Uber and Postmates' Ben Trinh on Building Real Relationships With Influencers

In a world where companies can partner with agencies to forge influencer relationships, does it make sense to reach out via personal DMs, company DMs and make twice-monthly trips to LA? For Uber and Postmates’ global head of entertainment and cultural marketing Ben Trinh, it was not only sensible, but it led to better results than conventional methods ever could. “We believed we needed to build relationships directly with influencers, celebrities and YouTubers,” Trinh shared during his conversation with Adweek editor in chief Stephanie Paterik. And what resulted from those time and labor-intensive—but also deeply cultivated, relationships—was “a pillar of brand strategy for the company.” Getting celebrities to yes In recent years, Uber has elevated and expanded its brand through not just influencer campaigns, but also high-profile campaigns with celebrities like Jonathan van Ness, Simone Biles, Billie Eilish and Drake. Trinh talked about the latter two campaigns with Paterik, surprising some when he noted that neither deal required payment to the performers. Instead, he and his team worked to position Uber as a marketing platform. For Drake, who was seeking to promote his new line of candles; and for Eilish, who needed to promote her AppleTV+ documentary, the platform became the point of value. “A common misconception," Trinh said about this alternative approach to celebrity-tier influence, is to think, “How do I get [this] celebrity, influencer or YouTuber to promote what we’re trying to do? [...] Our sweet spot is figuring out what the talent partner is interested in, and then think about how we can support them.” 'An influencer is a person, not an ad buy' Even as Uber continues to utilize celebrities as a way to push the brand to the front of mind globally, Trinh still believes strongly in influencer-tier marketing. In fact, he shared, “If we could work with every micro- and nano influencer in the world, we would. We totally would. Because I truly believe their content goes above and beyond.” Supplementing a strong influencer strategy with celebrity placement creates bandwidth that can be used to cultivate and compensate influencers. Echoing a tidbit shared in an earlier Social Media Week session, Trinh added “just because we think about how we can aid [influencers] in cross-promotion, doesn’t mean we don’t want to pay influencers.” What he and his team think about with influencers, then, is how to honor their humanity and creativity in their collaborations. Position people to facilitate success Trinh believes strongly that the important work of culture-forward and creative work requires a talented, empathetic, and—crucially—diverse team. “We believed that for Postmates to be different and stand out in a competitive field, we would have to win and be top of mind culturally.” And having a team that could effortlessly and naturally do this makes the work better. Trinh cited a colleague, Nicki, who he praised for her natural ability to understand and empathize with influencers. When building a team that does this well, he advises looking deeply at questions like “do you have the right representation? Is your team diverse? Do you understand culture, and if not, can you hire for that?” When you position not just your in-house team, but also the influencers you work with, to let their personalities shine through, that’s when you authentically rise to the front of consumer minds as you’d hope. “Shine the spotlight on your creator,” he encouraged the audience. “Let them tell your story for you, because that’s what they’re good at.” ‘Your Home Is Your Dressing Room’: How Influencers Help Consumers Craft Their Closets