Influencer product seeding or product gifting is a concept where a brand sends out free products to a carefully selected group of influencers to make them try the products and post about the item on their social media channels in front of their large following. In other words, the brands send out these free products to the influencers to generate word-of-mouth referrals and get genuine, relatable organic content that resonates well with the followers of the content creator.
Product seeding is the most preferred influencer compensation method worldwide. According to various studies, more than 35 percent of influencer payment is done through this gifting method, followed closely by monetary compensation, which stands at 30 percent.
Cost Efficient
For many brands who are undertaking the influencer marketing journey, product seeding is often the first step towards the endeavor as it is cost-efficient and highly effective at the same time. Unless the product is exceptionally high-priced, complimentary giving up the good to influencers in return for precious user-generated content is a no-brainer. User-generated content is considered the most genuine influencer marketing content that aids brands in improving brand awareness and generating better sales significantly. So, getting all those honest repositories of content across popular social media platforms just at the cost of a product makes product seeding such a fascinating tool for brands.
But to make everything go seamlessly and generate desired results, brands must ensure that the influencers they are reaching out to have followers who resonate well with their product and add value to the campaign. Half the battle is won once you shortlist the right influencers for your product seeding campaign.
Also Read: Top 4 ways to compensate your influencers effectively
Organic Product Placement
The other strong point of effective product seeding is that the product placement looks more organic than advertisements. According to a leading research report, around 80 percent of consumers prefer organic product placement to the ad. When brands send products to the content creators, and even if they do not create specific content but merely are seen using your product in their videos or photos, that will create a positive brand image in front of their followers, which eventually fulfills the brands’ objectives.
Influencer-Brand Relationship
And if the influencer has mentioned your product on their social media posts, then brand marketers should start partnering more with that content creator and find ways to collaborate with them in the future. This is where product seeding can become a full-blown influencer partnership program, and both brands and the influencers can gain from the long-term association. Also, when you send out a product to the influencers without asking for anything in return, it presents the brand as someone who is genuinely looking to build a long-lasting relationship with the content creators and will help to create a certain amount of brand loyalty which will be beneficial in the long run.
Genuine Feedback
Furthermore, when you send your product to the influencer in your niche whose followers are primarily your target audience, you also get hands-on feedback about your brand from the social media personalities. Whether they liked the product or found some shortcomings, their feedback will only help the brands take specific actions that will help them improve further.
Product seeding is one of the most used compensation methods for influencer marketing globally, making it one of the most cost-effective and efficient ways to scale your campaign. In addition, the massive reach it can provide to your brand is phenomenal. If you are looking to start your influencer product seeding campaign, the influencer marketing platform of ArabyAds, iConnect, can help you devise a successful and efficient influencer gifting strategy. iConnect’s product seeding feature seamlessly allows you to streamline your influencer gifting requirements. We have covered all your bases, whether product selection, product unboxing, or product suggestion for influencers.
While product seeding has many benefits, brands should consider some essential tips while designing their campaign to get the best results. First, as discussed earlier, brands should carefully select the influencer by analyzing and assessing the influencer’s performance, content history, engagement rate, audience socio-demographics, and area of interest. Secondly, focus on packaging and personalization while sending the products to the influencers. Brands should also thoroughly research what products the influencer likes and frequently posts about on their social media platforms, and then send the products to achieve better success. Finally, brands should ensure that they engage with the influencer’s social media post even if there is negative feedback and focus on creating a long-term fruitful relationship.
