Crypto Marketing with Ty Smith
How Cryptocurrency Companies Choose Brand Ambassadors - Episode 11
About this episode
Ty, TJ, and Kylie walk through how crypto and blockchain brands actually pick the people who represent them. They start by defining a brand ambassador as someone who becomes the face of a brand's culture and target demographic over an ongoing relationship, not just a one-off influencer post, and they use mainstream examples like insurance company spokespeople to show how broad or narrow that target audience can be.
The conversation moves into the practical selection process: setting a clear objective before you start looking, choosing the right platform for the product, and finding someone whose existing lifestyle and content naturally overlap with what the brand sells. For crypto products specifically, that means a wallet needs someone who already uses wallets daily, and a trading tool needs someone who already talks about trading, so the brand fits into content the person is already creating rather than feeling forced.
They close on the business side: pricing has to make sense for both parties, easy integration keeps costs reasonable, and brand trust cuts both ways since the brand is staking part of its reputation on the ambassador's future behavior. TJ and Ty note that family-friendly, consistent content tends to be treated better by algorithms and by brands looking for recurring deals, even though plenty of brands are fine with more controversial personalities.
Key takeaways
- Define your objective for the ambassador partnership before you start evaluating candidates.
- Pick the platform or platforms that actually match where your target customer spends time.
- Look for ambassadors whose existing lifestyle and content naturally overlap with your product, not people you have to force a fit with.
- Favor ambassadors who can integrate your product into content they already make organically, such as a daily wallet user for a wallet brand.
- Expect typical ambassador deals to run six months to a year, long enough for audiences to associate the person with the brand.
- Price the deal so the exposure justifies the cost for both the brand and the ambassador.
- Consider an ambassador's consistency and language, since family-friendly content tends to get favored by algorithms and by brands offering recurring deals.
Questions this episode answers
What is the difference between an influencer and a brand ambassador?
An influencer posts content on their own and builds a following independently. Once a brand approaches them or they pitch a brand for an ongoing sponsorship, they move from influencer to ambassador. The relationship also needs to last long enough, typically six months to a year, for people to actually associate that person with the brand.
How do crypto brands choose a brand ambassador?
They start by establishing a clear objective for the partnership and picking the right platform or platforms for the product. From there they look for someone whose lifestyle and existing content naturally match the product, such as a trader for a trading insights tool or a daily wallet user for a crypto wallet, so the brand fits into content the person is already making.
How long does a typical brand ambassador deal last?
TJ says a typical deal runs about six months to a year. That length matters because it's long enough for an audience to actually start associating the person with the brand, rather than a one-off or month-long endorsement.
Does an ambassador's language and content style affect brand deals?
Yes. Brands consider whether a person's content is family-friendly and consistent, since algorithms tend to favor cleaner content and brands do too, statistically. Influencers looking for recurring ambassador revenue are generally better off staying on the safer, broader-reach side rather than going the controversial route.
Why does pricing matter in brand ambassador deals?
Money matters in any deal, so the brand needs to get enough exposure from the partnership to justify the ambassador's price. Easy integration, where the product naturally fits into content the ambassador already makes, helps both sides agree on a fair price and keeps the arrangement sustainable.
Full transcriptShow
Ty Smith0:03
Welcome to another episode of the Crypto Marketing Show. I am Ty Daniel Smith.
TJ0:06
I'm TJ, aka Young Dumb Crypto.
Kylie0:08
And I'm Kylie.
Ty Smith0:08
And today we are discussing how brand ambassadors are selected. So, TJ, why don't you start us off?
TJ0:12
Yeah, this is an interesting topic. I'm sure a lot of people have a lot of different opinions about it because there isn't a set answer. Each brand kind of has their own way of assessing things, has their own way of valuing different parts of, depending on what they're trying to accomplish, there's going to be a lot of variables in how they assess ambassadors.
Ty Smith0:26
Well, why don't we start off with what an ambassador is, actually?
TJ0:28
Sure. Yeah, that's a great point. So, an ambassador, beyond just somebody who has influence and has a following on social media, a brand ambassador is typically somebody who's the face of the brand, who represents usually the brand's culture, usually their target demographic, the main person they're trying to reach. They're usually looking for somebody who fits in that, has that lifestyle, will have a lot of the other similar lifestyles to and crossover traits to whoever their target person is.
Ty Smith1:07
Can you give some examples of popular brand ambassadors?
TJ1:09
For like mainstream brands? For anything, yeah. For anything, well, okay, so like State Farm for Aaron Rodgers, right? Aaron Rodgers is the face, I mean, now they have several people that are doing it. I think they're using Baker Mayfield as well this year. But for years...
Ty Smith1:17
Isn't it Mahomes now, aren't they? Patrick Mahomes?
TJ1:18
Maybe it is Mahomes, maybe it is.
Kylie1:19
I think it's Progressive that's using Baker Mayfield.
Ty Smith1:20
I get them all confused.
TJ1:22
Or Home Depot, somebody's using...
Kylie1:24
It's something about him living in the stadium and it's like, 'Cover your home.' Yeah, it's Home Depot, yeah. 'Is this your house? No.' No, it's, I'm pretty sure it's Progressive.
TJ1:26
It doesn't matter. Either way, insurance companies love brand ambassadors, and a lot of big brands are using them in a variety of different ways. But typically, like you said, they're going to be looking for somebody, like a State Farm, they wanted somebody that fits a wholesome image. They want probably an adult, they don't care male or female, between 25 and 54 that owns a home or owns a car, which is obviously most of the United States or a lot of the United States. So, it's pretty broad reach, but they want somebody that's a well-known face, that is reputable to them, and kind of, it's branding. They want to be alongside that person as a brand ambassador.
Ty Smith2:11
Okay. Kylie, why don't you go ahead?
Kylie2:13
Just about the whole topic or about what an ambassador is? Okay, so whole topic, I mean, when a brand is selecting an ambassador, first off, what you have to do is just, again, establish your objective. I think that's the most important thing in a marketing strategy. Like, what's the number one thing you want to accomplish? Right, I mean, that's true, that's also an end goal. Right, like what is your objective for doing this? What outcome do you want? So, it's very important to establish that first because if you have no idea what you want to get out of this partnership, you're just going to end up picking someone that's not going to do the job for you. So, that's I think the number one thing that you have to do. And then second, pick your platform. You have to pick the right platform for your product. Maybe it's multiple platforms. How are you going to advertise your product?
Ty Smith3:03
Why don't we go into the difference between an influencer and a brand ambassador? Because they're similar, like one person could be both, but there is a difference.
TJ3:08
Yeah, so I think the key trick is an influencer is just somebody who's doing their own thing, they're posting a lot of content, maybe they have a certain amount of reach, and then once they get approached by a brand or they pitch a brand and then come into a relationship with them with an ongoing sponsorship, that's when they really move from just an influencer to an ambassador or somebody who's representing that brand. And then they're constantly trying to, which is another reason I think one other major factor what brands are looking for is ways that they can integrate their brand into the content that the person's already making organically, which is why they want somebody who's in line with their target customer.
Ty Smith3:53
I think the duration of the relationship between the influencer or person of influence with the brand is also sort of part of that, one of those factors that determines if it's a brand ambassador or just an influencer.
TJ4:00
Yeah, the length of time. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, you can be an ambassador for a month, but that's not really what we're talking about. We're talking about like usually...
Ty Smith4:04
A long enough relationship that people are affiliating the person with the brand.
TJ4:06
Yeah, usually to me, I think like six months to a year is like a typical deal. And so, to that point, they want to try to integrate their brand in a bunch of different ways. So, we're like in the crypto space or blockchain space, say it's a wallet, they want to know this is somebody who's using wallets every single day, it's easy for them to show the wallet, it's easy for them to screenshot, it's easy for them to just work it in to all the different stuff that they're doing and really make it a part of their life. Or if it's an exchange or a tool or no matter what the product is, they're looking for an influencer that fits with it. So, if it's a trading insights tool, they're going to be looking for a brand ambassador obviously who does a lot of trading and who's talking about it.
Ty Smith5:41
Yeah, it's an audience match, it's a ethos match.
TJ5:42
Absolutely.
Ty Smith5:44
And, to get really into the behind-the-scenes stuff, it has to be a profitable arrangement. It has to be someone that's not exorbitantly expensive for a product that's not necessarily making a lot of money off of the marketing campaign.
TJ5:58
Yeah, no, that's a huge point. Pricing, in any deal, when you get down to it, money always matters, pricing always matters. So, finding one where the, figuring out a way for the brand to get enough exposure from it to justify the price for the ambassador. And that's again where easy integration makes it best for both parties. If it's easy for the ambassador to use and talk about, it makes it easy, they can make the price easier, and then it makes it easier for the brand to continue doing it.
Ty Smith6:36
Yeah. Okay, all right, I think that's all I got. Do you have anything to add?
TJ6:38
No, those were the main, I mean, the trust and brand trust is another big one that I wanted to touch on because obviously, like you said, if you're going to be going into a more long-standing relationship and going into a relationship with somebody who is going to be associated with your brand, you want to know it's somebody who's not going to do anything too crazy, somebody that you're confident will be putting out the same quality and the same consistency of stuff six months from now, a year from now, that's not going to eventually come back and blow back on you.
Ty Smith6:56
Yeah, so we did an episode about how influencers determine their pricing, and part of that was the fact that their reputation is somewhat attached to the brand that they're working with. But it does go the other way. The brand is sort of staking a little bit of their reputation on the people that they're working with.
TJ7:29
Absolutely. And then to the point that we touched on with language, a lot of people, some of the people I know were like, 'Yeah, obviously you can be yourself, you can do whatever you want, but you want to keep in mind if you are looking to be sponsored or you want your content to be sponsored, that is definitely something that brands look at and consider.' What is this person, family-friendly? Is this not? So, not only do the algorithms actually treat you more favorably with no language, down the line, brands tend to as well, just statistically, so.
Ty Smith7:46
Yeah, it's, yeah, it goes to the influencer as well. They have to figure out if they're just trying to grow a following or if they're trying to actually turn this into a job.
TJ7:50
Right.
Ty Smith7:51
Well, and then what type of brands they would want to associate with in the future anyway.
TJ7:53
Right.
Ty Smith7:53
Because there's plenty of brands that could have no problem affiliating with a controversial person.
TJ7:56
Right.
Ty Smith7:56
But I would say, on average, if you're going after the brand ambassador with recurring kind of revenue as an influencer, you're probably better off staying on the safer side.
TJ8:23
Yeah, as family-friendly as possible, broader reach as possible.
Ty Smith8:25
Okay, all right, that is all for today. If you found value in this podcast, please be sure to rate, review, and recommend, and follow us on Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, TikTok.
TJ8:31
All the places.
Ty Smith8:32
We're on TikTok now.
TJ8:32
Coinbound, Young Dumb Crypto, and Crypto Kylie.
Ty Smith8:34
And Ty Daniel Smith.
TJ8:35
And Ty Daniel Smith, yeah.
Ty Smith8:35
All right, thanks, guys.
TJ8:36
All right, we're out.
