The ABCs of Notion's B2C2B influencer strategy
I talk to Danielle Ito, Head of Influencer at Notion, about the tool they use to source creators, upsetting the LinkedIn algorithm, and more.
Hi from Oslo! I keep thinking about this very good tourism ad as I walk around. While I’m trying to stay fairly “offline”, I’ve been sharing some favorite spots on my Instagram—you can follow along here.
For today’s newsletter, I talked to Danielle Ito, Head of Influencer at Notion, about what an influencer strategy looks like at a company that doesn’t have a physical product. How do you showcase UI in an engaging way? Are there any clever ways to get audiences to click links? How do you speak to both the B2C and B2B communities through influencers? Is there a good creator brief template on Notion? We dig into it all.
Rachel Karten: Thanks for chatting with me, Danielle! Can you talk to me a bit about your current role and some of the roles that got you here?
Danielle Ito: I was one of the rare people that had a good idea about what I wanted my career to be at a young age. I went to school to study public relations and (surprise!) my first job out of college was at Current Global, a PR agency. I did traditional media relations for a couple years, until my manager at the time told me that she saw influencer marketing being a strong career path for me. At the time, influencer marketing was mostly celebrity brand deals or blog sponsorships, and I was averse to the idea because I wasn’t sure what the longevity would be.
I ended up going on to lead our influencer programs at the agency for a couple years, before making a career pivot into doing social media in-house because I still wasn’t sure if influencer was the right move for me. Well, I learned quickly that I am better at briefing people to create content versus actually creating it myself, which then brought me back into the influencer space at Notion. I now lead our global influencer program, which goes to show that sometimes your mentors see your strengths when you cannot.
RK: How would you describe your philosophy when it comes to influencer marketing?
DI: I’m a strong believer in having a creator-first mindset when it comes to building out influencer marketing strategies. Brands want to work with creators because of the the trust they’ve built with their audiences, which a lot of marketers can learn from.
RK: What does the role of influencer marketing look like at Notion? How does not having a physical product impact that strategy?
DI: I always say that I’m so fortunate to do influencer marketing for a product like Notion, because it can be used by every influencer and creator—regardless of their niche. There are endless ways to use Notion, and therefore, endless ways a user can find a reason to use us. The role of my job is to get as many relatable use-cases and examples of using the product online as possible to spark the “a-ha” moments that encourage a user to download Notion.
Not having a physical product definitely requires a bit more creativity in the briefs, but also doesn’t pigeon-hole us into telling limited types of stories. You can also try Notion for free, which also makes the barrier to entry much easier.
RK: Do you think about the B2B and B2C sides of your business differently when it comes to influencers?
DI: Yes, and no. Influencer plays into the B2C2B motion, as many users discover us through personal use-cases and then bring Notion into their professional lives. So while the B2C and B2B content and creator mix are strategically differentiated, both sides of the business actually play strongly into each other.
RK: The opportunity for creators that Notion could work with is truly...endless. I'm curious how you segment or narrow in on who is right for a campaign when the options might feel overwhelmingly broad. Do you use any tools to source creators?
DI: Great question. A lot of our campaigns are product-led, which helps segment the types of creators we should be targeting based on the ideal end user. We can use our recent Notion Mail launch as an example. While everyone uses email in some shape or form, we chose influencers based on personas that are heavy users, such as startup founders, job seekers, and salespeople. We recently started using Archive for social listening, which has helped us also source creators who are already speaking about Notion.
My biggest tip for marketers having difficulty sourcing creators is, ask your strongest creators for recommendations. They’re experts in their content niche!
RK: Do you have any deeply held beliefs about influencer marketing that you don't have data to back up necessarily but feel are true? For example, mine is that collabing makes the post perform worse.
DI: So many. Some I probably shouldn’t say publicly. I think including links in LinkedIn posts make the algorithm upset, so I typically encourage creators to put them in the comments. Tools like ManyChat are a great hack for the link problem, as well.
RK: I know you recently launched the Notion For Creators Program. Can you talk to me about that?
DI: At the end of the day, my number one goal is to get as many creators on Notion as possible. The Notion for Creators program is one way for us to get Notion into the hands of more creators, but also give them the resources to better use the product. I am very passionate about enabling creators to have more time to dedicate to their creative passions through systems, which I’m hoping we can foster through this program. At it’s core, the program gives free access to Notion, but over the next few months, the plan is to roll out even more resources, events, and opportunities to bring our creator community even closer to the brand.
RK: Is there a Notion template you use for influencer briefs?
DI: Here's a brief template that we made! It's a pretty similar framework to what we use internally.
RK: What role does LinkedIn play in your overall strategy? Loved the Notion Faces launch.
DI: We started executing LinkedIn partnerships right at the beginning of the huge growth spurt we’ve seen over the past two years, so it’s been a pretty fun ride to watch how the platform as grown.
LinkedIn content fosters a lot of discussion in the comments section, which has aided a lot in increasing the content reach that is not seen in some other channels. The comment section has also been great for social listening. Notion Faces was incredibly fun, and a great lesson that B2B campaigns should be fun (when appropriate). It was also a community-led campaign, which I think really helped in building the excitement.
RK: Has Notion worked with Substack creators at all? I use Notion for planning my newsletter and imagine others do too.
DI: I love Substack! We have worked with a couple creators on the platform, but I think we can do more. To your point, a lot of writers use Notion to plan their newsletters and that’s a story I want to tell more. Maybe we should talk?
RK: Let’s do it. You've previously said “Influencer marketers should be asking creators what they're working on, just as often as they ask us.” Tell me more about that.
DI: Yes! This goes back to my influencer marketing philosophy. We are so often telling creators what our goals and projects are, but I think content can be so much stronger when we ask creators what theirs are. In the same way that creators know their content the best, marketers should be able to help insert their products into storylines that creators are telling in authentic ways. Creators are often working on such cool things, that I also love when brands are able to support creators dreams and projects—outside of traditional campaigns. That content is always so inspiring to me.
RK: As you look ahead, what trends or themes do you predict we'll see in the world of influencer?
DI: I believe that creators will be diversifying the ways that they provide value to their audiences, outside of just content. Notion templates are a great example of this. Creators provide insights and information to their audiences, but I think there will be a shift in how they can take this one step further—whether it’s through a digital good or something like a private community.
I also am very inspired by the Alix Earle and SipMargs model, which I think will be the next phase of creator brands. Creators, at the end of the day, are businesses and founders in their own right—and I think we will see more of them start to publicly act like one.
The big takeaways from my conversation with Danielle are:
Work closely with a creator to find those clear “a-ha” moments that would encourage a user to download your product.
ManyChat is an interesting tool to utilize on influencer posts! Clear way to encourage audience engagement and drive clicks.
For tools like Notion it’s helpful to work with creators who already use the product. You can use Archive for social listening to find people who are already familiar with you.
Sponsored LinkedIn posts are great because they foster discussion in the comments section—something that helps increase the reach of the content.
“Influencer marketers should be asking creators what they're working on, just as often as they ask us.”
You can support free interviews like this one with a paid Link in Bio subscription!
It’s likely an educational expense at your company—here’s a template for you to use when asking your manager.
Here’s how Red Fabbri, YouTube Social team lead, describes the newsletter, “Rachel is ‘one of us’; a social media manager forged in the fires, turned astute observer of the trade and the tools. She has incredible interviews with those doing the work at the best brands in the business, and finds some of the best examples of good (and bad) work you need for competitive analysis.”
" Well, I learned quickly that I am better at briefing people to create content versus actually creating it myself." No doubt that's a big and useful talent!
Absolutely taking notes on this one! Great interview.