‘Because it’s so new and fresh’: It took a minute, but brands are in the Clubhouse app

Wherever there are influencers, advertisers aren’t far behind. And Clubhouse is a hotbed of influencers right now.

Every social network with big ambitions has their own take on influencers and the audio app is no different. In fact, Clubhouse is grooming more than 40 of its most popular influencers — or moderators as they are known on Clubhouse — for success. The influencer program opens the group up to tools, advice and time with Clubhouse execs to improve the content they create to draw more people to the exclusive, invite-only experience.

As it stands, Clubhouse is limited. There are around 2 million active weekly users on the app. Still, it does offer what every advertiser wants: a highly targeted group of influential individuals in one place. The trick now is to getadvertisers actually involved.

Unlike other social networks, Clubhouse is audio-based. People can join different conversations on different topics. Think of it like being able to dip in and out of panel discussions from an app minus the sandbox moment from a sponsor. And therein lies the rub for marketers: Clubhouse is ad free. While this hasn’t outright deterred marketers from the app, it has made them think harder about what they should be doing on it.

So far, this means working with one of the app’s influencers. Not only is it safe insofar as advertisers get to control who does the talking in the room, it’s also the easiest way to market somewhere that clearly isn’t a place for hard sales — yet.

In the app, these moderators — or influencers — are put on a virtual stage and can control who speaks, when, and on what topic. Their conversations are then promoted on the app’s main feed — and potentially touted to users via push alert.

“With this model, an advertiser can view a particular room as a very dedicated audience ripe for ads and brand activations released to the room’s subject matter, knowing that everyone in the room has a vested interest in the topic and was chosen to participate in the discourse, said Justin Kline, co-founder of influencer marketing agency Markerly.

It’s why Pernod Ricard cognac Martell partnered with global marketing content creator Karen Civil to celebrate black female entrepreneurs during Black History Month. Throughout February, Martell and Civil are hosting weekly Clubhouse conversations with guests such as beauty brand owner Supa Cent, Lush Yummies Pie CEO Jennifer Lyle, founder of Girl CEO Ronne Brown, and entrepreneur Premadonna.

“As a brand, we need to ensure our content and the important conversations taking place this month reach as many people as possible,” said Izzy Hussein, senior brand manager at Martell Cognac. By partnering with an influencer to connect with consumers on Clubhouse, we are able to leverage the built-in Clubhouse community and invite new users to participate authentically via our influencer partners’ reach.”

Behind the scenes, more marketers are looking to strike similar deals.

“I’ve never been an influencer before but there is a …read more

Source:: Digiday