TRGworkslargelyremotely,communicatingacrossplatformssuchas
Slack,BaseCamp,GoogleDrive,HangoutsandFaceTimetobeasagile
andefficientaspossible.MyveryfirstmarketingrolewasforanITinfra-
structurebusinesswhichprovidedremoteworkingoptions. I’m still
staggeredastohowthistechnology still isn’t widespread.Whoisyouridealclient?
Wearenotinterestedinworkingwithbrandsonwhatwecallone-night
standswithinf luencers.Youcanmakeverylittleimpactforyourbrand
witha one-offpostorproductshoutout.If anything,thiskindofcontext
canhavenegativerepercussions.Ouridealclientis interestedina holis-
ticplanandopentoinvestigatingresultstoregularlyrecalibratethe
program.Anidealclientwillbeopentoexperiencedadviceandis keen
totapintothecreativeknowledge of the inf luencer themselves.What’sthedreambrief?
A dreambriefallowsustoestablisha longer-termplan,toapproachthe
righttypeofinf luencerandtoprescribethebestchannel,treatmentsand
formatstomeetobjectives.Thisstyleofprogramalsoallowsforregular
recalibrationoftheprogramasresultscomeineachmonthorquarter.
Onoccasion,a clientwillapproachuswithanexistingideaofhow
theyfeeltheinf luencerprogramcouldlook.Moreoftenthannot,this
isbecausebrandscangetenamouredwithaudiencesizealoneand
throwoutanyneedfora strategyoranalyticalassessmentagainst
theirobjectives.Theotherscenarioisthattheyhaveusedanonline
recruitmentplatform—againdetachedfroma solidstrategy—and
thereforebecomedisillusionedor hoodwinked about the effectiveness
oftheworkcommissioned.Whathasbeentheagency’sbiggestchallenge?
A challengeforus,andinfacttheindustryasa whole,hasbeenthemass
ofnegativecommentarywithinthemediaaroundcertaininf luencers’
behaviours. Unfortunately,muchofthis commentarywithinthe
Australianmarketingtradepresscomesfrompeoplewhodonotactively
workwithinf luencersandisnotanaccurateref lectionofwhat’sreally
happeningontheground.Thiscanbedishearteningattimes.It is always
importantforustogobacktoourcorevaluesandremindourselvesthat
ourmethodsarefoundedingenuineunderstanding and will result in
successfulandauthentic partnerships.Biggesthighlight?
Lastyear,TheRemarkablesGroupworkedona completelynewinf luencer
formatwiththeBunningsMakeIt Yourshouse.Thiswasa 10-partseries
wherewesetinf luencersthetaskofmakingovera roomtocompletely
transforma realhouseintheoutersuburbsofMelbourne.Thelineupof
talentincludesKeiraRumble,RachelAust,GenevaVanderzeilandJust
AnotherMummyBlog’sStephPase.
Theinf luencerswereusedacrossanintegratedprogramincluding
YouTube,Instagram,Pinterest,socialmediaadvertising,PRandprint.
Thishitmorethanonemillionorganicreachfromtheinf luencers'
channelsalone,andservedtoprovehowremarkableinf luencers can
beattheforefrontofa combinedmarketingscheme.Whatarethetoptrendstowatchforintheindustryin2020?
Latelastyear,FacebookandInstagrammadea boldandmostly
underreportedmove:furtherevolvingpaidpartnershipfunctionality
andlaunchingInf luencerMarketplace.Pushingtheboundariesof
amplificationis anexcitingandchangingavenuewehavehadoureyes
onfora whilenow.Witha dedicatedin-houseteamofpaidmedia
specialists,TRGhasbeenendorsingandfurtheramplifyinginf luencer
contentwithincredibleresultssincemid-2018.Platformssuchas
FacebookandInstagramrewardgreatcreativeandweseeit perform
three times better than a brand’s own advertising creative. Thisbrandsanda networkofinf luenc-
ers.Withitsoriginalrootsbeing
intalentmanagement,providing
adviceandmentoringtoinf luenc-
ersis stillacornerstone.The
human andaudience insights
gainedfromtheserelationships
areimmenselyvaluable.Brands
canultimatelyworkwithinf lu-
encerstobetterunlockthegenu-
inetrustandunderstandingthey
havebuiltwiththeiraudience.
Whatmakesyourteam
unique?
Accessingaudiencedataisonly
the beginning. Being readily
availabletoconsultwithinf lu-
encersina meaningfulwayto
mapoutthebestprogramforthe
brandisessential.Indeed,most
typicalagencytalentwouldn’t
copeinthisenvironmentbecause
it shiftsfromcreatingandcircu-
latingtraditionaladvertisingcre-
ative,andtakesasmucheffortto
comealongsidetheinf luencers
asit doesfulfillingclients’needs.
Thisisa digitalworldsoinf lu-
encersarebasedallaroundthe
country, mostly working from
their homes. Predominantly
Australianinf luencersarewomen,
manywithfamilieswhoarebal-
ancingalways-onplatforms,inter-
twinedwiththeirmanyfollowers.
It makes sense TRG should be, too.
WorkingatTRGis
unlikeanyprevious
employment
I’vehad.I love
theinfluencer
spaceandthe
relationshipswe
buildmakemy
job rewarding.AilsaRenk,influencer
campaign assistantSpotlight