The Influencer Code: How to Unlock the Power of Influencer Marketing

by Amanda Russell, Jesse Itzler (Foreword)

The Influencer Code is the essential reference for any company looking to leverage the power of influencers to elevate their brand and grow their business.

From Fortune 500s to local fitness studios, whether you offer financial services or sell donuts, reaching today's consumers is more complicated than ever. More and more, marketers are reaching out to people who style themselves "influencers": those people who have a big—and, more importantly—loyal audience ready to hear what they have to say about anything.

Yet despite "influencer marketing" fast becoming one of the biggest buzz terms of the decade,  it couldn't be more misunderstood.

Written by an accomplished entrepreneur, professor, and award-winning YouTube star, The Influencer Code breaks down the biggest myths that brands are getting wrong and shows you how to get it right by defining and showcasing what true influencer marketing is and how to leverage it to achieve your business goals in a simple yet powerful 3-step code.

The Influencer Code simplifies the complex world of influencer marketing, covering how to research, evaluate, and employ the right influencers for their markets, as well as how to legally and strategically integrate them into marketing campaigns to achieve specific goals.

The future of marketing depends on forming authentic partnerships between brands and influencers. The go-to resource for all things influencer marketing, The Influencer Code is your shortcut to making that future a reality.

Genres: Business, Social Media

400 pages, Paperback

Published October 13, 2020

Reviews

[Tuija Aalto · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not just another "checklist for developing unforgettable content" (although included), Amanda Russell's Influencer Code reminds the reader of professional basics: Do put the agreement of collaboration in writing, to avoid surprises and unnecessary risks. Do add any special moral or safety clauses you need to ensure regulatory compliance, in addition to The Four P's of Disclosure: Prominence, Presentation, Placement and Proximity.

The book is useful for both the brand representative or small business owner just getting into influencer marketing, or, the online media content creator, hoping to make a living of her social media presence. Most essential, in making the initiative, is to come up with a mutually beneficial, long-term partnership proposition. One-off collabs are just influencer advertising, she says. Along the practical issues, you pick up the author's professional attitude on how to begin your career as influencer marketer.

[Steve Brock · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was Stevo's Business Book of the Week for the week of 10/25, as selected by Stevo's Book Reviews on the Internet and Stevo's Novel Ideas. How to research, evaluate, and employ the right influencers for their markets, as well as how to legally and strategically integrate them into marketing campaigns to achieve specific goals.

Find more Business Books of the week on my Goodreads Listopia page at https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/9..., and find many more recommended books on my Amazon Influencer page at https://www.amazon.com/shop/stevo4747 or by searching for me on Google.

[JT · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought Amanda did a decent job of recognizing key influences in today’s digital marketing landscape. However, most of it seemed pretty self explanatory. I think this book also could have been reduced by 100 pages.

[Hots Hartley · Rating 1 out of 5]

I found this book really shallow. It glosses over the actual details and do's-and-don'ts of negotiating contracts with influencers, spending 300+ pages instead talking about mindsets and possibilities.

In today's fast-moving world, we don't need an idea book chock full of feel-good theory and concepts.

We need an actual action plan.

This book doesn't provide one. It doesn't discuss…
- how to approach an influencer,
- where to find hot influencers,
- how to write a cold email or DM,
- how to separate them from their agents,
- how to negotiate,
- how to value an account,
- how to structure payment (per view? per conversion? per engagement in the comments?
- how to tell a good influencer fit vs. a bad one,
- how to tell an influencer with engaged fans,
- how to predict (or experiment) what content will go viral,
- how to create viral content -- scripts, stories, hooks
- how to activate influencers' fans (link in bio? "sponsored by"? naturally show product?)
- what is CPM (cost per mille) vs. RPM vs. other metrics to track,
- how to incorporate metrics into a fair payment,
- how platforms differ: TikTok vs. Instagram vs. Facebook,
- how influencer culture differs from culture to culture, or country to country

It doesn't get into the economics at all. Instead, the book skirts on the surface of mindset, pointing to past collaborations or examples that don't speak to the level of engagement accessible or available for app creators today trying to reach an influencer's audience on today's platforms: TikTok.

The concept is great, but without digging deeper, you can't really do anything with the information. Tell us how an app developer might actually leverage the theory in execution: Show us how he finds the influencers for his app, how he reaches out to them in a sample DM, and how they negotiated the payment plan based on views, engagements, virality, or whatever! Show us the formula they used, and the short-form video scripts they used, both successful and unsuccessful. This is what matters!

The book would have benefited from more nitty-gritty details rather than just describing collaboration at a high level.

[Erik Qualman · Rating 5 out of 5]

In The Influencer Code, Russell helped dramatically improve my knowledge on an often misunderstood subject: influencers. One reason I thoroughly enjoyed it is that the author (Russell) is a practitioner. She's an influencer having developed a personal lifestyle brand (that she eventually built so large she sold it as a business) and she teaches the business side of the equation as a Professor at the University of Texas. My top 3 takeaways:

1. Define the right goal
2. Connect with the right influencers
3. Create the right connection (as Russell explains - this is critical!)

This is essential reading for any business owner or marketer looking to think differently to influence their customers, partners, and stakeholders. The internet has made products commodities - they are too easy to replicate. The only way to standout is via communication, influence, and customer service. This book nails the influence part. 

[Emily Jankowski · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this book was very insightful and gives a thorough breakdown of relationships with influencers and how to build that connection with them. Not only that but how does the relationship benefit you, your business, customers, values, etc.

It’s repetitive but the repetition reaffirms and connects her points in the book- so it’s worthwhile.

She gives examples with her own stories, clients or other stories she’s heard which help put her topics into action or things she wished she had done differently. All in all, very helpful and relevant with brands building relationships with content creators!

[Leo · Rating 1 out of 5]

I could not finish reading this book.
It was just not useful for regular readers. You might be able to borrow some concepts from it if you are a YouTuber, or some sort. You are doing online business, then you may be able to pick up a few tips, but not many, either.
I don't think everyone can be a good author. Amanda might have been a very successful business person, but definitely not a good writer.
I was kinda disappointed that I wasted my time...

[Tim Penning · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not a lot new, because it follows conventional PR practice. But the book puts together best practice in a thorough yet readable way when it comes to working with influencers in a way that matches organizational mission and objectives. Gives both high level strategic picture as well as some ground level practical actions to get into the influencer ecosystem successfully.

[Jamie Antonino · Rating 5 out of 5]

The most fun, informative read there is. I read this for school and am now recommending it to anyone who wants to learn more about branding. So essential for today's digital age of business. EVERYONE SHOULD READ THE INFLUENCER CODE! The author, Amanda Russell, is AMAZING.

[Jeff Stephens · Rating 3 out of 5]

Standard concepts re leveraging partnership relationships in marketing.