The main aim of both marketing strategies is to promote a brand particularly through word-of- mouth. They are both effective ways of driving brand awareness, trust, loyalty and referrals to your business. However, there are marked differences between a brand advocate and a brand ambassador. Similarly, the extent of social influence both attract and its impact on a brand varies. A brand advocate can either be an employee or a client, a brand loyalist who has developed absolute trust in a brand’s products or services, thereby proactively engaging with the brand and willingly promoting their products. They produce organic influence (influence over a trusted circle of friends and family members) unlike brand ambassadors and might not have a large community or social media following.
On the other hand, a brand ambassador is a person of influence hired by a company to promote its products or services and embody its brand identity. It can be a celebrity or a community leader who has large followership. Brand ambassadors usually get incentives and monetary benefits premised on the contract signed between them and the company.
Features of Brand Advocates:
- Self-motivated
- Can be leveraged to amplify a brand’s social visibility, awareness and reach
- Possess limited social influence though organic
- Usually employees, partners and loyal customers
- Positive reviews by brand advocates impact the decisions of prospective customers
Features of Brand Ambassadors:
- Usually paid to embody the identity of a brand
- Highly influential people who have access to a large community (celebrities, social media influencers, public figures etc.)
- Loyalty may or may not be guaranteed
- Actions are driven by self-promotion and/or monetary or compensatory benefits.