I got a call from Mexico. It was Jacek, a Co-founder of Health Labs Care - a fast-growing ecommerce.

We need to implement Salesforce for influencer management - he said.

I was a bit confused. How Salesforce can serve as an Influencer Management System? I started connecting dots when I met Aleksander - their Head of Influencer Marketing.

About This Case Study

In this Case Study I’ll show you the challenges that Aleksander -  the Head of Influencer Team at Health Labs Care - faced.  I’ll explain how we supported him to overcome these by building a custom Influencer Relationship Management System based on a Salesforce CRM.

It helped him to grow the influencer base by 315%. It happened within the first 12 months after a 5-week project. If you are managing many influencers at an e-commerce company or an agency, keep reading!

Health Labs Care - Who Are They?

I actually observed Health Labs Care from a very early stage. In fact, we had an office in the same building, and on the same floor.

My first impression was that they are another supplements company. But, after some time I realized how they were different.

‍They don't produce another Vitamin C. They work with scientists who put huge effort into providing solutions for health issues.

Unlike the competition they don't shout at the customers  “We have the greatest Vitamin C! Buy one!”. They say “We have your immunity, would you like to get one?". Do you see the difference? Besides, their branding and packaging were far from pharmaceuticals. They were life-style brands – fresh and attractive.

‍The way they sell can also teach a lot. This is especially true for social selling. They engage with their fans, influencers, and experts to promote their products. In fact, Health Labs Care is a frontrunner in influencer marketing in Poland. It won EY New Business Awards in 2023.

Why Did They Select Salesforce?

Back to the story. When I met Aleksander it was clear to me that he had a vision of what solution he needs. I didn’t want to challenge him too much by asking if he is confident that Salesforce is the right platform for that (as a freelance Salesforce Consultant I needed that project!).

He could choose one of these existing Influencer Management Systems. They are sold in the Software as a Service (SaaS) model.  Why didn’t he do that? Simply put, no ideal influencer marketing platform existed that supported his vision. Period.

It’s hard to outperform your competition if you use the same weapon.

Another potential solution was a full bespoke system built with code. But it would take too long to build and they need a solution ASAP.

I owe you a quick explanation. You might wonder what Salesforce is? Salesforce is a cloud-based Customer Relationship Management system (CRM). Unlike other CRMs, Salesforce offers a low-code platform on which business applications can be configured and developed. It lets you create business apps at a low development cost.

This means Salesforce gives you all you need to build your own business app. For example, you could make an influencer management platform like we did.

As it turned out later Salesforce was a perfect pick for the company. We transformed a Customer Relation Management System into an Influencer Relationship Management Software. We did it in 5 weeks, working only part time on that!

Challenges of a Fast Growing Influencer Marketing

Olek’s Influencer Marketing department was facing challenges typical for fast growing companies. When you are small you can handle the influencer (or customer) by yourself. You know the influencers, you have your spreadsheets and you remember things.

But, if your influencer marketing goals are to triple your scale, the approach must change. You need to re-organise the way you work. Otherwise you will either stop growing or will descend into total chaos.

In the following bits, I’ll go through the main challenges. I'll explain their impact and how we tackled them.

Challenge #1:  How to Centralize Influencer Data?

Problem: Health Labs Care kept Influencer Data in Many Systems

At the beginning, influencer data was decentralized. Of course, they had an Excel spreadsheet to keep the list of influencers. But, they kept details of these influencers in many sources. For example:

1. Cloud drives kept physical contracts and documents
2. Magento kept information about sales metrics and promotional codes
3. Modash kept data about Influencers stats
4. Individual Inboxes kept conversations with influencers

Problem impact: Team Members Had No Clear Picture of an Influencer and Had to Double Entry the Data

Because of this, team members had to look up influencers in different places. This wasted a ton of time and often led to mistakes or missing information. And forget about making reports or evaluating performance. It was a nightmare to pull all that data together.

For example, adding a new Influencer required adding her to the spreadsheet. It also required adding her promotional code to Magento (with help from IT) and her contract to a drive. Then they had to update the spreadsheet with contract terms. Next they uploaded Modash stats (they were outdated the next day!). Every change required revisiting all these places and making updates. 

Our Solution: Influencer 360 View

We built a single influencer profile within Salesforce. It collects all relevant data into an Influencer 360-Degree View.

This complete profile includes personal information and discount codes. It also includes social media statistics, revenue, emails, and related contracts. The data bits can come from different sources integrated with Salesforce. 

It also works in a different direction. When they change data in another system, like e-commerce, the change syncs to Salesforce.

On top of that we added deduplication rules that guarantee clear and concise data. In the end the reporting is straightforward. It eliminates the need for manual data compilation from many spreadsheets.

Modash Integration

You can connect Salesforce to influencer marketing platforms. For example, Modash. It helps you to find relevant influencers and import them to Salesforce. Once they are in Salesforce, you can see influencer marketing stats in real time.

Key Results Brought by Influencer 360 View

Now, an Influencer Marketing team member enters data in one place in Salesforce. That data gets populated in other systems, so that no double data entry is not required.

1. They saved a lot of time by having faster access to relevant data in one view. They don’t lose the focus by switching the systems and contexts.
2. They saved a lot of energy and reduced errors by not having to double entry data in many systems. It also saves a lot of frustration.
3. They make decisions based on clean, up-to-date data. They can do this because it all sits on one system. No more merging Excel spreadsheets!

Challenge #2: How to Streamline Processes?

Problem: Team Members Followed Informal Processes Based on Experience and Memory

At the beginning Health Labs Care had no formal processes. If you are at the beginning of setting up your department there is nothing wrong with that. You sometimes do things for the first time. There's no point in setting a process before you go through it. But, once you catch traits and you plan to scale fast you should better make it solid. Why? Read the next paragraph.

Problem Impact: The Team Was Unable to Scale

Lack of processes can decrease quality of work. It might cause errors, slow the progress, and overload memory. It makes teaching others harder and less effective. It does not allow measuring operations. And in the end stops you from scaling.

For example, when you recruit an influencer, she moves through your pipeline's stages. At each stage there are a bunch of tasks to complete. For instance, you need to look up influencer stats, see if she fits your brand, do the background research, and so on.

Our Solution: We Built Processes & Automations

We reviewed each stage of the influencer’s cycle. They were in short: finding, talking, signing, and paying. We turned business concepts into a user-friendly solution. It ensures team members can navigate the process seamlessly.

We built processes for finding influencers, signing them, and running campaigns. We also built processes for managing promo codes and settling commissions. Moreover we simplified tasks. We did this by setting up automations and integrations with e-commerce and other apps.

Influencer Recruitment Process

This process helps them find, check, interview, and score influencers. Now, Influencer Management team members follow a clear workflow. It has stages that tell them what to do next.

For example, an Influencer gets into Salesforce through a social media analytics tool. She gets assigned to a team member. Next, they should verify its profile, brand fit and call the right influencers.

‍Thanks to that, they can move fast. They select only the most relevant influencers for further talks based on data.

Contract Signing & Updating Process

Signing contracts is a separate process. There are different contract types. You might need to e-sign these contracts in a specific order. For example, 1. Influencer, 2. Head Of Influencer Marketing, 3. A Board Member. It helps a lot when you need to re-sign all contracts again.

For instance, in this process a team member pick a a relevant contract type. She sends it directly to an influencer. When she signs, the document goes to the Head of Influencer Marketing. When he signs the document goes to a Board Member. Once all parties have signed, the contract gets attached to the Influencer Profile. The Profile is updated with the influencer's information provided by the Influencer in the contract. For example, billing address and social security number.

‍‍It helped them to save a massive number of hours. In fact, an update of hundreds of contracts takes about 2-3 hours now. If you do it by hand it will take days if not weeks.

Influencer Marketing Campaigns Management Process

Campaign management process is another key process within the department. You need to tell the influencers about seasonal discounts, new products and special offers.

For example, you set up these campaigns in Salesforce. Next, you  select influencer campaign members for a given segment or promotion. The system allows bulk messaging influencers with campaign content and their personal promotional codes. Influencers can share them on their social media platforms.

‍It shows how you can creatively use a CRM system as an Influencer Management System.
In the end, Health Labs Care can plan and run influencer marketing campaigns in Salesforce. Thanks to e-commerce integration you can see influencer campaign results in Salesforce as well.

Promo Codes Management App

Management of promotional codes is another large process. An influencer can have one or more promo codes. Some codes need to be deactivated after some time. When you pass promo codes to influencers via Salesforce, they get passed to the e-commerce platform as well.

For example, a team member adds an affiliate to the system. Next, her discount code is automatically transferred to the e-commerce back office. Similarly, when a team member adds a code to the e-commerce it also updates Salesforce. We applied deduplication rules to make this process bullet proof.

‍This process removed the need to coordinate the IT team and make changes manually. Thanks to that, codes activate and deactivate automatically. You don't have to remember everything.

Commission Settlements

Commission settlement process is one of the core processes. We developed a process that validates sales numbers and commissions in Salesforce. It does this without looking into the e-commerce platform.

For example, each month Salesforce receives data that shows how much a given influencer has sold through a marketing campaign. The finance department can look up this data. They can accept or reject Influencer invoices if they do not match the actual results.

This process saves a lot of effort in communication. It cuts out the need for the Influencer team, IT, and Finance to talk as much.

Elements of a Process

Sample elements of a process:

1. A process progress bar divided into stages. For example: Send the Contract, Influencer Signs, Company Signs, Influencer Activated
2. Tasks to be completed and information to be provided at each stage. For example, select contract type. Provide influencer details and contract terms. Pick the signing party from the company. 
3. Validation rules to block going to the next step if the previous is not complete. For example, do not send if there is no email address of the Influencer or address details are missing.
4. Automations that update other records in the system. For example, when the contract is sent, the stage changes to “Influencer Signs''. The data included in the contract, such as the sign date, updates the Influencer’s profile.
5. Integrations that updated other systems. For example, Salesforce asks e-signature tool to send a document to the influencer. Once she signs it, the tool sends a signed document back to Salesforce.

Key Results Brought by Establishing Processes: Growth!

Now, team members no longer need to rely on memory to navigate tasks. Salesforce provided clear prompts and guidance at every step. Everything goes through a process that can be explained to new team members. It greatly reduces influencer marketing efforts. It also assures quality and makes the results predictable. It can be measured and improved.

But, the major benefit is that it allows scaling. Thanks to that, Health Labs Care tripled their Influencer base. They did it in the first 12 months after system launch. It happened without a similarly large increase in employment.

Key Takeaways:

1. Processes in the Influencer management system helped them grow their department. They did it  in a controlled and predictable way.
2. They are able to measure the processes and improve it if needed.
3. They  onboard  new team member faster. They are more productive thanks to the system that guides them closely.

Challenge #3: How to Measure It All and See If We Are Moving Into the Right Direction?

Problem: Merging Spreadsheets from Different Systems

Reporting for influencer marketers was hard. They kept data in different systems. Olek had to join spreadsheets from different systems into one.

If you've done that, you know what it means. It's mastering the art of Excel, cleaning data, and chasing differences. In other words, it's wasting time. The sad reality is that you need to repeat this at least once per month. 

Problem Impact: Waste of Time and Outdated Numbers

That approach to reporting means at least 5 (bad) things.

1. It costs your company a lot of money
2. A specialist is wasting her time on low-value work. She could otherwise spend on doing some value-creating tasks
3. Reports are accurate just once per month and outdated for the rest of the time
4. CMO can’t see real-time data. She needs to ask the Head of Influencer Marketing for reports which can be very daunting.
5. You see spreadsheets, but there are no diagrams that present data visually.

Our Solution: Easy Reports and Dashboards

We integrated all data sources and built reports and dashboards. Now, even team members can build them by themselves. They don't need coding skills! 

‍For example, we built reports & dashboards that show:

1. Influencer Recruitment Performance
2. Influencer Popularity Metrics
3. Influencer Sales Performance 
4. Commissions Metrics
5. Recruitment Process Duration Measures

Key Results of Data Aggregation and Easy Reporting

Now, Health Labs Care does not need to merge spreadsheets to get insights. They can easily build reports and dashboards themselves. They can use them to make decisions based on real-time data.

1. They can build reports themselves - No need to ask IT
2. Their reports are always up-to-date
3. They make decisions based on the data

As Olek once said:

We completed a truly unique project. It sets the highest standards in data-driven Influencer Marketing. Intuitive decision making is finally a thing of the past.

Aleksander Kopyt
Influencer Marketing Team Leader @ Health Labs Care

Project Details

Technology

To finish the project, we used Salesforce Sales Cloud. But, Salesforce Platform could also be an option. We integrated it with Magento, DocuSign and Modash. Auxiliary project management tools included Jira and Miro.

Development Process

We divided the Influencer Marketing platform development process into 3 phases:

1. MVP Phase
2. Integration Phase
3. Maintenance Phase

MVP Phase

MVP phase lasted for 5 weeks of part-time work (meaning it can be done much sooner). Within this phase we delivered the core functionalities that replaced Excel Spreadsheet. It captured Influencer Profile, Process, Automations and Reporting with Dashboards.

At this stage, we didn't use any code. This allowed a very iterative development. It also cut development cost a lot.

Integration Phase

Next, the Integration Phase lasted for  6-8 weeks (again part-time). In this phase, we went through a design and coding process. We did this to integrate with Magento, DocuSign, and Modash. It enriched Influencer Profile and Automations.

At this stage we did use code to make these systems talk with each other.

Maintenance Phase

Last, we moved towards the Maintenance Phase. Within this phase we still do some small development of the solutions until now. It takes us a couple of hours a month.

Project Team

The project team had 3 members. HLC Product Owner was Olek. I was the Salesforce Consultant/Business Analyst/Admin. Maciek was the Salesforce Admin/Developer.

Challenges

We faced three major challenges:

DocuSign Integration (if you decide to use it)

The standard integration from the AppExchange app was very unreliable. It did not support sending many contracts. We decided to extend the app by code and extra processes. By doing so we covered all gray areas. Now, it works as it should, allowing updates of hundreds of contracts within minutes.

Magento Integration

The e-commerce team sometimes forgot to tell us about frequent changes in the API. This caused integration interruptions. We had to fix the data afterwards. We implemented error logs that inform us about issues. Still we recommend developing some communication protocols to avoid unnecessary work.

Process Gaps

Some integrations seem easy at first. But, without a deep analysis, logical gaps appeared. So, start with a solid blueprint. Don't deliver quick, but fragmented, solutions.

Key Result of Building a Bespoke Influencer Management Platform

Today, Health Labs Care's influencer management operates seamlessly with Salesforce at its core.

Their Health Labs Care's influencer database grew by over 300%. It took them 12 months. But, their team didn't grow by the same amount.

It was possible thanks to processes, centralized data and easy reporting. It proves that the change and the whole project is a big success for everyone.

Will This Fit For You?

Are you interested in building custom influencer software?  But, you are still unsure if Salesforce will match the requirements of your influencer marketing strategy?

We focused here on influencer management at an e-commerce company. But, agencies can also use this as influencer management platform. In fact, Health Labs Care has more than one brand and their team can be considered as an internal agency!

If you would like to talk about that, just contact me using the contact form or via Linkedin: 

Let's connect on LinkedIn

We can arrange a casual online meeting where we discuss your case over a cup of coffee. I typically block one hour per week for such free consultations. You can squeeze it into my calendar by filling in the contact form below.

If you need to search this topic a little bit more, you will find more article on that pretty soon. They will help you to create a bit more rounded picture of Salesforce as an Influencer Relationship Management platform.

Who are we? Almost forgot. We are EMFIRE - an app development agency focused on CRM solutions. We use Salesforce as the underlying app platform. But, we also build custom web and mobile apps using React and React Native technologies.