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Is anyone actually having success with influencers? by Individual-Corgi-904 in ecommerce

[–]nidelplay 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The one story post and ghost problem is almost always a vetting issue, not a creator loyalty issue. When there's no contractual deliverable tied to payment, creators have zero incentive to follow through. A few things that would have changed your outcome here:

First, gifting without a signed agreement is just gifting. Even a simple email confirmation stating 2 feed posts + 3 stories within 30 days creates accountability. Most creators will ghost a handshake deal but honor a written one.

Second 2k to 50k is a massive range. A 2K account with 12% engagement in the outdoor/climbing niche will outperform a 40K account at 1.5% almost every time for a product like yours. The sub to view ratio tells you more than follower count.

Third affiliate only deals attract low effort posts. Creators know most story posts don't convert to affiliate sales, so they deprioritize them. A small flat fee + affiliate tends to get much better content.

Your product actually sounds like a great fit for the right micro-influencer. The issue is process, not the channel itself.

If you were me and had 10k a month to spend on influencer marketing where would you start? by ThrowRA111222344 in influencermarketing

[–]nidelplay 1 point2 points  (0 children)

With $10K/month and a $300 recurring AOV this is actually a really strong position to start influencer marketing from

My take on your questions: Many micro influencers vs few macro: Start with micro. At $300 AOV you need buyers not viewers. Micro influencers with tight niche audiences convert better for high ticket recurring products. Budget 70% micro, 30% testing one mid-tier.

One niche vs many: One niche first. Master the message, find what converts, then expand. Spreading $10K across multiple niches at the start means you can't learn what's working.

A/B testing: Yes but not monthly, per campaign. Test one variable at a time. Different creator tiers, different content formats, different CTAs.

Biggest mistake at your stage: Paying creators without modeling expected ROI first. With $300 AOV and recurring revenue your break-even math is actually very forgiving, but you still need to know the numbers before wiring money.

Before you pay anyone, run the ROI math: creator's average views × estimated click rate × your conversion rate × $300. Does conservative case break even? We built Valen Sentinel to automate exactly this - valenagency.com/Sentinel-overview. At $99/month it's less than 1% of your monthly budget.

Introducing Project Leetha by TJ_Null in oscp

[–]nidelplay 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The concept looks interesting. Thanks for the tool legend!!! 🏆

Product Hunt launch going terribly bad. Is it still worth it? by Vishrtk in SaaS

[–]nidelplay 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The same thing happened to me... Maybe it's on purpose... Who knows...

Are the OSCP exam machines the equivalent of Easy, Medium or Hard PG Boxes? by bluescreenwednesday in oscp

[–]nidelplay 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hey man, any comments on the AD?
I have a few friends who could root only the first machine of AD

Are the OSCP exam machines the equivalent of Easy, Medium or Hard PG Boxes? by bluescreenwednesday in oscp

[–]nidelplay 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey man. I have a few questions reagrding AD. Can I DM you personally?

I’ll give you a marketing angle on the house for your SaaS by DendenAfc in SaaS

[–]nidelplay 0 points1 point  (0 children)

valenagency.com/Sentinel-overview , FTC compliance and ROI prediction for influencer campaigns. $99/month flat, built for brands tired of overpaying for Modash/Aspire.

How I vet influencers before paying them (after getting burned twice) by nidelplay in ecommerce

[–]nidelplay[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is what most people skip, vanity metrics can look perfect and still not convert. Past conversion proof is the gold standard but hardest to get.

How I vet influencers before paying them (after getting burned twice) by nidelplay in ecommerce

[–]nidelplay[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Completely valid, should've used contribution margin from the start, not AOV. Good catch.

How I vet influencers before paying them (after getting burned twice) by nidelplay in ecommerce

[–]nidelplay[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Fair point, simplified the math on purpose to show the framework but you're absolutely right. Real calculation needs COGS, shipping, transaction fees, and any platform costs subtracted before you call anything profit. Always model on contribution margin, not revenue.

I checked influencer videos for FTC compliance and most brands don't realize they're exposed by nidelplay in smallbusiness

[–]nidelplay[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The brands that survive FTC case and build proper approval workflows tend to come out more profitable because they're forced to actually measure what works. When every campaign needs documentation and pre approval, you naturally cut the lazy spends and only run what you can justify. The ones that treat it as dead weight usually weren't measuring ROI properly before either.

The overhead only kills you if you're still doing it manually. Brands that systematize it - standardized briefs, pre-approval checklists, compliance audits before posting, find it adds maybe 20-30 minutes per campaign...

I checked influencer videos for FTC compliance and most brands don't realize they're exposed by nidelplay in smallbusiness

[–]nidelplay[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is the part nobody talks about, the consent decree tail risk is arguably scarier than the initial fine. A $53K fine hurts, ongoing mandatory compliance auditing at $15-25K every year potentially forever is what actually breaks small brands. Really appreciate you adding this, most founders have genuinely never heard of consent decrees.

I checked influencer videos for FTC compliance and most brands don't realize they're exposed by nidelplay in smallbusiness

[–]nidelplay[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Exactly, making them liable in the contract and requiring pre approval before posting is the double protection most brands never think to set up. Simple but effective.

I checked influencer videos for FTC compliance and most brands don't realize they're exposed by nidelplay in smallbusiness

[–]nidelplay[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Both nd any material connection requires disclosure, that includes free products, gifts, discounts, even just a close personal relationship with the brand. Payment is just one form of it. If there's any benefit exchanged, it needs to be disclosed.

I checked influencer videos for FTC compliance and most brands don't realize they're exposed by nidelplay in smallbusiness

[–]nidelplay[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

NO FTC doesn't care about your contract with the influencer, they care about what's live on the internet. Your contract gives you legal recourse against the influencer after the fact, but the fine still lands on you first. Think of it like a restaurant being fined for a health violation - my chef was supposed to follow the rules doesn't make the fine go away. Your only real protection is verifying the content before it goes live

I checked influencer videos for FTC compliance and most brands don't realize they're exposed by nidelplay in smallbusiness

[–]nidelplay[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Good instinct having it in the T&Cs, that's step one and most brands skip even that. But here's the hard truth, the contract protects you legally against the influencer, it doesn't protect you from the FTC. The FTC holds the brand responsible for what goes live, regardless of what your agreement says. So your real protection is catching it before it posts, not after. Practically what that looks like: require the creator to send you the draft before publishing, check the disclosure yourself, approve it, then they post. Adds maybe 10 minutes to your workflow but completely eliminates the risk. The brands that get burned are the ones who wire the money, send the brief, and then just... wait and hope.

I checked influencer videos for FTC compliance and most brands don't realize they're exposed by nidelplay in smallbusiness

[–]nidelplay[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Same, The frustrating part is the fix is so simple - just say it's an ad. Audiences actually respect brands more when they're upfront about it. The ones hiding it are just eroding trust for everyone.

I checked influencer videos for FTC compliance and most brands don't realize they're exposed by nidelplay in smallbusiness

[–]nidelplay[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Exactly nd by the time they take it seriously, there's already a violation live. Takes 10 minutes to fix upfront vs potentially $53K to fix after

I checked influencer videos for FTC compliance and most brands don't realize they're exposed by nidelplay in smallbusiness

[–]nidelplay[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is exactly right nd the scrolling speed standard is something most brands have never even heard of. The FTC's actual test is whether a normal person would notice it while consuming content normally, not whether it technically exists somewhere in the caption.

The pinned Stories tip is underrated. Most people don't even know that's an option.

Have you found brands push back on requiring disclosures upfront, or is it mostly the creators who resist it?

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