Member Since 2021
Kristy Sammis
CLEVER
California
I am Co-Founder of CLEVER, the first full-service influencer marketing agency, and thrilled to be founding Chair & Executive Director of the Influencer Marketing Association. * Over the last decade, work with such clients as Ford, Disney, Amazon, LEGO, Unilever, and Delta Airlines helped establish CLEVER as one of the Top 50 Fastest Growing Companies (Silicon Valley Business Journal) twice. We've also won several agency awards including "Best Small Agency" (Shorties) and Outstanding Digital Innovation (Marketers That Matter). We were also rated #37 in Entrepreneur Magazine's top 500 small companies in 2017. * In my role as Chair & ED of the IMA, I’m supported by an amazing Board of Advisors and Directors laying the groundwork for this critically important, industry-changing organization. Our goal is to set and protect ethical, procedural, and measurement standards for the influencer marketing industry. * I've been awarded Forbes' Top 40 Over 40 and FOLIO: Magazine's Top Women In Media; featured in The New York Times, CNN, AdAge, Adweek, INC, and Business Insider; and authored Influencer Marketing For Dummies (featured on Good Morning America). My speaking highlights include Martha Stewart's "American Made" conference; National Retail Federation’s “Big Show" (keynote); TEDx (#Batkid story, Social Media & Global Participation). Specialties: Social media marketing, strategy, entrepreneurism, content marketing, influencer marketing, female entrepreneurism, female leadership, social media marketing, and, you know, humor.
SKILLS
- Entrepreunership
- Influencer Marketing
- Values-Driven Leadership
RECENT CONTENT
September 22nd, 2021
16 low-cost ways to recognize and reward your startup team
Even if you're self-funded, you can still find meaningful and cost-effective ways to recognize and reward your team's hard work.
August 20th, 2021
15 ways leaders can set a bad example for their teams
Most organizations have specific rules and protocols workers are expected to follow, as well as carefully developed missions and visions that are intended to guide the entire team's actions. However, employees won't just blindly follow these rules if the leaders who established them aren't modeling that behavior themselves.
May 4th, 2021
15 leaders share secrets to creating an authentic brand that inspires connections
Success in the modern business world depends on developing an authentic, genuine brand that makes customers feel understood and appreciated.
COMPANY INFO
CLEVER
The future of advertising isn’t advertising; it’s real people telling brand stories. Tech-driven and human where it counts, we offer flawlessly managed services supported by CLEVER’s advanced platform, Gen4 DASH. We match brands with hand-selected influencers and fully manage authentic and brand-safe influencer marketing programs. Drawing from nearly a decade of successful program data, we guarantee that brands reach millions of the right consumers and exceed their goals. Every time. Everywhere. This is “Real. At Scale.” Founded in 2009, we’ve delivered more influencer programs for the world’s best companies than any other agency. We authored the go-to guide, "Influencer Marketing for Dummies." We’re most well-known for our work on the extraordinary #Batkid story. CLEVER received the esteemed Shorty Award for Best Small Agency, WOMMA’s Gold Award for Marketing, PR News’ award for Best Viral Campaign, and Digiday’s Content Marketing award for Best Agency/Client Collaboration. We pride ourselves on our strong female leadership and rapid growth, reflected in our recognition by the San Francisco Times’ Top 100 Women-Owned Business. For two consecutive years, Inc. 5000 has recognized CLEVER as one of America’s Fastest Growing Companies, 2016 & 2017. In 2017, CLEVER was named a Great Place to Work—the global authority on high-trust, high-performance workplace cultures—an achievement earned based on extensive ratings provided by CLEVER employees.
AREA OF FOCUS
- Social Media
- Blogger Outreach
- Digital Influencers
INDUSTRY
Marketing & advertising