The network expands their offerings to streamline workflow for influencers and marketers, onboarding longtime influencer expert, Lauren McGrath to lead strategy and execution
Influencer marketing technology platform and agency, ACTIVATE, formerly Bloglovin’, announces a set of new product offerings to their influencer marketing workflow and insights reporting suite, called ACTIVATE Collaborations, including first-to-market support for IGTV as part of broader workflow support for a variety of content types. ACTIVATE also announces the new hire of Lauren McGrath as Vice President of ACTIVATE Studio and Strategy to lead influencer strategy and help drive product innovation.
ACTIVATE Collaborations aim to deepen marketers’ ability to manage, measure and analyze influencer collaborations across all available content platforms:
- Flexible Content Support – Deep workflow support to review, approve and track performance for Instagram (IGTV, Instagram Stories, Instagram images), YouTube, Blog content, and more.
- Native Click & Conversion Tracking – Distribute unique tracking links for each influencer’s multiple pieces of content, across all social platforms
- Streamlined Workflow – Thoughtfully integrated features, including Goals, Surveys, Deadlines, Shipments and Attachments, to increase velocity between influencers and marketers
- Conversations – Facilitate streamlined seamless messaging through a universal inbox that supports interchange of all types of documents – images, videos, PDFs, etc.
- Expanded YouTube Analytics – Robust reporting showcasing first-party audience, engagement and viewership data.
“From the beginning, ACTIVATE has built campaigns with the creator in mind, thanks to a deep understanding of digital creators from our very beginning as Bloglovin’,” said CEO of ACTIVATE, Kamiu Lee. “In offering a full view of an influencer across all platforms, taking into account where they have built engaged audiences, and providing robust workflow and insights, ACTIVATE seeks to enable meaningful, scaled collaborations between marketers and influencers. We’ve added these additional updates like content support with IGTV because we are committed to what matters most – building relationships and helping influencers and marketers drive impactful content where audiences want to see it most.”
McGrath will lead ACTIVATE Studio, the network’s white glove influencer management suite. Studio leverages the ACTIVATE Platform, that also allows brands access on a self-serve basis. In overseeing ACTIVATE Studio, McGrath will be responsible for managing influencer strategy, ideation and execution, building influencer relationships and partnering with product to drive platform strategy. Most recently, the company launched products ACTIVATE Discover and ACTIVATE Circle. Both allow for more streamlined influencer selection, with Discover enabling access to a curated network of influencers, showcasing their content alongside deep performance and audience data. ACTIVATE Circle is a newly launched program that hand-selects a collective of outstanding influencers who will receive special access to beta-launched features, ACTIVATE events and initiatives, and more. ACTIVATE Circle will not only be under McGrath’s purview, but she will be responsible for growing ACTIVATE’s mission of cultivating the most extensive, segmented and dynamic database of influencers – from Sneakerheads to Twinfluencers to Beauty Unboxers .
“Now more than ever, strong strategy, transparency, authentic storytelling, and deep relationships are the keys to successful influencer marketing,” said Lauren McGrath, new VP of ACTIVATE Studio and Strategy. “ACTIVATE was built on these same principles, and our platform is tirelessly evolving to capture and report on the growing intricacies of the influencer ecosystem. I look forward to collaborating with the ACTIVATE team to provide a best-in-class experience to brands, agencies and creators alike, defying convention to design and facilitating partnerships that foster sustained creator-brand relationships and spark meaningful connections with relevant audiences.
Former talent and influencer engagement executive for Refinery29 and Lippe Taylor, McGrath is one of the industry’s leading experts on engaging today’s digital stars. She brings more than 10 years of experience working with talent ranging from celebrities to micro-influencers and collaborations with brands from Cartier to Target. At Refinery29, she helped launch the company’s dedicated influencer division, the Here&Now Collective.
“Through her deep expertise in building influencer strategies as well as her relationships with creators of all types and followings, Lauren brings unsurpassed expertise in developing our ACTIVATE Studio and technology platform,” said Lee. “I am extremely excited to welcome her to the team, and look forward to working closely with Lauren to help ACTIVATE evolve with the future of this industry.”
About ACTIVATE
ACTIVATE partners with brands and influencers to tell engaging and compelling stories across social media, at scale. They are a team of influencer strategists, technologists, data scientists, brand partners and operations professionals. Over the last year, the company has activated over 75,000 influencers and creators, to publish more than 6,500 pieces of sponsored content per month.
ACTIVATE breathes life into each influencer partnership and welcomes brands and agencies to partner with them in one of two ways: through ACTIVATE Studio, which provides full service, white-glove services, or through the ACTIVATE platform, where marketers can have direct, self-serve access to the technology, data, and influencer network.
The company launched Bloglovin’, an online platform and community for creators, tastemakers, and 12MM+ of their most avid fans, in 2007. Through Bloglovin’, they have grown as a leader in the industry, excelling at identifying and building real relationships with emerging creators, what makes their content compelling, and how to run influencer partnerships at scale to fuel growth. As brands and marketers caught on to the power of these creators and influencers, they reached out to Bloglovin’ build meaningful collaborations – leading to the launch of the ACTIVATE influencer technology platform in 2014. ACTIVATE is headquartered in New York City.