Influencer marketing nowadays is often misunderstood, especially when there are brands still assume that hiring a popular personality to post a few photos will automatically drive sales. In reality, influence doesn’t always equal relevance.
According to AdvertisingVietnam, the global influencer marketing industry reached $24 billion in 2024, making online creators as impactful as traditional media.
However, not every brand seeks ‘reach’ alone, some value ‘resonance’ just as much. Here are five steps Ivy+Partners follows to craft a successful campaign:
The 5 steps to a successful KOL campaign
Step 1: Understand the brief
Ivy+Partners collaborated closely with clients to define clear expectations around values, personality, and target audience. The goal was not just visibility, but alignment with the brand’s identity as a sustainable, culturally rooted fashion label.
Step 2: Define strategy & shortlist influencers
Beyond follower counts, we assessed each candidate’s history, performance metrics, and alignment with brand’s core values. We ask the question: Would their audience trust them to promote the brand? This evaluation eliminated most applicants, leaving only those who could authentically tell the brand story.
Step 3: Reach out & build partnerships
Influencer marketing is a negotiation. For example, if an influencer’s team quoted four times the budget for a content package, we explored alternative arrangements such as product gifting, exclusive access, long-term opportunities, and relationship-building. The final collaborations were cost-effective yet offered influencers ongoing value and deeper brand connection.
Step 4: Brief influencers & co-develop content
We conducted in-depth briefing sessions to communicate the brand’s story, the significance, and campaign objectives. Influencers then co-developed content concepts with the brand, balancing the brand’s expectations with their authentic creative voice. This ensured quality control without compromising the individuality that drives audience trust.
Step 5: Measurement & impact
Success wasn’t measured solely by reach. The true value came from the stories that influencers shared, authentic, relatable moments that built trust, inspired audiences, and sparked genuine conversations around the brand’s purpose.
Our Case study: Metiseko
To illustrate this approach, let’s take a look at Metiseko. This is a a premium Vietnamese fashion brand celebrated for its silk, cotton, and commitment to sustainability, quiet luxury, and niche fashion, presented a unique challenge.
When they approached Ivy+Partners, the brief seemed straightforward: find influencers to showcase their collection. But anyone can wear a dress and smile at the camera, the real task behind the brief was to create impact to the brand and to identify storytellers who could embody Metiseko’s values – Vietnamese craftsmanship, cultural heritage, and sustainable design.
Choosing the right KOLs: Different “shade” every month
For Metiseko, we built a KOL strategy that creats a continuous journey of storytelling across the year. Each individual represents a type of print, becomes a face of a “chapter” in the brand’s narrative. This could never be a random choice, but the result of a rigorous curation process:
- KOLs needed to embody the spirit of the brand’s identity which is quiet luxury, elegant, refined, and understated.
- The visual identity had to feel artistic and poetic, highlighting the gentle craftsmanship of each design.
- The personal values had to resonate with sustainability, craftsmanship, and Vietnamese culture.
Looking at these KOLs, there is a clear pattern emerges not showy or overproduced, but subtle, harmonious, and naturally aligned. It felt like a true creative synergy, not forced promotion that fit perfectly to Metiseko vision.
Bringing Metiseko to top-tier media
Influencer marketing was only part of the story. Ivy+Partners also helped Metiseko step into top-tier fashion media, spreading its compelling editorial narratives to wider audiences. By translating artistic concepts into commercially appealing stories while retaining cultural and aesthetic depth, each article aligned with collection themes and engaged readers.
We introduced Metiseko to high-end media contacts, cultivating relationships with editors and journalists who viewed the brand as a source of inspiration. As a result, Metiseko was featured in prestigious publications such as ELLE Vietnam, L’Officiel Vietnam, Style Republik, Wanderlust where the brand’s craftsmanship and sustainable philosophy were highlighted in a way that resonated with both fashion insiders and wider audiences.
These features not only strengthened Metiseko’s image as a “made in Vietnam” label that meets international standards but also extended its impact beyond social media, reinforcing its position in niche, sustainable fashion.
Building cultural resonance for Metiseko
The Metiseko campaign demonstrates that successful influencer marketing requires more than reach, it demands strategic curation, cultural sensitivity, and multi-channel amplification. Selected KOLs over twelve months didn’t just represent faces, they were different “shades” in the brand’s story, each reflecting niche fashion, sustainability, and quiet luxury.
What truly set this project apart was the focus on long-term relationships. With influencers, it wasn’t about sending products and waiting for posts. It was about co-creating stories, celebrating Vietnamese culture, and building authentic connections that lasted beyond a single campaign. With media, it wasn’t just a one-off PR push but a deliberate effort to position Metiseko as a case worth writing about – fostering editorial relationships that opened doors for future storytelling.
By combining curated influencer partnerships with top-tier media engagement, Ivy+Partners helped Metiseko extend its influence beyond social media, cementing its status not just as a fashion label, but as a cultural symbol. This campaign shows that when done thoughtfully, influencer marketing can elevate a brand from a product story into a lasting cultural narrative.
