Nhu nguyen

Many times in life, I work with 100+ influential people on a campaign, maintain the conversation, seal the collaboration, and ensure everything goes smoothly. Is it too much? Is the process easy? Is it challenging to keep up the conversation and recall all the details? Have I ever felt tired? The answer is Yes and No. 

PREPARE YOURSELF FOR THOUGHTFUL TALK

For a PR strategist, working with influencers and celebrities is a major part of the everyday job. It’s never a typical 9-to-5 routine. It could be an early morning call or a late-night follow-up. The discussions can range from important decisions like changes in content direction to casual brainstorming sessions about what to wear to an event. You need to be present, offering advice on how influencers can align their personal style and character with the brand’s campaign. Your role is to bring the brand’s world to them and activate new expressions of the brand in the digital space.

Whether the process feels heavy or smooth depends on how you begin the journey. Before every campaign, I put myself in the brand’s shoes and ask: 

What do I want people to say about me? Who do I want to connect with to share my story? If someone tells a story about me, what angle should it take?

Then, I review potential influencers’ profiles, search their names on Google, look up their latest collaborations to understand them deeply and ask: 

If I were this creator, what would I want from this collaboration? What type of storytelling would resonate with me and my community?

From there, I map everything out on paper — identifying the common ground I can leverage, and the new space I can build to spark the influencer’s community’s interest in the brand and potentially convert them into future customers.

Before speaking with influencers, I create a visualized map of who I am talking to and how the conversation will flow. During the research, I might discover some common topics or life patterns between myself and the person I talk to, which makes the conversation more exciting and enjoyable. Good preparation would lessen your feeling of a heavy workload when you step into the actual (hundreds of) conversations.

Make Your Work a Story People (including you) want to Join

An interesting aspect of influencer management is that you convey the story about the brand you love, making others feel it as you do. What is more joyful than talking about people (brand) you adore and inspiring them to join a mission, a movement, or a moment? Create an influencer pitch where they are not just promoting a brand, but stepping into a character that aligns with their authentic voice. I used to note it down:

• What is the main brand story and value? What is an emotional hook here?
• What is the typical pattern between the brand and influencer lifestyle? Why we would love to work with you
• How can an influencer play a unique part in this journey?

Sometimes I create a customized gift box or letter to send to the influencer before the briefing that sparks a sense of belonging. At other times, I started the conversation by reminding them of their latest activity or trip that impressed us, and then related it to the product we wanted to send to them this time. Another time, I highlight the stories behind the brand and suggest that the content angle may create uniqueness in the market. I treat influencers as friends who may become brand family members and join in long-term growth, but never just a one-off transaction. In a world of millions of brands that can pay influencers, creators will voluntarily and happily engage with brands that make them feel connected, both in their career growth journey and emotionally. And importantly, set the mood. A conversation isn’t just a task to build collaboration, but it’s an experience for the brand. So I treat our online exchanges like I’m inviting someone into a creative studio with the right energy and an open mind for collaboration.

Speak one language, but be flexible

To keep up the conversation and remember all the details, the magic here are clarity and consistency. Whether you’re reaching out to a new influencer, persuading them to join a product launch, or simply inviting guests to experience something in-store, it’s essential to prepare a core message kit tailored to each influencer segment or group, for example, celebrities, fashion creators, sustainability advocates, lifestyle influencers, or video creators.

Your message should be concise, clear, and inspiring. Each kit should answer the following:

• Tell your brand story in three sentences (make it memorable and emotionally engaging)
• What are the key upcoming activities?
• Why is this relevant to the influencer?
• What is the influencer’s role? (deliverables, deadlines, and assets)
• What are the benefits? — Outline the basic offer and any additional perks (ex: media promotion, giveaways, event access).

I typically group influencers into batches either by timezone, content type, or engagement tier to streamline follow-up and coordinate efficiently with the internal team. This avoids chaos and makes each conversation feel intentional and manageable, even when you’re working with a large number of people at once.

But it does not mean you just read the script like a robot. Your emotions and way of speaking may speed up or slow down depending on how people react to you and the flow of conversation. I usually will spend some moments to observe the effectiveness of story flow and adjust my storytelling based on how much interest and excitement the influencer shows. Sometimes, they want to know more about a brand before discussing a specific campaign, or some creators believe that the conversation could be handled via email. It is beneficial to adapt based on the communication style and boundaries of the influencers.

Too Many Conversations, Too Little Energy: LET DO IT STEP BY STEP

There’s a hidden consequence to managing dozens, sometimes hundreds, of conversations at once: your social battery runs out. I was tired of running after the new chat box popping up constantly. I was confused walking through the confirmation list with extra support requests in the end of the day. I used to look at myself in the mirror before the event date, trying to refresh my mind and start merging information from chatboxes into my welcome plan the next day. Even if you love connecting with people, the constant energy of replying, coordinating, and adapting your tone to different conversations can leave your brain feeling drained. And it is totally normal. There is nothing to feel disappointed about, nor is there a need to rush yourself to charge your battery quickly. This is a long marathon run, and you need to split your energy smart to finish the race.

I divide my to-do list into three key stages: approaching, handling the details, and sealing the deal — with room for added extras. I use my fresh morning energy to focus solely on the first step: reaching out to influencers with a warm, personalized introduction to the brand. During this phase, I don’t multitask, I concentrate fully on making the first connection and tracking responses to the invitation. Only after this initial engagement do I move into the second stage: discussing the specifics, answering case-by-case questions, and following up with contracts. That’s because welcoming people and saying hello can be done with a more general emotional tone, but resolving details requires deeper concentration and a tailored, thoughtful approach for each person. When replying, I visualize each influencer’s profile and photo alongside their specific request or story detail, which helps me remember them more quickly and respond more personally later on.

Even doing this, my social battery is still low at some points and I can’t fake presence. In this line of work, presence matters. To restore it, I step away from conversations, to take a walk, listen to a song, or journaling with random thoughts. I give my brain a moment to process, breathe, and wander freely is how I recover. It is not about how to escape but how to reconnect with myself and possibility to be inspired by influential people I work with. So when I return to conversations, I’m not running on fumes. I’m clear, calm, and genuinely ready to listen again.

People not only respond to messages, but they also respond to the energy they receive. If you want your outreach to be remembered, add your personality, your brand uniqueness, and open the talk to generate engagement. However, it does not mean you need to be everywhere at once; instead, be clear, engaging, and creative. Talking with 100 influencers or more will be successful when you make space for real conversation and shared purpose.