How to choose creators for a cause campaign
Follower count tells you reach. Four checks from endorsement research tell you fit. Try them on a creator below.
Start with fit, not reach
A creator with 900,000 followers can be a poor choice for a food bank. If the creator never talks about food, the audience has no reason to believe the post.
Research supports this. In a study of Instagram influencers, a good fit between the influencer and the brand raised the influencer's perceived expertise and trust (Breves and others, 2019).
Check safety and dignity first
Look for hate, harassment, or posts that show people in need without dignity. A creator who fails this check is out, at any score.
Then check four things
- Cause alignment. Does the creator post about your cause often, and for a long time?
- Trust. Does the creator disclose paid posts and keep a steady voice? Trust is one of the classic endorser traits (Ohanian, 1990).
- Audience connection. Are the followers real, and in the places you serve? Followers who feel similar to a creator trust them more (Schouten and others, 2020).
- Lived experience or expertise. Does the creator have work, training, or personal experience with the issue?
The calculator uses the weights of the CauseFit Score: 35, 25, 25, and 15.
Common questions
Does follower count show if a creator fits a cause?
No. Follower count shows reach. Cause alignment, trust, a real audience, and lived experience show if people will believe the post.
What is the CauseFit Score?
The CauseFit Score is a 0 to 100 score from Socient. A creator must first pass a safety and dignity check. The score then weights cause alignment (35%), trust (25%), audience connection (25%), and lived experience or expertise (15%).
What CauseFit Score is a good fit?
80 to 100 is a strong fit. 60 to 79 is a good fit. At 40 to 59, test the creator with a small brief. Below 40, the creator is not a fit.
Sources
- Construction and Validation of a Scale to Measure Celebrity Endorsers' Perceived Expertise, Trustworthiness, and Attractiveness. Journal of Advertising, 19(3), 39-52. Ohanian, 1990.
- The Perceived Fit between Instagram Influencers and the Endorsed Brand. Journal of Advertising Research, 59(4). Breves, Liebers, Abt, and Kunze, 2019.
- Celebrity vs. Influencer endorsements in advertising: The role of identification, credibility, and Product-Endorser fit. International Journal of Advertising, 39(2), 258-281. Schouten, Janssen, and Verspaget, 2020.
