Boomers prefer calling to communicate. Millennials love their texts. GenZ clutches to third-party apps like iMessage or WhatsApp.

What about influencers? What’s the best way to get in touch with them? And once you get your foot in the door, which channel is best for keeping comms fast, searchable, and organized?

We asked 37 marketers which channels they use to talk to their creator partners – which mode they begin with, which they shift to (and why), and how to organize it all.

Before we dissect the numbers, let’s address the elephant in the room: why should you learn more about communication channels?

Why care about communication channels?

This is why: if you don’t invest in the channel that fits your brand, creators’ preferences, and your campaign needs, you risk creating communication bottlenecks that harm your entire workflow. Think of it like Jenga – one misplaced block at the bottom risks toppling the whole tower.

And it’s not just theoretical: over 60% of marketers say communication roadblocks damage their influencer relationships. And 56% feel they can’t give their creator partners as much attention as they’d like to.

Communication channels are an important piece of the puzzle to remove any bottlenecks:

If you’ve chosen a channel your influencers don’t check frequently, their responses will be delayed – a painful experience when your campaigns are moving at warp speed or simply when you want to share any last-minute changes.
If you’ve chosen a channel you can’t organize well, the tables turn, and influencers don’t get timely responses from you – pushing out your desired timelines.
If you’ve chosen a channel that doesn’t align with your current task – like communicating a sensitive issue via a casual text rather than a thoughtful call – you risk a misunderstanding that hampers your creator relationship and brand reputation.

… I could go on.

Fernanda Marques explains how details get missed in long, messy email chains that ultimately impact the entire influencer campaign:

Fernanda Marques

Influencer Marketing Coordinator

Bottlenecks in communication have affected relationships when messages got lost in cluttered inboxes or when responses from either side were delayed, especially during crucial stages like product shipping, deadline confirmations, or last-minute content adjustments.

She goes on to explain how this affects the most important thing in influencer marketing: your creator relationships.

Fernanda Marques

Influencer Marketing Coordinator

In some cases, influencers felt neglected or unsure about next steps, which created unnecessary tension and even led to dropped collaborations. Clearer, faster communication could’ve prevented these issues.

Alexander Sabucido also shares how delayed responses almost cost him big-time:

Alexander Sabucido

Influencer Marketing Specialist

My response to a big channel was delayed, and as a result, the deal almost didn’t go through.

As with everything in influencer marketing, there’s no single “best channel” for all kinds of collaborations, campaigns, brands, and creators. If you’re a small brand working with a handful of creators, for instance, you can easily use email to track all comms.

But if you run bigger campaigns or manage 100+ creators every month as a small team, you might need to switch channels or add functionalities to your inbox to avoid missing a beat.

In the next few sections, I’ll share which channels influencer marketers are using, which are best to build relationships, when you should call creators (the horror!), and when you should think about swapping your modes of communication.

Which channels are influencer marketers using to communicate with influencers?

To no one’s surprise, email remains the most common mode of communication between creators and influencer marketers. The second in line is DMs on social media, followed by third-party apps like WhatsApp or iMessage.

Email is the corporate standard – and for good reason. You can:

track things easily within emails (given you avoid long-winded threads)
easily find what you need using email search (especially if you use email subjects strategically)
use templates, labels, and folders to organize and systemize your communication with influencers

But emails aren’t faultless:

Emails can get messy as you scale your campaigns and partner with more influencers – this translates to missing important details.
Influencers don’t necessarily follow the corporate standard and might not check their emails regularly, leading to delayed responses.
Progress is generally slower over email because creators don’t open it frequently – so it’s not the best channel to communicate any last-minute updates or request a faster content turnaround.

Fernanda Marques agrees, sharing why she starts an influencer relationship with email before switching to a third-party app:

Fernanda Marques

Influencer Marketing Coordinator

When possible, I move the conversation to faster channels (like iMessage or WhatsApp) for influencers I work with often, which helps us avoid delays from email clutter.

But you don’t have to nix email from your communication toolbox altogether. Use it for logistics like influencer payments, contracts, and anything else that needs a formal record. Greta Zacchetti agrees:

Greta Zacchetti

Influencer Marketing Manager, foodspring

Establishing communication platforms is crucial: WhatsApp for faster exchange, emails for more formal communication, and phone calls for more sensitive issues.

Don’t forget to check with your influencers which channels they’d pick! Ask them if they open their inbox daily, if they are comfortable with communicating everything via email, or if they prefer a third-party app instead, and request alternate modes of communication when you don’t get an email response on time.

And if you are using emails for your influencer communication, use inbox features like labels and folders to stay organized – more on that in the next few sections.

Which communication channel is the most effective for building relationships?

When we asked influencer marketers which channels are best for building relationships with influencers, email still took top billing. But this time, third-party apps scored the second spot (over social media DMs).

It’s clear why DMs on social channels scored lower than third-party apps: your creators’ DMs are also where they communicate with their followers. They likely can’t pay as much attention to you as they can via apps like WhatsApp or iMessage (where they have fewer people vying for their attention).

Emails are still an excellent tool to build relationships. For instance, you can:

use the subject line to organize different conversations
send a structured message containing multiple links and info without any platform-specific restrictions
and use a domain email for brand recognition.

It’s worth noting that video calls come in fourth as another excellent channel for building relationships. Async channels are useful, but putting a face to a name builds much stronger rapport than async modes alone. Michael Todner explains:

Michael Todner

Influencer Marketing, Gear4music

I try to speak with all of the influencers we work with [on a video call], even if just briefly. Spending time here shows our commitment to the partnership and allows for a better flow of communication on both sides.

A video call with every influencer is not sustainable if you’re partnering with hundreds of affiliates or brand ambassadors per month, but this method is worth it for your long-term creator partnerships. In our survey, 54% of influencer marketers said they’ve called fewer than 25% of their influencers via phone or a video conferencing app.

Video calls are also much more effective than async communication when handling sensitive issues – for example, if an influencer’s content isn’t up to the mark and needs a significant overhaul. With video, your voice and body language give you more control over how your message is landing – text isn’t as forgiving.

Namrata Thakker adds that calls are a wonderful way to express your gratitude when an influencer’s post performs well:

Namrata Thakker

Head – Communications, PR, & Influencer Marketing, BESTSELLER India

If their content has done really well, I personally thank them on a call, which strengthens the relationship all the more.

Getting on a phone or video call for a quick “thank you” sounds like a small gesture, but it goes a long way in making your creator partners feel appreciated and valued.

Which communication channel is the most efficient?

Email takes the cake again in terms of being the most efficient comms channel. The results here are similar to the previous section: marketers say third-party apps are the second most efficient, followed by social media DMs.

Email’s efficiency comes from its functionalities and adaptability. You can:

Set it and forget it – schedule out messages to follow up with creators.
Use the “snooze” feature to circle back to an email on a specific date.
Keep your messages organized with labels and folders.
Integrate your email client with other tools so your tech stack is seamless.

In second place, third-party apps are efficient because influencers can respond to them much faster, in part because a WhatsApp message doesn’t need to be as buttoned-up as an email – when there’s less pressure to be “professional,” it’s much easier to move projects along. Fernanda Marques agrees:

Fernanda Marques

Influencer Marketing Coordinator

For influencers I’ve built strong relationships with (or when timelines are tight), I’ll sometimes move the conversation to WhatsApp or iMessage to speed things up and keep communication more fluid.

In some cases, video calls – despite their time-consuming reputation – are more efficient than any other mode of communication. Sometimes, you can explain better via a live walkthrough rather than a long, convoluted email. Valerija Somi backs this up:

Valerija Somi

Influencer Manager, Qure Skincare

[We use video calls] if there are misunderstandings we can’t solve through written communication or if there are aspects about the process/product that are easier to show on a video call.

Beth Cortez highlights how video’s immediacy also means your creator partners can get their questions answered right away so they are equipped to start working (rather than having to play keyboard tennis for weeks).

Beth Cortez

Social Creator Outreach Manager Greenpark

[I use video calls] to go over the campaign brief and to help them understand and remember key dates and requirements. This also builds rapport with the influencers, and answers their questions right away.

Multiple marketers in our survey also highlighted how effective video calls are for influencer briefing, especially when you’re onboarding a new creator – you can walk them through a brief, answer any questions they have, and relay your expectations. Lee Drysdale expands:

Lee Drysdale

Senior Influencer and Affiliates Executive, Argento

After sending a detailed brief, I always check in with them via video. This gives me the chance to know whether they’re aligned with the requested creatives or if they’d change anything, and also to get general feedback on the brand.

Joshita Dodani adds that it’s also more efficient to get on a call when an influencer has multiple questions or when they’re confused about the brief:

Joshita Dodani

Head of Social Media and Influencer Partnerships, DigiOrange

I’d call an influencer if the brief is complicated or if they’re really confused, as it’s just easier to sort everything out over a real-time conversation instead of emailing back and forth.

Email remains the most efficient mode of communication in most cases, but it’s not all black and white. Think about which channel makes the most sense for your situation before you land on one.

When should you swap communication channels?

Based on the data above, here’s how the various communication channels measure up for influencer marketing overall:

Remember, you’ll likely always be hopping between channels to communicate with an influencer – especially when you move from outreach to onboarding.

Over 83% of marketers in our survey said they’ve started a conversation with an influencer on one platform and then moved to another. Most marketers said they initiated a convo with a creator by sliding into their DMs and then switched to email. Agita Matule explains how this works:

Agita Matule

Marketing Team Wolt

I prefer DMs because they’re less formal, and many influencers don’t list their email. If they agree to collaborate, I gradually move our communication to email.

On the other hand, your outreach strategy might originate via email (psst… if you’re having trouble finding an influencer’s email address, try Modash’s Unlock Email feature). But if reaching out via email has not worked, try switching to social media DMs, like Valerija Somi:

Valerija Somi

Influencer Manager, Qure Skincare

If we are initially unable to reach an influencer through email, we will try a DM on Instagram. Once we establish contact there, we will generally move to email, where it’s much more convenient for both sides to communicate.

Michael Todner also says it’s worth reaching out to creators via social media DMs if they already follow you and interact with your content.

Michael Todner

Influencer Marketing, Gear4music

If I know that they interact with our content on Instagram, for example, I’ll reach out there first.

In this situation, DMs work because creators have already seen you in their feed – you’ve become a familiar name on that platform. You’re more likely to make headway when you use this outreach channel.

Beyond outreach, it’s worth checking what mode of communication your influencer partners prefer. Where would they be able to respond quickly? Which app do they use most often?

In addition, consider which channel has all the functionalities you need – like attaching files, sending links, pinning messages, etc.

It’s also convenient to match different communication channels to specific tasks. For instance, it’s best to keep all agreement details like invoicing and contracts to email so you can easily trace and reference them whenever needed. However, WhatsApp and iMessage work better for back-and-forth communication because influencers are more readily available there.

Abdullah Khan shares that he moved from emails to WhatsApp to communicate more quickly with his creators:

Abdullah Khan

Influencer Marketing Manager

I started with email as the primary communication channel for reaching out to influencers. Over time, I switched to using direct messaging on social platforms like WhatsApp, or any app where influencers are active and can respond faster.

If you manage a large team of affiliates or brand ambassadors, it’s also worth considering one-to-many communication channels like WhatsApp/Discord groups or Slack channels. These can serve to foster community and share a single message with multiple influencer partners at once – maximizing your efficiency.

But remember, such broadcast channels come at the cost of personalization, so use them only if you’re 100% sure they’ll help and not harm your influencer relationships.

4 Best practices to avoid a communication breakdown

1: Track influencer communication status

If you’re partnering with multiple creators or running different campaigns, each influencer will be at a different stage of partnership. Track their status so you don’t miss following up on an influencer who’s gone cold or a signature on a contract.

Most marketers we spoke to use spreadsheets to track influencer communication, and that’s an excellent (and free!) option. If you want to create a communication tracker of your own, check out our guide on how marketers use spreadsheets – it also contains a free template to track the status of your influencer collabs.

⚡Pro tip: Add a Communication Channel column for each influencer if you use multiple modes of communication. This will ensure you and your team know where to reach out to an influencer or to reference prior conversations.

But the thing about spreadsheets is that they’re prone to human error. If you forget to update them, you risk a leak in your entire communication pipeline. It happened to Michael Todner:

Michael Todner

Influencer Marketing, Gear4music

More than once, things have slipped through the cracks during busier periods due to a reliance on Google Sheets.

Tracking via spreadsheets is especially important when using multiple communication channels simultaneously – one creator might be in the “invoice received” stage via email; another creator might’ve been in the “outreach” stage via Instagram, but then moved to WhatsApp.

It’s easy when you use just one channel, but you’ll likely use multiple channels for influencer communication. And even if you don’t, as you scale, your inbox will become too flooded to remain efficient. Fernanda Marques paints a picture of what this looks like for her:

Fernanda Marques

Influencer Marketing Coordinator

I mainly use spreadsheets to track communication stages, influencer status, and campaign details, and I rely heavily on email labels and folders to keep conversations organized and easy to revisit.

She continues to explain how she layers more communication channels:

Fernanda Marques

Influencer Marketing Coordinator

I also occasionally use WhatsApp or iMessage for faster, more informal communication with closer partners, and Google Calendar to keep track of important follow-ups and posting dates.

The solution is to rely on a software that can integrate with your inbox – like Modash. It connects with your Gmail or Outlook and shows only the emails between you and your influencer partners. There’s even a dashboard to add any notes, see an influencer’s social profile, and mark conversation status – all in a single tab.

Using Modash, you get full visibility over each of your influencer collaborations without having to pull up info from 10 different tabs.

2: Personalize using templates

More than 27% of marketers in our survey said they aren’t sure about their ability to scale influencer relationships without losing the personal touch.

In order to scale, you need automation and templates – but that doesn’t mean you have to compromise personalization. For example, in your initial outreach message, personalize the parts relative to the influencer, and template the parts about your brand.

Whenever you can, use templates to write clearer messages faster. For instance, you don’t need to personalize every follow-up to your outreach messages – a light, boilerplate nudge will do just fine!

Similarly, if you have lots of affiliate partners, create a template containing discount codes, products, and performance tracking. You can just customize the links for each influencer and let the rest of the message remain the same.

You can also create a template for your contracts and briefs – especially for multiple influencers in the same campaign.

3: Outline your communication expectations from the beginning

Once you’ve got your communication systems in place, ensure each influencer knows where to contact you for which query. The key here is to keep it simple, so allocating more than three channels for each influencer might be stretching it.

An easy framework you can follow is:

Use third-party apps like WhatsApp for primary communication.
Use email for invoicing and contracts.
Use video calls on an ad-hoc basis when needed.

Send this framework to your creator partners during onboarding so they know what’s expected of them regarding communication channels.

Fernanda Marques takes it up a notch with spreadsheets:

Fernanda Marques

Influencer Marketing Coordinator

I make sure to summarize next steps, deadlines, and expectations in one message to avoid back-and-forth confusion. I also use spreadsheets and trackers that are updated in real time so both the brand and influencer have a shared understanding of where we are in the process.

If each of your influencer partners has a clear idea of where to communicate regarding which issue, you’ll avoid your messages getting misplaced or ignored.

4: Pick up the phone when needed

I love the flexibility of async communication. But sometimes, that just doesn’t cut it. Pick up the phone when you want to:

Give a product walkthrough that would work better as a 1:1 call than a Loom
Provide clarity on an issue that requires some back-and-forth
Have a sensitive conversation

‍Marit Tiesma suggests a ceiling of two emails: jump on a call if you have to send over two emails to get the details ironed out on any topic.

Marit Tiesema

Sr. KOL/Ambassador Specialist, Loop Earplugs

If you’re sending more than two emails back and forth and not reaching an agreement, jump on a call. It usually completely breaks the tension. After that, everything is resolved because you understand each other.

Voice and video calls are also an excellent way to reduce any communication bottlenecks and double-check that everything is clear.

The medium is just as important as the message

Choosing your primary communication channel isn’t as straightforward as you’d think, but it also needn’t be complicated. Laura Altdorffer beautifully sums it up:

Laura Altdorffer

Influencer and Affiliate Manager iRESTORE Laser

Everything under the sun has gone wrong in my decade of working in this industry, but luckily, most things were always fixable.

Regardless of what communication method you choose, what you don’t want is to spend hours digging through inboxes to reference internal notes, past agreements, or contract documents. Instead, you should allocate this valuable time to building influencer relationships.

If only there was a way to pull up a dashboard with all your notes, influencer details, and attached documents, then you could stop playing ping-pong with all those tabs!

Enter: Modash Inbox.

It’s an upgrade to your Gmail or Outlook, showing only the emails from your creator partners along with their metrics and your internal notes – all in one place.

You can do a lot more – like connect your Shopify store to gift products directly from the tool, or run entire affiliate programs.

See for yourself: take Modash for a spin for 14 days at no cost. And no, we don’t need your credit card details.

 
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Email vs. Whatsapp vs. DMs: A Guide for Choosing the Best Influencer Communication Channels

We asked 37 marketers how they communicate with influencers. Here’s a guide on which channels they recommend for which use cases and why.

How to Use Broadcast Channels in Influencer Marketing

Learn how to use one-to-many channels like Slack, Discord, and WhatsApp groups for influencer marketing – and when to stick with 1:1 messaging.

Email, DM, or Smoke Signal: Which Communication Channels Should You Use With Influencers?

Why care about communication channels?

Which channels are influencer marketers using to communicate with influencers?

Which communication channel is the most effective for building relationships?

Which communication channel is the most efficient?

When should you swap communication channels?