June 27, 2025
CHICAGO – What’s the best way to start using influencers to boost your brand? Should you supply detailed scripts to content creators or simply a few bullet points? Chicago-based Prosper Show speaker Kathleen Kobel is an entrepreneur, Amazon influencer, and consultant who knows the many angles of the influencer world. We sat down with Kobel to get her thoughts as we edge past mid-year and ever closer to the holiday season.
Prosper Show: What is a gentle way to get started using influencers?
Kathleen Kobel: A gentle way to get started is to use Amazon’s Creator Connections program, because it allows Amazon sellers to basically set their campaign parameters and entice the right influencers to come and join their campaigns. After that, they can decide if they want to have a long-term relationship with that influencer based on how they performed in the campaign and how their content really represented the brand. It’s a pretty low barrier to entry, and pretty much all sellers have access to that opportunity on Amazon so I really like that as a way to get started.
Prosper Show: When you spoke at Prosper Show earlier this year, what was a major concern that you heard?
Kobel: The question I kept hearing over and over was; What’s the best way to get started finding influencers who are going to portray the brand in a way that sellers want? As I mentioned, I like Creator Connections. There are also some third-party platforms that people can get started with. Another way is to look at social media. Look at some of those influencers, and even go down to the micro influencers. Start reaching out to them because they love creating content like this, especially when you offer them a win-win opportunity.
Prosper Show: What’s the definition of a micro influencer?
Kobel: Micro influencers are people with 10,000 followers and below. Some people would even put them in the 20,000 to 25,000 range. Just because these influencers may not have 100,000 followers or one million followers doesn’t mean that their audience isn’t very engaged. One of the requirements for getting into the Amazon influencer program is to have an engaged audience on a social media platform. A lot of the big brands may be reaching out to larger influencers without success. If they start with influencers who have a smaller audience, they can get great content for a smaller price—and also build a relationship with that influencer. That influencer may become very loyal to the brand.
Prosper Show: What’s a misconception about unleashing the power of influencers?
Kobel: The misconception among sellers is that if they send out their samples to a few influencers, all of a sudden those influencers are going to drive all this great traffic—and generate all these great sales. However, not all influencers are created equal, which is why it’s really important to find the best ones for your brand. When you’re able to do that, you really can unleash the power. Remember you don’t need a humongous influencer to represent your brand. It doesn’t have to be a celebrity. It can very much be a smaller influencer who’s interested in in the products that you have to sell—with a very engaged audience.
Prosper Show: If TikTok actually went away in the U.S., how big of an impact would it have on the influencer community?
Kobel: It would be huge. There are a lot of creators who are making very good money with TikTok. There are a lot of brands that are making very good money selling their products on TikTok, so I do think that it would be pretty devastating for influencers and sellers if TikTok went away. [Note: The June 19 ‘ban or sell’ deadline was extended.] If it were banned, it would force people with large TikTok presences to move to other platforms. I think we would see more people coming to Amazon, Instagram, and probably YouTube as well.
Prosper Show: Which social media platforms are on the rise and which are declining?
Kobel: I don’t think as many people are utilizing Facebook as as they used to, but people are very active on Instagram and TikTok—two of the biggest social media platforms—especially for creators who are generating consistent content. My personal favorite is YouTube, because with my content it lives longer. It’s associated with Google obviously so the content can be searched for and found more easily. I gravitate toward Amazon as my number one and then YouTube, if you want to call that a social media platform. YouTube is a good opportunity for creators to make sure that their content is getting seen, as opposed to Instagram or Facebook where you post and maybe your content lives for a day or two and then it kind of fizzles away. You have to keep posting and keep creating.
Prosper Show: How do you spot authenticity in influencers?
Kobel: There are some wonderfully authentic and honest influencers out there who will give it to you straight. Look for people who are not only saying great things, but also giving reasons as to why something did not quite work for them. It shows they’re not just trying to sell sell sell. They’re really giving their honest opinion and experience. Maybe they say something like; ‘This works for me, but if you’re looking for this particular feature, this won’t work for you because…’
Prosper Show: Should sellers give influencers written scripts?
Kobel: I do not like to read scripts because it may come across as inauthentic even if you really do believe the things that are in the script. When I’m in the role of an influencer, I like to just give myself some bullet points and make sure that I touch on all the important points. I want to speak from the heart and find a particular point that I want to address. That’s way more authentic than reading someone else’s script or AI-generated content.
Recent Comments