Why, and How Charles & Keith Runs Two Influencer Programs

Charles & Keith runs two influencer programs. Conventional advice will tell you this is inefficient, or that you should pick one strategy and just stick to it.

But they ignored this advice and built one of fashion's most effective influencer engines. Their hashtag #iamcharleskeith has 10K+ videos on TikTok alone.

In this breakdown, we'll see how Charles & Keith runs their two influencer programs, why they do, and if it makes sense for you to follow their strategy. And the step-by-step method for building your own creator community that posts about your brand every single day.

Quick note: This guide is for brands only. We don't help influencers find brand partnerships. If you're a brand ready to build your creator community, get in touch. If you're an influencer, you're in the wrong place — go directly to brand websites to find their programs.

Two Influencer Programs by Charles & Keith

Charles & Keith split their influencer marketing into two completely different programs, each designed for different types of creators and goals.

The Community Ambassador Program

This program is for anyone who loves fashion and enjoys creating content about it. There's no minimum follower count requirement, which means even smaller creators who genuinely love the brand can participate.

The program works on a points-based system rather than direct payments. Ambassadors complete some challenges — things like following their social accounts, tagging them in posts using #ImwithCharlesKeith, sharing their content, posting unboxing videos on TikTok, or creating YouTube haul videos.

Each activity earns points, and as ambassadors rack up more points, they move up through different membership tiers and unlock better rewards.

This approach helps Charles & Keith in several ways. The points-based system keeps ambassadors engaged over time instead of just posting once and disappearing. The brand gets consistent visibility and content without having to constantly recruit new people.

Instead of getting 100 identical "sponsored post" style photos, they get unboxing videos, styling content, reviews, and social shares. Ambassadors also create content on different platforms. There are YouTube hauls, TikTok videos, Instagram styling content, and written reviews. Charles & Keith receives a comprehensive content mix that would be otherwise time-consuming to produce through traditional means.

The Affiliate Program

Charles & Keith's affiliate program is designed for anyone with an online presence who wants to earn money by promoting their products, whether it's through social media or blogs. Affiliates earn up to 6% commission on actual sales they drive through their affiliate links.

Since these partners are motivated by actual sales performance, they tend to create more persuasive, conversion-focused content rather than just pretty pictures. This is great for cash flow and marketing ROI because there's no upfront cost or wasted spend on campaigns that don't convert.

Affiliates also bring their own established audiences and traffic sources that Charles & Keith might not be able to reach otherwise, like niche fashion blogs, deal-hunting websites, or newsletters that have readers actively looking to buy.

Here's a quick summary of difference betw

een affiliate, and ambassador programs 👇

Why Does Charles & Keith Have Two Types of Influencer Programs?

You can't seduce and sell at the same time.

Think about how you actually discover fashion brands you love. It's rarely from someone pushing you to buy something. It's from seeing someone you admire wearing something effortlessly, or noticing the same bag appearing in different contexts, until you start wanting it yourself. That's what the ambassador program creates — this natural pull toward the brand.

But here's the paradox: brands also need to convert browsers into buyers. Someone has to do the actual selling, handle the logistics of driving traffic, and closing sales. That's why Charles & Keith has an affiliate program because they need people whose job is explicitly to make sales happen.

The genius is in the separation. When you see an ambassador post, you're not being sold to. You're being invited into a lifestyle. When you click an affiliate link, you know exactly what's happening and you're okay with it.

Most brands try to do both jobs with the same people and end up doing neither well. They create this awkward middle ground where influencers are supposed to be authentic while also optimizing for conversions. The result is content that feels forced and sales that feel pushy.

Another major reason to have different programs is that different people want different things from brand partnerships.

A blogger who runs a fashion website wants straightforward business terms — clear commission rates, reliable tracking, payment schedules. They don't want to create on TikTok or complete "fun challenges."

Meanwhile, a style influencer who loves creating content would be turned off by having to track click-through rates and conversion metrics. They want creative freedom and community recognition, not spreadsheets.

Charles & Keith recognized that trying to be everything to everyone usually means being nothing special to anyone. Two focused programs outperform one confused one.

Should You Create Two Programs?

Small brands face a different reality than Charles & Keith. You probably don't have a dedicated team to manage multiple programs or the budget to seed products while also paying commissions.

Start with one program that can evolve.

Most successful small brands begin with either gifting products to creators who genuinely love them or offering commissions to people who can drive sales. Pick the approach that matches your immediate need. If you need sales tomorrow, go affiliate. If you need brand awareness and content, start with ambassadors.

Your early partners will likely wear multiple hats anyway.

A micro-influencer who starts as an ambassador might naturally begin driving sales as their audience grows. A blogger who joins as an affiliate might start creating more lifestyle content as they build a relationship with your brand.

It has to make economic sense.

If your profit margins are thin, paying huge commissions while also sending free products to ambassadors might not be sustainable. Be honest about what you can afford. Sometimes it's better to do one program really well than two programs poorly.

How does the Charles & Keith ambassador program work?

The ambassador program runs on a simple logic: turn casual fans into active promoters by making promotion feel like a game rather than work.

Charles & Keith figured out that most people who genuinely like a brand are already doing some of these activities anyway — following social accounts, sharing posts they like, or showing off new purchases. The program just gives people credit for what they're naturally inclined to do.

The points system works because it removes the awkwardness of traditional influencer relationships. There's no negotiating rates, no contracts about posting schedules, and no pressure to create specific types of content. Ambassadors can participate as much or as little as they want, when they want. This flexibility actually leads to more consistent activity because people don't feel trapped or obligated.

What makes it sustainable is that the challenges are genuinely easy and varied. Following a social account takes 30 seconds. Tagging the brand in a post you were going to share anyway costs nothing extra. Writing a review after buying something is natural customer behavior.

The tier system creates momentum. Once someone starts earning points, they want to see what the next level unlocks. It's the same reason people keep playing mobile games - there's always another goal just within reach. This keeps ambassadors engaged for months rather than weeks.

How Does the Affiliate Program Work?

The affiliate program operates on pure performance economics — Charles & Keith only pays when a sale is made.

Apart from commission, there are 3 things about the affiliate program that are worth noting

1. Unique tracking link

When someone joins through the platform, they get unique tracking links or codes that follow customers for 10 days. This window matters because fashion purchases often involve browsing, thinking, maybe showing a friend, then coming back to buy. Without that extended tracking, affiliates would lose credit for sales they actually influenced.

2. Dashboard to see performance

The twice-daily dashboard updates serve a specific purpose beyond just transparency. Affiliates can see which content drives the most clicks and conversions almost in real-time, allowing them to double down on what works and abandon what doesn't. This creates a feedback loop where successful affiliates become more successful, generating better results for Charles & Keith.

3. Banner ad library

The banner ad library solves a practical problem. Most website owners aren't graphic designers. By providing ready-made creative assets for different seasons, sales, and product categories, Charles & Keith removes the friction that often kills affiliate programs. Partners can grab professional-looking ads without hiring designers or spending hours creating content.

What's clever is how the program attracts different types of partners. Deal bloggers promote sales and seasonal items. Fashion bloggers feature new collections. Lifestyle websites integrate products into broader content. Each type brings different audiences and shopping behaviors, diversifying Charles & Keith's customer acquisition beyond what any single marketing channel could deliver.

How to build a community of creators who post about your brand every single day

In the next 6 months, if you want to have creators posting about your brand daily instead of scrambling for sporadic coverage, build an owned community of influencers. You can do this with a method we call the Influencer Illuminati Method.

Start with product seeding

Send free products to 50-100 creators with no posting requirements. You'll get 8-10 actual posts from this outreach.

Use this phase to test which types of creators work best for your brand.

Turn posters into ambassadors

Only invite creators who actually posted to join your ambassador program. Offer 20% commission + audience discount codes. Start with 10-15 people. These creators have already proven they like your product enough to post for free.

Identify top performers

Track which ambassadors drive real sales. 10% of your ambassadors will likely generate 80% of revenue.

Create custom partnerships

Offer your best performers guaranteed monthly retainers instead of just commission. If someone earned $1,000 in commissions over three months, offer them $800/month guaranteed for set posting requirements.

Running programs at scale requires the right tools

Charles & Keith can run two sophisticated influencer programs because they have the infrastructure to support them. Most brands trying to replicate this approach hit a wall when they realize the operational complexity.

SARAL is designed exactly for this. It handles everything from finding creators and automating outreach to tracking performance and managing payments — all in one platform. Instead of juggling multiple tools and losing track of conversations, you get a complete system that scales with your program.

Get in touch, and let us show you how SARAL works. We'll help you decide if it's a good fit for your brand.

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