How Does a Brand Ambassador Work?

Companies have endless opportunities to promote their products and services. From email marketing to social media to in-person events, businesses can use many creative marketing tactics to reach their target audience and grow their brands and sales.

One way companies can use authenticity to reach their target audience is through brand ambassadors. A brand ambassador is an individual hired by a company to bring its messaging, products, and brand image to a community. This can be done online through social media channels, and it can be done in-person at marketing events. A common way companies utilize the skills of an ambassador is through product demonstrations for customers.

Given the nature of this role, brand ambassadors need excellent communication skills. Consumers should feel like they’re talking with someone who is passionate, engaged, and energetic. It may take time for a company to find the best fit for the role, but investing in a quality brand ambassador can make all the difference for marketing campaigns and consumer interaction.

What is a Brand Ambassador?

As mentioned, a brand ambassador is an individual hired to promote a company’s: brand, image, products, services, and reputation. Often, brand ambassadors have large social media followings that give them a platform for sharing information about a particular company. However, this isn’t the only way ambassadors interact with consumers.

While brand ambassadors can be social media influencers, there’s a difference between these two roles. An influencer is a person with a large following (usually more than 10,000 users) who often does one-off sponsorships for companies. However, taking on sponsorships and brand roles is not necessary to be an influencer. These individuals can still maintain followers by crafting their personal brand that’s not reliant on external companies.

Unlike some influencers, a brand ambassador is a person who continuously works with a brand or multiple brands over time. Most brand ambassadors enter into an agreement with a company that requires them to attend events, create content, train other retail and sales professionals, and more. For example, celebrities who are brand ambassadors for clothing brands will appear in commercials and photoshoots and often wear the brand on the red carpet.

What Does a Brand Ambassador Do?

The main role of brand ambassadors is to be the face of a company and to market its products and services. In addition, brand ambassadors will represent the business at events and perform product demonstrations or appear in advertisements if required.

The exact role of an ambassador can vary depending on the company. A luxury clothing company may work with a celebrity ambassador to have them model their clothes and appear at red-carpet events. In contrast, a health foods company may have its ambassador visit organic food stores and train other salespeople to talk about their products.

There is no right or wrong way to work with an ambassador as long as that person is passionate about the product and speaks authentically to the target audience. For that reason, connecting with individuals who have the skills and passion for marketing a brand and authentically connecting with consumers is imperative.

Responsibilities of a Brand Ambassador

If you’re wondering, “how does a brand ambassador work?” it helps to break down the responsibilities of this role. Understanding how an ambassador works can help companies find the right fit and form a long-term partnership with an individual. Here are some key responsibilities of brand representatives:

Promote the Goods and Services of the Company

One of the central components to being a brand ambassador is promoting goods and services. For example, a brand ambassador may work with a company to help them launch their products at a new store. The brand ambassador may work with other salespeople involved in the launch to guide them on how the product works and what language to use with consumers. In addition, brand ambassadors can help optimize store displays, perform in-person demonstrations, create videos, write newsletters, and more. Think of an ambassador as a networking professional dedicated to increasing brand awareness.

Generate Sales Leads

Over time, an ambassador should be able to generate more sales leads by building meaningful connections with customers. This responsibility may take longer to develop as the ambassador learns how to tackle brand promotion and talk to the target audience. However, over time, companies can expect to see their sales grow thanks to the work of their ambassadors.

Participate in Promotional Events

Ambassadors often attend company events to promote products and network with potential customers. Brand events are a great opportunity for ambassadors to learn more about the company, network, and create unique and engaging content. Sometimes these events involve demonstrations, and they are a chance for customers to interact face-to-face with a company representative.

Act and Model

Some companies need an ambassador who can model or act for advertisements, commercials, billboards, brochures, and other materials. This is a common responsibility for celebrity brand ambassadors who are easily recognized.

Answer Queries

Customer communication and engagement are key to brand ambassadorship. Sometimes, this person will be the first contact for questions from potential customers. Ambassadors may spend much of their time answering questions about products, giving feedback, and spreading the mission and vision of the business. They should have strong knowledge of the company, brand, and product or service.

Finding Brand Ambassadors

There are many ways companies seek out ambassadors to represent their brand. Because the brand ambassador role requires an individual with excellent communication and marketing skills, it is important to take time to find the best person for the job.

One of the best ways to find a brand ambassador is through a brand ambassador program. Some companies may launch their own program, which would involve recruiting ambassadors, interviewing candidates, and selecting the best applicant(s). This time-intensive process requires businesses to have team members dedicated to searching for the best ambassadors and then training and working with those individuals on marketing efforts.

If your business is looking for the perfect ambassador but needs help getting started, T-ROC can help. T-ROC is a leading provider of premier staffing outsourcing, managed technology services, and consumer insights. Our brand ambassador program trains thousands of ambassadors a year, who then go on to work with brands to successfully promote their products.

T-ROC understands the time and effort it takes to find the right ambassador. After all, these individuals spend time and effort engaging with consumers, driving marketing, performing product demonstrations and events, and so much more. T-ROC uses innovative screening software technology that matches ambassadors to companies based on the specific nuances of their brand. This process ensures that companies will be aligned with the ambassador(s) they are paired with. Our ambassador program ensures that our candidates are trained in educating other salespeople and retailers to act as brand advocates. Our program is optimized so companies can get the most out of their investment in ambassadors.

If a company doesn’t take the time to find the best fit for an ambassador, this could lead to confusion and lack of success in spreading brand awareness. T-ROC helps businesses get the most out of their ambassadorships and form long-term partnerships with qualified individuals.

What to Look for in a Brand Ambassador

Thanks to T-ROC’s innovative software and successful methods of brand ambassador training developed over the last 23 years, companies will find that our candidates are better-suited for promoting their brands. If you have never worked with an ambassador before, here is a look at some key traits of brand ambassadors:

• Creativity
  One of the biggest advantages of adding an outside perspective to your team is the creativity they can offer. A brand ambassador should be energetic and full of ideas for marketing opportunities. 

• Interpersonal Skills
  A large part of an ambassador’s job is interacting with customers, retailers, and salespeople. For that reason, it’s important that this individual has good communication skills and is easy to relate to. You want customers to feel like an extension of your brand and they’re engaging with a real person who isn’t just trying to sell them a product.

• Embodies Your Brand
  Your brand advocate should embody your company’s mission, values, and goals. Further, ambassadors need to be able to communicate your brand and values to retailers, salespeople, and other marketing professionals. You should be able to envision your ambassadors talking energetically about your products and forming genuine connections with consumers.

• Meets Deadlines
  The brand ambassador role can get busy. In addition to attending events and team meetings, the ambassador may also need to maintain a consistent posting schedule, film advertisements, and be available for campaign launches. Look for someone with passion and drive who will meet deadlines and stay organized.

What is a Brand Ambassador Agreement?

Once you have connected with the right ambassadors, you may need to create a brand ambassador agreement that outlines their responsibilities, deadlines, and other contract details. This agreement gives ambassadors clear guidelines and may help avoid confusion and conflict as you work with these marketing experts.

Why is a Brand Ambassador Agreement Necessary?

Depending on how you recruit brand ambassadors, an agreement may not be your responsibility. If you work with an external organization that connects your business with ambassadors, this organization may be responsible for creating the agreement.

Regardless of how the contract is made, it’s always important to be helpful and transparent with your ambassadors. The more guidelines and resources you can provide to them, the better they’ll understand your brand.

About T-ROC

If you’re looking for help finding a brand ambassador and growing your revenue, look to the team at T-ROC. T-ROC is a leading provider of premier staffing outsourcing, software, managed technology services, and consumer insights for top global brands. Our services span across industries, from retailers to distributors. Our solutions address the entire lifecycle of brick-and-mortar brand operations by combining innovation, technology, and retail expertise.

Ready to grow your revenue with next-level solutions? Contact us today.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do brand ambassadors get paid?

Yes, brand ambassadors get paid by companies to market their products and interact with consumers. The pay rate varies by location, responsibilities, and company needs.

What are the duties of a brand ambassador?

A brand ambassador can have dozens of duties. Some key responsibilities include attending events, appearing in advertisements, making social media posts, and answering customer questions.

Who pays a brand ambassador?

The company that the ambassador is marketing for usually pays this person under a contractual agreement.