Question 1

My product is too expensive to put 25 units into a collab. Can we still run one?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Yes. For brands with a higher-value product we work with a smaller squad — say 10 sportfluencers instead of 25. The product's value helps set the squad size, and the squad is still chosen through over-subscription, together with you, so every unit reaches the right athlete.

Question 2

What did the WOWOW collab deliver?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Our very first squad, and immediately the proof: 25 sportfluencers, 64 pieces of content, 0% ghosting, +1,800 interactions (strongest profile 11.8% engagement) — and that in May, so a floor. WOWOW called the content “credible and authentic” and is looking at a follow-up.

Question 3

What did The Vandal collab deliver?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Sixteen riders, each with shopping credit for their own kit: 50 pieces of content (23 stories, 10 posts, 9 reels, 8 carousels) and 49 deliverables against 32 agreed — 153% delivery, 0% ghosting. Over 2,300 interactions, strongest post 17.3% engagement, twelve months of usage rights.

Question 4

Is Sunday Squad right for my brand?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Yes, if an athlete genuinely uses, tests or experiences your product — nutrition, apparel, equipment, recovery, tech, safety, events. Less of a fit if there's no use experience attached. The test: can someone take it into their training for a week and say something meaningful about it?

Question 5

What does creator marketing cost in Belgium?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Three price brackets in the Belgian market: one micro-influencer (a few hundred up to €1,000 per post), a classic campaign with a handful of creators (€1,000–€5,000), or a macro-influencer/celebrity (€5,000–€25,000 per post). Sunday Squad doesn't charge per post but per collab: a package of 25 curat

Question 6

What's the difference between creator marketing and influencer marketing?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Influencer marketing is about reach, creator marketing is about craft. Influencer marketing works with a few big names who mobilise their audience; creator marketing with several smaller creators who each serve their community from real expertise.

Question 7

Does creator marketing work without cash payments?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Yes — and not as a compromise, by design. A product-based model attracts creators who already use the brand or want to, not people monetising their account commercially. The selection filters on intent.

Question 8

What is a barter deal — and does it work for brands?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

A barter deal is a collaboration where a brand gives product in exchange for content, no money. For brands it works as a selection on intent — not as cheap content. Condition: the product value (from ±€75–100) justifies the time, and the product fits what the creator already does.

Question 9

Do major brands like Unilever and P&G also do creator marketing?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Yes — and at industrial scale. In 2025–2026 creator marketing has become a central strategy at the world's largest FMCG companies — Unilever, for example, works with more than 300,000 creators worldwide.

Question 10

Does creator marketing work for smaller or niche brands?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Yes, and often better than for big brands. The logic — a large number of smaller creators, deployed in a coordinated way — naturally suits brands that don't need to reach half of Belgium but want to activate a specific community.

Question 11

What is creator marketing?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

A form of marketing where brands work with content creators — people who've built an audience around their craft or passion. The creator makes content about the product, in their own style, and shares it with their community.

Question 12

How many creators do you need for a successful campaign?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

No fixed number, but a fixed principle: one creator makes noise, twenty or more make signal. The old reflex 'grab one famous name' works for broad awareness, not for depth within one community.

Question 13

How do you measure the results of creator marketing?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

There's no perfect attribution — anyone who promises it is selling something. The industry usually measures on four layers: reach, engagement, brand impact (lift studies, top-of-mind), and outcome metrics (sales, traffic, sign-ups). None stands on its own.

Question 14

How do you find the right creators for your brand?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Three routes, in increasing order of effort: search Instagram or TikTok yourself, work via a platform or database, or build a curated squad with a specialist. The right route depends on scale, budget and quality control.

Question 15

What is the difference between UGC and creator content?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

UGC is spontaneous, uninvited content from ordinary users. Creator content is invited and deliberate, but made in the creator’s own voice on their own channels. Sunday Squad works with creator content from amateur athletes: invited, curated for fit, posted from their own accounts within their own co

Question 16

Is creator marketing only suitable for large brands with large budgets?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

On the contrary. The Unilever model of 300,000 creators only makes sense at global scale. For most brands creator marketing works precisely at smaller scale: 25 creators serving your specific community.

Question 17

Does creator marketing replace classic media and advertising?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

No — and it's not either/or. Classic media build reach, creator content builds repetition, squads build saturation within a community. Put everything on one layer and you miss the other two.

Question 18

Is Sunday Squad right for a premium or niche brand?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Premium and niche brands are more often a strong match than a poor one — if the target customer is in the community we activate. The curation brief gets sharper, the squad smaller, but the fit stronger.

Question 19

Does sportfluencer content match my brand's visual identity?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Fit is a selection question. We curate creators on profile and aesthetic, not just sport and reach. A strong visual story requires a sharper-filtered selection — not a tighter brief.

Question 20

Which products work best in a squad?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Products with a real moment of use: nutrition, apparel, shoes, accessories, recovery, tech, safety, bike/running gear, events. It's not the category that counts, but whether an athlete can integrate it into their training and has something to say about it.

Question 21

Can we approve the content in advance?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Not sentence by sentence. But within clear boundaries: core message, do's and don'ts, and required or forbidden claims — especially for nutrition, supplements, safety or performance. Within those lines, sportfluencers make content in their own style. You steer on boundaries, not on sentences.

Question 22

What should the value of the product package be?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

High enough to feel like a real reward. No fixed price, but our sportfluencer survey points to a guideline: from around €100 a package feels like a real reward, and in practice value usually lands between €100 and €200. A discount code feels like work; a full product feels like recognition.

Question 23

Why does creator content outperform production photography?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Production photography asks the viewer to believe. Creator content lets them recognise. An amateur athlete using your product in a context the viewer knows shortens the mental step from product to purchase — something a glossy studio shoot structurally cannot do.

Question 24

When should we not do a squad?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Don't do it if you actually want perfect ad visuals, full script control or guaranteed short-term sales — then you want a media buy, not a squad. A squad works because it feels real, and that means letting go of some control.

Question 25

Do Sunday Squad collabs work alongside broader influencer or media campaigns?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Yes — often the strongest setup. A squad doesn't replace other marketing; it's a layer that adds simultaneous voices within one community. It works alongside a hero campaign, via an agency, or on top of always-on creator activity.

Question 26

What is user-generated content (UGC)?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

UGC is content people create spontaneously about a brand, without payment or invitation. The market now uses the term for paid, directed content that mimics the UGC aesthetic. Sunday Squad sits in between: our athletes receive product, not cash, and post from their own accounts within their own comm

Question 27

Can we work via our marketing agency?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Yes — directly with the brand or as an activation layer alongside your agency. If you have a media agency or agency-of-record, a squad collab fits as a targeted module in the plan. We coordinate directly: briefing, timing, style and reporting through one line.

Question 28

What does a Sunday Squad collab actually deliver?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

25 pieces of content on the same day, cumulative organic reach typically well above 50,000, a 24-month content licence, and no ghosting. A squad builds credibility — not direct conversion.

Question 29

How many products do we need to provide?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Standard is 25 product packages (one per sportfluencer), plus three to five spares for size swaps, damage or a late replacement. With a different squad size it scales accordingly; we agree the exact number up front.

Question 30

What does a collab with a Sunday Squad cost?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

A collab with a squad of 25 starts from €2,500, a pilot with 10 from €1,500 — excl. VAT and product; the intro call is free. Included: matching, selection, logistics, final report and content rights (whitelisting separate). For the long run: a season (3 collabs) or Sunday Squad Ambassadors, tailor-m

Question 31

Can we ask for exclusivity within our category?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Yes, provided it's in the briefing up front and fairly bounded on three dials: category, region and period. A fair, limited exclusivity is open for discussion; an open-ended block or a category so broad it locks an athlete out everywhere scares off exactly the profiles you want.

Question 32

What do we as a brand need to provide to start?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

A sharp briefing: product, audience and sport, region, timing, core message, no-gos, and what you want to do with the content (organic or also ads). You provide the direction, we build the squad.

Question 33

What is ghosting and why is it a problem?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Ghosting is when a creator accepts a collaboration or free product and then disappears — no post, no message. You've already incurred the costs before anything comes back. In classic product seeding it's the norm: 59% of marketers run into it.

Question 34

Can a brand from abroad work with Sunday Squad?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Yes. You don't have to be a Belgian brand. Our squads are mainly in Belgium for now, so a foreign brand wanting to reach the Belgian sports community is in the right place. A squad in your own country is possible but needs building first — we're upfront about that.

Question 35

What stops an athlete from keeping the product and posting nothing?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

No ironclad guarantee — but non-delivery is the exception, by design. We select on intent, the squad posts simultaneously so sitting still stands out, and the Captain follows up. In our pilot, 100% of selected athletes delivered.

Question 36

Does barter content have to be labelled as advertising?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Yes. A free product counts as a benefit, so the post is advertising — whatever the value. That requires a clear label ('Reclame' or 'Advertentie'), and as the brand you're co-responsible. With us, that obligation is built into the terms every sportfluencer accepts.

Question 37

Are the sportfluencers in a collab already ambassadors of our brand?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Not yet. A collab is a one-off activation with no obligation afterwards. Sunday Squad Ambassadors is the next step: from the squad that delivered you assemble a group that carries on in rounds, with product and a fee. Afterwards on behaviour, not up front on reach.

Question 38

Can an ambassadorship grow out of a collab?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Yes. A collab is the ideal audition: you see which athletes deliver, fit your brand and reach their audience — behavioural data, not a promise. From that proven group grows Sunday Squad Ambassadors: rounds with product and a fee, with size, rhythm and duration set per brand.

Question 39

What's the difference between reach and traction?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Reach is how many people see your content; traction is whether they react, tag each other and ask where to buy it. One influencer can have more reach, but a squad posting at the same time sets traction in motion — a campaign that gets talked about, not just watched.

Question 40

Do we have to find and manage the sportfluencers ourselves?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

No. We find, screen, brief and chase the athletes; you get one curated squad to approve, one point of contact, one agreement and one service fee — not twenty-five separate email threads and reminders.

Question 41

Why do all the sportfluencers post at the same time?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Because posting at the same time turns separate posts into one moment. Twenty-five athletes posting over the same weekend within the same community create local saturation — your brand feels like it was already there, not like it arrived through an advert.

Question 42

Is there a list of your sportfluencers we can look at?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

No, there is no browsable catalogue. A squad forms per collab: from sportfluencers who apply to your campaign, supplemented from our community (amateurs with 500 to ±25,000 followers) and targeted scouting. What you do get: the contours and cases up front, and after the matching a reasoned shortlist

Question 43

What is ambassador marketing?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Ambassador marketing is marketing through people who already use your brand and keep showing it, longer than one campaign. Classically that's one face on a yearly contract; Sunday Squad Ambassadors is a squad of 10 or 25 sportfluencers who carry on in rounds after a collab, chosen on what they did.

Question 44

What are the pitfalls of an ambassador programme?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Three pitfalls with one cause: too few people, too much goodwill. One face that goes quiet, ambassadors with no new reason to post, and management through loose DMs and spreadsheets. Sunday Squad Ambassadors: a squad of 10 or 25, rounds with new product, one platform per round.

Question 45

What is community-led growth, and how does Sunday Squad do it?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Community-led growth: a brand grows through the people who already use it, not through bought reach. In software that's a forum; in sport it's the peloton. Sunday Squad does it in three steps: a collab (drop), a Sunday Squad Season (rhythm), Sunday Squad Ambassadors (relationship).

Question 46

Does product seeding deliver more than a paid post?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Not automatically more, but something different. Across 100,000+ Instagram posts, gifted and paid collaborations achieved virtually identical average engagement: 2.01% versus 2.00%. Paid posts had a higher median: 1,765 views versus 800. Product-based collabs test fit; paid helps deploy proven reach

Question 47

What is the difference between a brand ambassador and an influencer?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

You hire an influencer for a moment; you build a relationship with an ambassador. Duration (weeks vs months), basis (reach vs credibility), content (campaign vs ordinary life), exclusivity, goal and compensation follow from that. At Sunday Squad the ambassador comes out of the collab: the squad that

Question 48

What is the difference between a Sunday Squad Season and Sunday Squad Ambassadors?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

A Sunday Squad Season is more people: three collabs, a different squad each time, up to 75 sportfluencers. Sunday Squad Ambassadors is the same people for longer: one squad that receives new product in rounds, keeps posting and gets a fee for it. Launch → Season; consumable → Ambassadors.

Question 49

How much does a brand ambassador programme cost in Belgium?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

In Belgium: €200–€800 per nano/micro ambassador per month as a retainer, product only for gifting, 10–20% for affiliate; one well-known face from several thousand euros a month. Sunday Squad Ambassadors counts per round: round 1 is a collab from €1,500 (10) or €2,500 (25) excl. VAT and product; foll

Question 50

How do you select brand ambassadors?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

On behaviour, not on reach. The industry selects from existing customers, nano/micro profiles in the niche and top performers from a gifting campaign. At Sunday Squad the collab is that first step: after the posting window you know who used, delivered and fit; you approve the line-up. Nobody becomes

Question 51

Do brand ambassadors have to be exclusive?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Within your category yes, outside it no. With Sunday Squad Ambassadors exclusivity applies per round and per category: no direct competitor while a round runs, freedom in between. Whoever chooses your round again after a free month does so because it fits.

Question 52

Which brands is Sunday Squad Ambassadors right for, and which not?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

For products that only convince after weeks of use: nutrition, care, subscriptions, seasonal apparel. Not for a one-off launch or event; there you want a spike, so a collab or a Sunday Squad Season. If in doubt: start with a collab.

Question 53

What is an athlete ambassador programme?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

An ambassador programme in which athletes, not creators or well-known faces, carry a brand for longer (On, Athletic Brewing, Gymshark). The industry aims at pros and big sports creators; Sunday Squad Ambassadors is the same programme for amateurs with 500 to 10,000 followers who know them.

Question 54

What is a brand ambassador programme?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

A standing agreement between a brand and a group of people who keep showing the brand for longer, in exchange for an ongoing return: gifting, retainer (€200–€800/month for nano/micro), affiliate (10–20%) or hybrid. Sunday Squad Ambassadors: a squad of 10 or 25, product + fee per round, entry through

Question 55

How long does an ambassador programme run?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

As long as the product gives reason to. In the industry: six months to three years. Sunday Squad Ambassadors works in rounds (monthly for consumables, quarterly for drops, per season for apparel); after every round you choose again. Recommended: at least three rounds.

Question 56

Can you combine influencer marketing with an ambassador programme?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Yes: test broadly first, then turn the best into ambassadors. At Sunday Squad that's a ladder: collab (test), Sunday Squad Season (breadth), Sunday Squad Ambassadors (depth), two at once if you like. What we don't do: put a well-known face on top of the squad; then the squad becomes scenery.

Question 57

What is the difference between a brand ambassador, a brand advocate and a fan?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

A fan buys, a brand advocate recommends unprompted, a brand ambassador does so by agreement with something in return. A sportfluencer at Sunday Squad sits on the step between advocate and ambassador: the recommendation existed before the agreement did.

Question 58

How do you build an ambassador programme with amateur athletes?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Start with one collab, not with a programme: 10 or 25 amateur athletes use your product, you see who delivers, you assemble the ambassador group, choose rhythm and return, and run rounds. Amateurs have no manager or rate card, but a club and an audience that knows them.

Question 59

Does an ambassador programme work for a small brand?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Yes, often better than for a big brand: a small brand already has what a programme needs, a product people recommend and a community you can be visible in. Nano/micro convert better. Sunday Squad Ambassadors starts with a pilot of 10 sportfluencers.

Question 60

What is the difference between a UGC creator and a brand ambassador?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

A UGC creator makes content for your channels, paid per video (from around €80), no own audience needed. A brand ambassador shows your product on their own channels, to people who know them. Sunday Squad Ambassadors delivers the second, with reuse rights on the content: UGC that also proves somethin

Question 61

Is ambassador marketing the same as referral or affiliate marketing?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

No. Affiliate and referral measure the transaction (commission per sale, reward per referred customer); ambassador marketing measures whether someone keeps showing your brand, even when nothing sells. Sunday Squad Ambassadors pays per round, not per sale: an athlete who sells is no longer believed i

Question 62

How does Sunday Squad Ambassadors differ from a brand-owned ambassador club?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

A brand-owned club (like AA Drink's ALL ACTIVITY CLUB, 32 ambassadors, one city) is one brand, one group, managed in-house. Sunday Squad Ambassadors comes from a network of 1,300+ sportfluencers, is selected on what they did in a collab, and is managed by us per round. A new sport or region is a new

Question 63

What is the difference between community-led growth and influencer marketing?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

Influencer marketing buys the attention of an audience someone else built; community-led growth grows your brand through those who already use it, in the group they belong to. Three differences: direction (sender vs around), basis (reach vs membership), time (peak vs memory). Sunday Squad chooses th

Question 64

Are employee ambassadors the same as sportfluencer ambassadors?

Tom Bogaert · Accepted Answer

No. Employee ambassadors (employee advocacy) post about their employer on LinkedIn and prove loyalty. Sportfluencer ambassadors are customers who use your product and show it to their own audience; they prove the product works. Sunday Squad Ambassadors works exclusively with athletes outside your pa

FAQ

Questions others asked too

Creator marketing

Micro-influencer marketing