boost their content. With just a few quick steps, you and your chosen content creator can activate a sponsored post and seamlessly launch a successful influencer marketing campaign.

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Keep in mind that TikTok is just the first social media advertising platform in this discussion. While we see how it excels in both video advertising and influencer marketing, how do Instagram and YouTube compare?

Instagram

As Meta continues evolving Instagram into a video-first platform, it has become a top alternative to TikTok—especially during discussions of a potential TikTok ban. When advertisers explored shifting TikTok campaigns to Instagram Reels, it reinforced Instagram’s position as one of the top choices for influencer marketing agencies.

Assessing the Effectiveness of Instagram Influencer Advertising

Instagram is home to over 10 million influencers in the U.S., accounting for 9.8% of its users. With such a vast creator ecosystem, brands have plenty of opportunities to collaborate with influencers across various niches.

Understanding Influencer Tiers

Instagram offers a broad spectrum of influencers, from small, niche-focused creators to mega influencers with massive reach.

More followers don’t always mean better results—nano-influencers often have the highest engagement rates due to their highly engaged, niche communities, making them a strong choice for influencer-driven ads.

Visual Storytelling

Instagram is inherently a visual-first platform, making it ideal for brands that rely on aesthetics and storytelling to connect with audiences. Its various ad formats cater to different marketing objectives:

• Reels: Short-form videos optimized for discoverability and engagement. Influencer-driven Reels see engagement rates of up to 2.08%, outperforming the 1.8% average for regular Reels and other content types.
• Stories: Ephemeral content perfect for real-time updates, behind-the-scenes glimpses, or limited-time offers. Stories ads can boost reach by 35%, particularly for small brands looking to expand their audience.
• Carousel: Multi-image posts designed to encourage user interaction by swiping through content, making them ideal for detailed storytelling or showcasing multiple products. As a prominent ad format on both Facebook and Instagram, Carousel ads have proven effective—helping a luxury watch brand drive up to 56% of landing page views in a traffic campaign.

Meta’s Stability and Instagram’s Longevity

As part of Meta’s advertising network, Instagram remains a dominant force in social media advertising–and it’s here to stay.

Meta’s resilience in the stock market reinforces its position as a leading platform, and with 47% of brands using Instagram for influencer marketing, its relevance will persist—especially as uncertainty around a potential U.S. TikTok ban continues to impact advertiser decisions.

Is Instagram more effective for influencer advertising than TikTok? The answer depends on campaign goals, target demographics, and engagement strategy. But before drawing conclusions, let’s analyze yet another major influencer marketing platform—YouTube.

YouTube

While YouTube might appear last on this list, its engagement, effectiveness, and video advertising impact are anything but last place. Known for brand awareness campaigns, YouTube is also a high-performing platform for action and conversion-driven marketing.

Why YouTube Influencer Marketing Works

YouTube’s advantages for influencer marketing agencies are strongly tied to its ability to deliver detailed, engaging, and authentic content—whether in short form or long form. Discover why you should consider YouTube for your social media influencer campaigns:

Long-Form Content for In-Depth Storytelling

YouTube stands out in influencer marketing for its ability to host extended video content, making it ideal for detailed product showcases and tutorials:

• Detailed Product Reviews: YouTube influencers spend 10–15 minutes (or longer) discussing a product’s features, benefits, and real-world applications, making it the top choice among U.S. consumers for product reviews and information.
• Step-by-Step Tutorials: 64% of viewers have reported making a purchase after watching an explainer video. And because there’s (basically) no length limit to the videos a YouTube content creator can create, they can go into detail on product tutorials, allowing viewers to understand better what they are recommending.

Full-Funnel Marketing Capabilities

YouTube also plays a crucial role in performance-driven marketing, helping brands achieve action-based results such as lead generation, website traffic, and direct sales.

• Action Campaigns: YouTube influencers excel in driving video views and audience engagement, with the help of Video Views Campaigns. The U.S. leads in YouTube influencer engagement with 28.4 billion interactions, and click-through rates peak during high-traffic ad seasons like Q4.
• Driving Conversions: From Strike Social’s data, a family entertainment brand achieved a 7.8x ROAS by using YouTube ads to drive in-store visits. Additionally, influencer-driven YouTube campaigns have been shown to generate up to 10 times higher conversion rates than organic traffic alone.

Trusted by Audiences

98% of online users trust recommendations from YouTube influencers—more than any other social media platform.

A strong example is MAC Cosmetics, which partnered with beauty content creators Ankita Chaturvedi and Naina Bhan for their YouTube Video Reach Campaigns. With the help of YouTube Shorts, their campaign achieved:

• 66% lower cost per view (CPV)
• 2.5x higher view-through rates than their standard YouTube ads

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Further Reading

Driving Conversions with YouTube Influencer Advertising

Don’t let assumptions about high costs and large ad budgets deter you from considering YouTube influencers for your campaigns. Collaborating with YouTube creators could be the key to fully integrating your ad funnel into this video-centric platform.

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Now that you have a clear understanding of how these social media influencer platforms work and how you can collaborate with content creators for brand campaigns, it’s time to assess your options. While these major platforms are the top choices for influencer marketing agencies, the right fit depends on various criteria that require careful evaluation.

Why Influencer Marketing Agencies Choose These Social Media Platforms

Influencer marketing agencies select TikTok, Instagram, or YouTube based on their unique strengths in audience engagement, creative content, placement strategies, and cost efficiency. Below is a condensed overview of each platform’s advantages:

Each social media platform has unique strengths that can enhance your influencer marketing campaigns. By aligning your campaign goals with the criteria outlined here, you can determine the best platform for your strategy.

Beyond platform selection, the influencer’s existing community is another critical factor. For example, if your brand performs well on TikTok but the influencer you’re targeting has stronger reach and engagement on YouTube, shifting your ad spend may be more effective. Likewise, if a YouTube influencer’s rates are too high, exploring Instagram influencers could deliver better results at a lower cost.

While each platform has its pros and cons, Strike Social’s data shows that a multi-platform influencer campaign can drive strong results while maintaining cost efficiency.

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Case Study:

A leading CPG brand partnered with Strike Social to drive high-quality traffic and engagement through influencer marketing across TikTok and Instagram while maintaining cost efficiency.

By aligning influencer-driven content with key audiences—homemakers, food enthusiasts, and younger consumers—the campaign achieved 43.2% cost efficiency, with Meta (Facebook and Instagram) contributing to 70% lower CPLC on Meta placements.

Further, capitalizing on the platform’s strength in interactive, trend-based engagement, 61% total engagements were driven by TikTok influencer ads.

Download the CPG Influencer Campaign Case Study

Connecting with More Engaged Audiences with Influencer Marketing

Choosing the right social media platform for your influencer marketing campaign is a crucial step in effectively promoting your brand. Each platform offers distinct advantages based on your goals, target audience, and budget—and when combined strategically, they can deliver even stronger performance and cost efficiency.

However, these platforms are just the mediums. Success in influencer marketing depends on aligning with the right audience, budget strategy, and content approach. Whether partnering with Instagram, YouTube, or TikTok influencers, integrating influencer marketing into your paid social strategy is now essential.

Ready to launch your influencer campaign? Contact our team for a personalized walkthrough on how we can activate and manage your influencer ads.

The post Which Social Media Platform Works Best for Influencer Marketing? appeared first on Strike Social.

Download Case Study

Campaign Outcome

With real-time optimizations and influencer-driven content, Strike Social helped this CPG brand drive efficient traffic at scale.
Our strategic execution ensured the right messaging reached the right audience for the best possible performance.

Seamless Performance
Across Platforms with
Strategic Execution

• Real-Time Campaign Adjustments: Strike Social’s real-time monitoring tools enabled dynamic bid, pacing, and audience optimizations, resulting in 48,000+ link clicks while maintaining cost efficiency.

• Consistent Multi-Platform Targeting: The team strategically aligned messaging across platforms, ensuring that younger audiences on TikTok and established consumer segments on Facebook and Instagram received relevant, engaging content.

• Platform-Specific Creative Optimization: Influencer content was adapted to fit platform-specific best practices, enhancing engagement rates and increasing campaign effectiveness.

Learn more about Strike Social

See other Facebook case studies.

Download the Multi-Platform Influencer Case Study

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The post Multi-Platform Case Study: Driving Traffic with Influencer Content appeared first on Strike Social.

Driving Traffic and Sales with YouTube Influencer Advertising

Did you know that 67% of marketers struggle to find the right influencers for their brands? Yet, those investing in YouTube influencer advertising seem to have cracked the code—allocating up to 40% of their marketing budgets to influencer campaigns on the platform.

When brands collaborate with YouTube creators whose audiences align with their target market, the results translate to real engagement, traffic, and conversions. In this blog, we’ll break down how YouTube influencer advertising can deliver measurable ROI and why it’s worth integrating into your strategy.

Why Should Brands Use YouTube Influencers for Advertising?

Running YouTube ads can definitely help with brand promotions, but partnering with a trusted YouTube influencer adds a layer of authenticity that traditional ads can’t match. Here’s why YouTube influencer advertising is a powerful strategy for driving engagement, trust, and conversions:

Benefits of Collaborating with YouTube Content Creators

Higher audience trust and engagement

• YouTube creators have built-in credibility, making their recommendations feel more like peer advice than traditional advertising. Influencer engagement rates typically average around 3%, with micro-influencers (10,000 to 100,000 subscribers) reaching up to 5%.
• This aligns with YouTube’s overall engagement benchmark of 3-7%, reinforcing why influencer-led campaigns often drive stronger brand affinity and trust.

Longer content lifespan

• Unlike short-lived content on TikTok and Instagram, YouTube videos continue to generate views long after they’re published:
  • YouTube: Videos gain traction for 20-30 days initially but can keep accumulating views for years.
  • TikTok: Viral content peaks in minutes but fades quickly without sustained engagement.
  • Instagram: Reels last around 14 days in circulation, while standard posts have a visibility window of up to 48 hours.

Better storytelling opportunities

• Data from our 2024 YouTube ads benchmark report shows that both short-form and long-form content perform well in YouTube advertising:

• While shorter ads achieve higher view rates, longer content remains competitive, proving that YouTube fosters engagement across various video lengths. YouTube influencer ads go beyond simple product promotion, offering brands a way to tell authentic stories that connect with audiences on a deeper level.

How to Find the Right YouTube Influencers

With over 200,000 U.S. content creators in the macro-influencer category alone (up to 500K subscribers), the options for YouTube influencer advertising are vast. Brands can also choose from nano-influencers, micro-influencers, and mega-influencers, each offering different levels of reach and engagement.

But how do you determine the right YouTube influencer? Here are two key strategies:

1. Discover Influencers with YouTube BrandConnect

YouTube BrandConnect simplifies the process of finding the right YouTube influencers by providing data-driven insights and audience-matching tools. You can filter creators based on:

• Audience demographics (e.g., age, location)
• Engagement rates (e.g., 10%+ comment rate on videos)
• Content category (e.g., tech, beauty, food)

Beyond discovery, YouTube BrandConnect also facilitates campaign planning, negotiations, and communication—helping to streamline influencer marketing campaigns while ensuring a secure collaboration between advertisers and creators.

2. Look Beyond Vanity Metrics

Follower count and video views may look impressive, but they don’t always translate to engagement or effectiveness for YouTube influencer advertising. Instead, assess:

• Past collaborations: Have they done influencer ads on YouTube before? If their branded content consistently outperforms non-branded videos, it’s a strong indicator of their influence and audience trust.
• Engagement rate: Calculate the engagement rate of their channel using this formula:

Engagement Rate = [(Likes + Comments + Shares) / Subscribers] × 100%

As a benchmark, nano-influencers (1K to 10K followers) typically have an engagement rate of around 4.6%. If you’re targeting influencers in this category, their engagement rates must meet or exceed this standard.

3. Work with an Influencer Agency

Manually searching for the right YouTube influencers can be time-consuming and resource-intensive. Partnering with an influencer agency streamlines the process, allowing you to focus on campaign strategy and performance.

Influencer agencies have data-driven insights into which content creators consistently deliver results, helping you connect with those who align with your brand and audience. With their deep understanding of influencer marketing trends, they can identify high-performing creators faster than traditional vetting methods.

Furthermore, agencies handle key logistics, from facilitating partnerships to negotiating fees, making them especially valuable if you’re new to YouTube influencer advertising.

Common Mistakes and Myths in YouTube Influencer Advertising

We get it—YouTube influencer advertising comes with its fair share of doubts, often fueled by misconceptions and misinformation. Whether it’s concerns about costs, effectiveness, or control over messaging, these myths can prevent brands from tapping into a highly effective digital marketing strategy.

Let’s separate fact from fiction and debunk the most common misunderstandings about working with YouTube influencers:

1. “It’s hard to earn ROI from YouTube influencers”

Reality: Nano and micro-influencers offer cost-effective partnerships with a higher YouTube ROI than top-tier creators.

While partnering with top-tier influencers can provide extensive reach, it comes at a steep cost. For instance, Lydia Millen, a top-tier fashion influencer with over 1 million subscribers, averages 200K to 400K views per video. The cost for a single sponsored video from an influencer of this scale can range from $10,000 to $16,000.

However, brands don’t have to rely on mega-influencers to get results. 47% of marketers report better performance from smaller-scale YouTube influencer ads, which often have stronger audience engagement. Nano and micro-influencers not only provide more affordable rates, but their engagement rates can reach up to 8-10%, compared to mega-influencers, whose engagement drops to as low as 0.92%.

Here’s the typical cost of YouTube influencer advertising at different subscriber levels:

2. “YouTube ads are much more expensive than TikTok”

Reality: YouTube’s higher engagement and view rates offset upfront costs, delivering stronger ROAS over time.

At first glance, YouTube advertising costs may seem higher, having higher competition for ad space. However, YouTube’s higher engagement, stable click-through rates (CTR), and stronger audience retention often translate into better long-term ROI compared to its primary video-first competitor, TikTok.

Here’s a 2024 U.S. campaign comparison of action campaign CTRs across YouTube vs. TikTok:

With the introduction of Demand Gen campaigns (formerly Video Action Campaigns), YouTube is further optimizing ad performance for direct response and conversions. These campaigns integrate well with your YouTube influencer marketing strategy, allowing you to:

• Retarget high-intent audiences who have previously interacted with your brand.
• Encourage action with shoppable ads, lead forms, and CTA buttons.
• Utilize Google’s AI-powered targeting to find users ready to convert.

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Further Reading

From VAC to Demand Gen — What You Need To Know

Starting March 2025, Video Action Campaigns (VAC) will evolve into Demand Gen, a more advanced campaign type designed to drive higher clicks and conversions from your YouTube ads. Demand Gen expands your reach by delivering multi-format ads across highly engaged audiences within the Google network, optimizing performance beyond traditional placements.

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How to Maximize ROI with YouTube Influencer Advertising

Now that you understand the benefits of YouTube influencer advertising, it’s time to apply those insights to optimize your campaign strategy. Here are the tips to plan out your campaign accordingly:

Manage your costs by finding the right influencers

It’s not just about follower count—it’s about engagement. A high subscriber count often means higher costs, but engagement rates can drop as influencer size increases. To maximize your YouTube influencer ads ROI, focus on creators whose audience is actively engaged with their content.

Look for YouTube influencers with a track record of successful brand collaborations. Analyze engagement metrics on their sponsored content to assess whether they can deliver the performance you need. Most importantly, their pricing must align with your campaign budget without compromising results.

Take advantage of YouTube’s advertising ecosystem

YouTube’s reach spans multiple devices, including mobile screens, tablets, desktops, and Connected TV (CTV). Your YouTube influencer advertising strategy should be optimized for all viewing experiences, including Shorts for mobile users and horizontal videos for larger screens.

Our 2024 YouTube Ads Benchmark Report shows that 48% of YouTube ad placements land on Connected TV, offering higher viewability and longer watch times. Meanwhile, mobile generates the highest impression share, emphasizing the importance of engaging fast-paced viewers who are more likely to click and take action.

Beyond the YouTube app, Google’s ad ecosystem expands your ads’ reach across multiple platforms through these key campaign formats:

• Video Reach Campaigns – Extends influencer ads to Google TV and YouTube TV.
• Video View Campaigns – Maximizes visibility across YouTube in-feed, in-stream, and Shorts.
• Demand Gen – Expands reach beyond YouTube to Google Discover, Gmail, and Google video partners.

Amplify your performance with an expert YouTube advertising agency

The right influencer and high-quality ad creatives are just part of the equation. To unlock true efficiency, partner with a YouTube advertising agency that specializes in cost-effective, high-performing campaigns.

With over a decade of experience running YouTube campaigns, Strike Social’s proprietary ad tech optimizes costs 24/7 while delivering consistent results. Combined with the expertise of our media buying team, we help brands hit their target views and conversions—all while keeping ad costs under control.

Request a personalized walkthrough from our team today.

The post How YouTube Influencer Advertising Can Deliver Stronger Conversions appeared first on Strike Social.

This post was updated in December 2024 to provide you with the latest information.

Instagram Branded Content Ads: A Direct Link to Influencer Communities

The Instagram influencer community isn’t just made up of mega influencers like Charli and Dixie D’Amelio or Addison Rae, who boast tens of millions of followers. 

In fact, micro-influencers (10,000–100,000 followers) and nano-influencers (1,000–10,000 followers) are the preferred choice for 70% of brands. Why? These smaller creators are often more cost-effective and drive higher engagement, making them a better fit for targeted campaigns compared to big-name influencer communities.

With Instagram Partnership Ads (formerly Branded Content Ads), advertisers now have a direct link to tap into these influencer networks, leverage authentic user-generated content (UGC), and reach highly engaged audiences. It’s a strategy no brand can afford to overlook.

The Appeal of Instagram Influencer Advertising for Modern Brands

Social media influencers offer unique advantages that goes beyond traditional paid ads on Instagram. By tapping into their distinct niche audiences, Instagram influencers connect with followers who are already engaged and highly likely to become loyal patrons of the products or services they promote.

It’s no surprise that 47% of brands are already leveraging Instagram Branded Content Ads to amplify their campaigns. Here’s why the Instagram app remains the go-to platform for paid influencer marketing:

1. Up to 230% more follower reach than the average Instagram user 

Instagram’s visual-first platform makes it the ideal space for industries like fashion to thrive through influencer marketing. Even globally recognized brands, such as Zara, have found immense value in Partnership Ads.

By collaborating with micro-influencers like Teesh Rosa, Zara launched an Instagram Partnership Ads campaign that resulted in 4.6 million new followers. This success demonstrates how influencer marketing campaigns can tap into new audiences—far beyond what sponsored ads alone could achieve—delivering up to 230% more follower reach than the average Instagram user.

2. 41% of consumers discover products through influencer content weekly 

Instagram Branded Content Ads have the power to make your products feel relatable and accessible. By showcasing your brand through influencers, your product is presented as something used and trusted by “everyday” individuals, not just celebrities or big names.

When users scroll through their feeds and see their favorite influencers featuring your product, it creates an instant sense of trust and authenticity. This organic connection often gains traction even before you launch it as sponsored content on Instagram. It’s no wonder that 41% of consumers discover new products through influencer content on a weekly basis.

3. 69% of consumers trust influencer reviews and recommendations 

By featuring your product through Partnership Ads, Instagram influencers act as both brand advocates and trusted consumers.

This trust pays off—93% of influencers ensure their partnerships align with their personal values and audience expectations, reinforcing credibility and brand trust.

Beyond promotion, the authentic reactions and feedback from Instagram influencers can provide valuable insights to improve your product. Their close interactions with their community also give you a clearer understanding of how your brand is perceived, opening up opportunities for growth and optimization.

4. Influencers and content creators drive the growth of short-form video content

Short-form video has become a dominant force across social platforms, with Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube leading “the big three” for this content format.

Brands and influencers alike benefit from short-form videos, which generate 2.5x more engagement than longer video ads. Instagram Reels users spend an average of 53 minutes per session watching bite-sized content, offering brands a significant opportunity to reach audiences quickly and effectively.

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Further Reading

Which Platform is Best for Your Short-Form Video Advertising?

The competition for short-form video dominance is heating up among TikTok, YouTube Shorts, and Instagram Reels. Each platform brings something unique to the table, from extensive user engagement to expansive audience reach, offering distinct opportunities for advertisers to connect with their target markets.

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5. 82% of leads from influencer marketing are better quality than other campaign types

Instagram Branded Content Ads are not just effective for boosting reach—they excel at driving results for lower-funnel campaigns like lead generation. Aside from better quality leads, influencer marketing also brings about 4.87x ROI—a great return on investing in quality content creation from top influencers on Instagram. 

Eligible Formats for Instagram Branded Content Ads

While Instagram offers a range of advertising formats, only a select few are eligible for Partnership Ads (formerly Branded Content Ads). Here’s a list of the available formats and their requirements:

• Feed Ads
  • Feed ads provide prime visibility within the Instagram app. These ads appear on the influencer’s profile feed, users’ home feeds, and even on the profile feeds of other related content creators. Your selected Instagram partnership ads can be in image, video, or carousel format (multiple images or videos).

• Stories Ads
  • Stories are another popular format for Instagram branded content ads. To ensure your ad meets all requirements, follow these guidelines:
    • Video length must be 60 seconds or less
    • Music must be from Instagram’s royalty-free music collection or original audio

While considering the interactive elements, the content creator must also make sure that CTAs or texts are well within the safe zones, abiding by the ad specs on Instagram. By the aspect ratio, find the recommended safe zones for branded content ads on Reels here:

• 9:16
• 4:5

Are You Eligible to Launch Instagram Partnership Ads?

Launching Instagram Partnership Ads requires meeting specific eligibility requirements for advertisers. Unlike standard paid ads on Instagram, which can be easily started with a verified Meta business account and a fully set-up Meta Ads Manager, Partnership Ads come with additional criteria that must be met. Here’s what you need to know:

• Content must be shared from a professional Facebook page and/or Instagram professional account. Personal accounts are not eligible to run Partnership Ads.
• Content must comply with Meta’s Community Standards and should not contain hate speech, calls for violence, and sexualized content. Additionally, the content must avoid any misinformation or false news to prevent disapproval of the ad.
• Your Instagram profile must have a genuine follower base and an established presence to be eligible for Partnership Ads.
• Currently elected or appointed government officials, political candidates, political parties, political committees, and government agencies are not permitted to run Instagram branded content ads.
• Meta reserves the right to modify, suspend, or terminate access to its content monetization features, including Partnership Ads, at any time. 

How to Generate Instagram Ad Codes for Partnership Ads

For a Meta advertiser to use a creator’s content for an Instagram Partnership Ad, you need an Instagram ad code. Each ad code is unique to a specific advertiser and can only be used once.

Proper content-level and account-level permissions must also be arranged to ensure the influencer’s content can be used effectively for Instagram Partnership Ads.

Steps to generate ad code for Instagram influencers:

1. The Instagram influencer must choose the post they want to use for your branded content ad.

2. The influencer clicks the three dots on the post to reveal options. From there, they select Partnership label & ads.

3. The influencer toggles the option for Add paid partnership label.

4. The influencer clicks Add brand partner and selects your Instagram username from the list of potential advertisers. They then toggle the option for Allow brand partner to boost to allow you to use the content for sponsored ads.

5. The influencer clicks on Get partnership ad code, then copies the code and shares it with you for use in your Instagram campaign.

6. The influencer clicks Done to save and confirm the updates.

Steps to create Instagram branded content ads with ad code:

1. Go to Meta Ads Manager and click +Create.

2. Choose your campaign objective and click Continue.

3. Customize your campaign and ad set settings, including budget, audience targeting, and placement preferences. You can either use Advantage+ placements or manually select your placements.

4. In the Ad level, toggle the option for Partnership ad. Then click on Enter ad code or post info.

5. Paste the ad code you received from your influencer partner. A preview of the content will appear, allowing you to confirm that you’re boosting the correct post. Select the Instagram accounts you want to tag with the content as a sponsored ad. Once confirmed, click Done.

6. Finish setting up the rest of your Instagram Partnership Ad and click Publish to launch the campaign.

Instagram Influencer Marketing Made Easy

Revolutionary social media has transformed how brands connect with their audience. Influencers and content creators are the newest sought-after marketing strategy. Instagram is a top-tier influencer marketing platform, and with the addition of Instagram Reels, the dominion has expanded even more. 

Digital creators and influencers are adding their best content to Instagram’s inventories. For advertisers looking to capitalize the whitelisting opportunities, Instagram Branded Content Ads offer an effective and cost-efficient solution to activate an elevated ad experience to target audiences seamlessly.

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