Finding the right influencer marketing strategist can feel like searching for a needle in a haystack. You’ve got a product, a message, maybe even a budget, but when it comes to building meaningful influencer partnerships that actually move the needle, it’s easy to get stuck. Whether you’re a brand trying to grow awareness, a startup aiming to scale fast, or an agency juggling multiple clients, the struggle to identify someone who truly gets it is real.
That’s why we’ve pulled together a list of ten strategists worth knowing. These are professionals who’ve done the work, seen the shifts, and know what actually delivers results.
1. GrowTal
At GrowTal, we work with brands, startups, and agencies that want more than surface-level campaigns. When we partner with you, we plug you directly into expert talent, specialists, including influencer marketing strategists who’ve done the hard work behind the scenes and know how to grow your business.
We don’t give you a generic plan. You’re getting paired with a marketing specialist who’s been carefully matched to your needs. If you need someone to tighten your brand positioning, we have brand consultants who will help you cut through the noise and find the story that makes people care.
Social growth is another space where we go deep. Whether you’re starting from zero or trying to scale up, our social media growth specialists know what works and what’s just fluff. They understand platforms change fast, especially TikTok for D2C, and they’re not stuck in yesterday’s strategies. We’ve seen firsthand how D2C brands explode on TikTok when the creative and targeting align. Our people know how to make that happen.
Several benefits come from hiring experts from us. On average, companies save about 62% compared to hiring full-time. You can have someone up and running in a week. And since we only work with pre-vetted experts, there’s no guesswork or risk involved.
Here’s how it works. You tell us what you’re looking for, a specific channel, campaign, or role. We ask a few questions to understand your business, your goals, and your budget. From there, we send over a simple agreement that lays out how everything will work.
Then we dig into our network and surface 2–4 qualified freelancers. You decide who you want to work with, or we can recommend someone if that helps. Within a week, they’re plugged in and getting started.
Ready to find the right influencer marketing strategist? Talk to our team.
2. Ryan Schram
Ryan Schram’s professional background as an influencer marketing strategist spans a range of industries, including consumer packaged goods, media and entertainment, consumer technology, e-commerce, travel and tourism, hospitality, and even regulated markets. Ryan works with businesses that need guidance in shaping how their brands are represented by influencers and how they resonate with specific audiences. His focus remains on developing strategies that integrate influencer efforts with broader brand goals. He takes into account the nature of each client’s industry, tailoring approaches that balance visibility with brand integrity. Through his work, Ryan often supports companies looking to navigate the crowded digital marketing space, ensuring that influencer campaigns aren’t just loud but actually meaningful and aligned with long-term business positioning.
3. Jonathan Gribble
Jonathan Gribble brings a creative and tactical edge to influencer and content marketing. His background spans multiple high-volume verticals, including e-commerce, health insurance, subprime lending, and auto-related services like insurance and MVA claims. He also worked on initiatives across mass tort and mortgage refinance. Gribble’s approach is hands-on. He’s not someone who steps back once the strategy is set; he gets into the details, especially in editorial work where precision and narrative clarity are crucial. The result is a consistent ability to align influencer voices with business goals, particularly in industries where trust and timing are key.
4. David Bender
David Bender has spent the past six years developing a strong foundation in paid social media and influencer marketing, particularly through his work with various agencies. He has experience in brand awareness and direct response campaigns, offering him exposure to a wide range of client objectives and marketing strategies. Bender focuses on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Snapchat, tailoring strategies that fit the unique demands of each channel. He’s worked in both interim CMO and Head of Growth roles, giving him the kind of operational range that helps in environments where priorities shift quickly.
5. Carlos Martinez
Carlos Martinez has worked across a wide range of marketing roles, from interim CMO to Head of Growth, shaping strategies for everything from early-stage startups to established brands. His focus includes Amazon marketing, paid search campaigns on platforms like Google and Bing, and social ad management across Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and others. He’s also taken on creative direction, leading website design efforts and refining brand messaging across multiple channels. Carlos has helped organizations develop influencer marketing programs that align with their growth strategies, often connecting paid media with organic brand advocacy. He’s worked with nonprofits, tech startups, and B2B companies, applying a practical approach to campaigns in mobile apps, consumer tech, and subscription services.
6. Clint Bagley
Clint Bagley managed public relations efforts and led social media strategy for brands operating in mobile apps, B2B tech, e-commerce, and subscription services. His understanding of both consumer-facing campaigns and B2B strategies allows him to connect brand goals with measurable outcomes. He’s been part of event-based activations and media-facing work, helping clients build a recognisable presence across channels. His range includes influencer and brand marketing, but his focus extends well beyond that. With experience in content creation, email marketing, and paid social advertising on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, he works across multiple touchpoints to drive results.
7. Jordan Wiggins
Jordan Wiggins’s approach to brand communication blends content strategy with hands-on media and influencer outreach, shaped by years of adapting to shifts in digital and traditional PR. Currently working as a PR and influencer outreach consultant, Jordan takes on a wide range of clients with varying goals and audiences. He understands how to tailor messaging to suit different platforms and knows what it takes to align a brand with the right voices. His work often involves finding that balance between creative storytelling and strategic placement. Jordan Wiggins brings nearly two decades of experience in public relations, with a background that spans entertainment, tech, lifestyle, health, and social impact campaigns.
8. Jaclyn Ramos
With hands-on experience running SEM display, affiliate marketing, and influencer collaborations, Jaclyn Ramos has built a solid foundation in multi-channel digital strategies. Her approach to marketing centers around building efficient funnels that support business growth, especially for e-commerce and subscription-based models. Ramos’s work reflects a deep understanding of how to drive engagement and conversions through coordinated paid efforts, particularly in environments where customer acquisition and retention are closely linked. Her experience covers everything from high-level planning to execution, giving her a practical edge in managing performance-driven campaigns. In addition, she has worked extensively in-house, developing and managing campaigns tailored to the specific needs of retail and e-commerce businesses.
9. Mor Fleisher Leach
Mor Fleisher Leach manages partner and affiliate programs with a strong emphasis on influencer marketing. She doesn’t just plug brands into networks; she focuses on building relationships that make sense for the product and the audience. She has experience across retail, SaaS, eCommerce, hosting, and domains. In her role as a Partner and Affiliate Program Manager, Mor works across multiple industries, applying a structured, performance-based approach. She knows how to identify the right influencers, not just the ones with big numbers, but those who resonate with the target market. This ensures that every campaign succeeds.
10. Dominique Heijer
Dominique Heijer knows how to do paid social advertising across platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. She is also an influencer marketer who combines strategic thinking with hands-on execution, making her capable of leading performance-focused campaigns that balance brand goals with measurable impact. Dominique has worked across sectors, including fitness and insurance, which gives her insight into how influencer strategies need to adapt depending on the audience and product. Her work reflects a broader view of growth marketing, blending leadership and adaptability to shape campaigns that resonate. Whether managing budgets or working within tight performance parameters, she brings structure and intent to every influencer marketing project she handles.
Top Influencer Marketing Skills to Look For
When you’re hiring a freelance influencer marketer, don’t go by titles or buzzwords. Get clear on what you actually need. These are the core skills that matter, broken down so you know exactly what to look for.
Influencer Identification and Outreach
Finding the right influencer marketing strategist is not about who has the most followers. It is about who fits your brand and speaks to your audience. An expert will research and identify creators who match your values and reach the right people. They will filter by niche, audience demographics, engagement quality, and relevance. Once they find the right fit, they handle outreach.
That means writing messages that get responses and starting conversations that lead somewhere. They build real relationships, not transactional ones. They will also manage negotiations, including deliverables, rates, timelines, and expectations, while keeping things fair for both sides.
Campaign Strategy and Execution
You cannot launch a campaign without a plan. A good influencer marketer will start by asking the right questions. What are you trying to accomplish? Who do you want to reach? Based on that, they create a strategy that includes goals, timelines, influencer roles, content plans, and platform choices. Then they move into execution.
They handle communication with influencers, approve content, manage deadlines, and coordinate posts. They make sure every piece of content reflects your brand and speaks clearly to your audience. Whether it is a one-time promotion or a full product launch, the campaign stays on track from start to finish.
Social Media and Content Creation
Influencer campaigns are only as good as the content they produce. A smart marketer works closely with influencers to make sure the content feels natural but still delivers your message. They help shape ideas, decide which formats to use, and ensure everything is aligned with your brand. They know how to guide content creation without making it feel forced.
That includes photos, videos, captions, stories, and blog posts. They review everything before it goes live and make sure it follows both brand guidelines and platform best practices. The result is content that gets attention and actually works.
Analytics and Reporting
If the influencer marketer cannot break down performance, you will not know what worked. You need someone who tracks key metrics and makes sense of the numbers. That includes engagement rates, conversion data, ROI, and anything tied to your goals. They collect the data as the campaign runs, not just at the end. That way, they can adjust in real time if something is off.
After the campaign wraps, they deliver clear reports with actionable insights. You will know what hit, what missed, and what to change next time. No guesswork. Just real data that drives smarter campaigns.
Brand Awareness and Community Engagement
Brand awareness is more than getting your logo seen. It is about getting people to notice, remember, and talk about you. Freelancers with the right skills work with influencers who have real trust with their audiences. That helps your brand show up in places that matter. But awareness is only part of it. Building a strong community is just as important.
A good freelancer helps keep people engaged by encouraging conversation, responding to comments, and promoting interaction. They help turn casual viewers into loyal followers and keep your brand part of the conversation long after the campaign ends.
Conclusion
Finding the right influencer marketing strategist can make or break a campaign. The professionals on this list have a proven ability to drive engagement, connect with audiences authentically, and adapt strategies based on real-time performance. From creative storytelling to data-backed decision-making, the skills they bring to the table, such as platform expertise, relationship management, trend forecasting, and ROI analysis, are exactly what brands need to stay competitive. If you’re looking to elevate your next campaign, don’t leave it to chance. Hire a top-tier influencer marketing strategist through GrowTal and gain access to vetted experts who know how to deliver results. Contact our team today.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does an influencer strategist do?
An influencer strategist plans and manages influencer campaigns. They choose the right creators, set goals, craft messaging, and track performance to ensure brand alignment and ROI. Their job is to turn influence into measurable marketing results.
What is an influencer marketing strategy?
An influencer marketing strategy outlines how a brand uses influencers to reach target audiences. It includes selecting creators, defining goals, creating content plans, and measuring results. The approach ensures campaigns drive awareness, engagement, or sales with a consistent brand voice.
What does an influencer marketing specialist do?
An influencer marketing specialist handles day-to-day campaign execution. They identify suitable influencers, negotiate deals, coordinate deliverables, and monitor results. They work closely with creators and internal teams to make sure campaigns meet brand goals and stay on budget.
What are the 3 R’s of influencer marketing?
The 3 R’s are Relevance, Reach, and Resonance. Relevance is how well the influencer aligns with the brand. Reach measures audience size. Resonance tracks engagement and emotional impact. Together, they help brands pick the right influencers for effective campaigns.
