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An Influencer sells a moment.
An Ambassador sells a belief.

October, 2026

While both are very important for brands to reach and align with their customers, there are significant differences between the two. Typically, a brand ambassador has an ongoing relationship with the brand and represents it across many channels with a long-term strategy to build brand loyalty. On the other hand, influencers serve a different purpose. They (influencers) usually work with many brands, trying to reach a targeted audience and drive awareness and engagement for specific campaigns and product launches. Influencers have a direct and immediate impact on sales and are compensated based on clicks and traffic generated, whereas ambassadors are part of a longer strategy to build brand image and awareness.

Having Ambassadors depends on many things, starting with the industry, the positioning of your product, celebrity customers, and friends. I prefer the concept of ambassadors, especially when you can use loyal friends and supporters of the brand… There is a more personal relationship and genuine alignment of image and values. The cost of an ambassador can be very expensive. Celebrities and people with strong public recognition can cost several million a year if you want them to promote your brand and products and attend events.

Influencers are typically used for specific promotions as a way to reach a well-identified target customer. The engagements are short-term with immediate impacts (clicks convert into sales). There is no exclusivity on either side. Influencers promote many brands and products, and brands use many influencers based on their "followers".
Influencers are well known and easily identified on social networks (Instagram, TikTok, …). Ambassador representations are usually negotiated with celebrities' agents or publicists.

— Laurent Levasseur, personal communication, September 2026.
CEO of YSL America (1988–1997); Executive Board Member & Treasurer, Musée Yves Saint Laurent Paris (2019–present); Executive Board Member & Secretary General, Foundation Pierre Bergé – YSL (2022–present).

"An influencer can introduce a brand to an audience, while a brand ambassador typically represents it through a longer-term relationship; the same person can serve both roles. In either case, I would look for someone whose voice fits the brand and whose audience has a reason to care about the product. Evaluate the partnership beyond reach by looking at qualified interest, sales, repeat purchases, and whether the relationship strengthens trust over time."

— Yanyn San Luis, personal communication, September 2026.
MSM Professor

Working with ambassadors vs. influencers depends on what the brand is trying to achieve. In my line of work, I am seeing big influencers come with bigger and bigger price tags, and the investment doesn't necessarily pay off. In my experience, micro-influencers can deliver better content and are often more willing to follow briefs and requests from the brand. Their audiences also tend to be more engaged. So, brand fit, content quality, and engagement rate are usually more important than follower count.

For example, we developed a local ambassador program for a mega resort in The Bahamas. The property has major events happening throughout the year, so having local creators on retainer who are in The Bahamas and already know the resort and the brand has been extremely valuable. We can bring them in when there's an event, and because they've built that relationship with the brand over time, the content feels more organic and consistent.

We're looking to expand the ambassador program to include US-based influencers starting in 2027, but we're not prioritizing mega-influencers (1M+); we want creators whose content looks good and naturally matches the resort. A loyal/engaged following is also a big priority, so we can tap into it to build awareness while getting quality content.

That doesn’t mean a big name never makes sense. According to Macaulay Culkin, we launched his influencer career (Here is the post: Instagram post). That kind of recognizable name can be great for a big, one-off awareness moment. But it serves a very different purpose from building ongoing relationships with smaller creators who can consistently support the brand.

— Gabriela Bonatto, personal communication, September 2026.
MSM Alumni

"Selecting a brand ambassador or a social media influencer all depends on what your end goal is. If you are planning to build a loyal audience, you may opt for a brand ambassador who has an audience with shared interests, location, or lifestyle relevant to your brand and that your desired audience can trust. On the other hand, influencers are beneficial if you are looking to increase brand awareness, launch a new product, or simply trying to build momentum around a campaign. Regardless, authenticity and alignment are most important. Brands may adjust their tone depending on the creator, platform, or the audience they are trying to reach. However, the core essence of the brand should never be diluted for the sake of clicks or views that may not even resonate with your target audience. Establishing a through line is imperative before ever sourcing creators or establishing lasting brand partnerships or collaborations. From my experience, the best creator collaborations occur when the creator genuinely fits the brand, and they are provided the freedom to create in a way that best speaks to their audience. That consistency and authenticity are ultimately what helps turn awareness into trust, and trust into long-term brand loyalty."

— Rachel Pierre, personal communication, September 2026.
MSM student

From a professional perspective, I see brand ambassadors as individuals who do more than simply promote a brand—they come to represent what the brand stands for. There is a longer-term association between their identity, values, and public image and the identity of the brand itself.

Working in the luxury sector, I think this distinction becomes particularly important. Luxury is an extremely saturated market, and what ultimately differentiates one brand from another is not always the product alone, but the identity, meaning, and sense of purpose that the brand creates for the consumer. I work in jewelry, which is not a necessity but a desire, and often a deeply personal and emotional purchase. Because of that, building a strong connection between the consumer and the brand is essential. A well-chosen brand ambassador can strengthen that relationship because the consumer begins to associate the values, personality, or story of that individual with the brand over time.

Influencer marketing can be extremely effective for reach, visibility, and generating conversation, but I think there is a risk of overexposure or over-commercialization. When too much of the marketing becomes centered around what is immediately viral or socially shareable, the larger identity of the brand or experience can become diluted.

For example, this year's US Open felt much more heavily influenced by influencer culture and social-media-driven promotion. A lot of the conversation surrounding the event seemed to shift toward viral moments, products, and experiences—such as the highly promoted drink, rather than the heritage, sport, and overall experience of the US Open itself. While that strategy can generate enormous reach and bring new audiences into the conversation, it can also make the experience feel more commercialized and potentially reduce some of its authenticity.

Trust is also an important distinction for me. Strong brand relationships are often built through familiarity and personal connection. A long-term ambassador has the opportunity to develop that trust because consumers repeatedly see a credible relationship between the individual and the brand. With influencers, particularly in one-off campaigns, consumers are often more aware that the relationship may be transactional.

Ultimately, I think the choice depends on the marketing objective. Influencers can be incredibly valuable when the goal is reach, cultural relevance, engagement, or creating a moment around a product. Brand ambassadors, however, are particularly powerful when the objective is to build long-term brand equity, trust, and emotional connection. In luxury especially, where consumers are often buying into a world, identity, or story rather than simply purchasing a product, I believe that longer-term association can be extremely valuable.

— Reza Prasad, personal communication, September 2026.
External expert in the field.

There is no intention to show who is better, but to contrast who is better for which scenario and what can be more beneficial for the client/brand. Ambassadors are a long-term trust relationship between someone who follows the values and main core of the brand, and Influencers are people a good choice when you want to call out a specific public where they are one of the voices that the target follows.}

Something I have noticed as a fan of certain artists who have become ambassadors of luxury brands, or experience certain events where you can see both Ambassadors and Influencers and see the reason why they are there and the difference in behavior they experience. For this, I have two examples that explain so well what the contributors of this article wanted to share with their quotes.

Max Verstappen new global Heineken 0.0 ambassador. https://news.verstappen.com/en/article/5011

Formula 1 has its sponsors, such as Heineken, LVMH, and TAG Heuer. In 2023, Heineken named Max Verstappen the new global ambassador to show the presence of the brand in motorsport; moreover, what a winner consumes to enjoy his time being successful. What does it mean? -Show the values, the tone, and the voice Heineken wants to share with their audience, and they chose the number one driver of the 2023 F1 season to reinforce the message and call people to enjoy watching the races with a good beer, but you need to wait till the campaign is launched to see the ad. On the other hand, we have the same brand inviting influencers to the activation at the 3-day event to experience the moment and make them share it on social media to tell people that the race is better if you share it with Heineken. Again, what does it mean? Share the moment and the feeling, and change the format to be faster in reaching out to a part of the target audience that follows some of the influencers who are there.

Same event, different formats, different timelines, but sharing one thing: take advantage of the character to secure the sale of their product, whether it is long- or short-term.

Blackpink Member Jisoo Is Dior’s New Fashion and Beauty Ambassador.
https://wwd.com/fashion-news/fashion-scoops/feature/blackpink-jisoo-dior-fashion-beauty-ambassador-1234768835/

The second example is Dior naming Jisoo as one of its global ambassadors in 2021. As a member of BLACKPINK with a massive, devoted fanbase across Asia, Europe, and America, she was chosen to embody the elegance, youth, and cultural relevance Dior wants associated with its collections. Even before a new collection is released to the public, she is often seen wearing pieces exclusively, months ahead of the official launch. We can perceive that Dior is building a long-term association between her image and the brand's identity, trusting her enough to become an early, ongoing part of its story rather than a one-time face. On the other hand, during store openings or exhibition previews, Dior invites influencers to visit the space, pose with a Lady Dior bag, and post the moment immediately on social media. What does it mean? Turn a single visit into fast, wide visibility — reaching a segment of the audience that follows these creators specifically, without needing to build any lasting relationship with them.

In both cases, the difference isn't the event or the product itself — it's whether the brand is inviting someone in or simply putting someone through. Ambassadors are given access; influencers are given a backdrop.

Fernando Alonzo, Marketer and Graphic Designer, October 2026.