Stance Socks is leveraging the popularity of user-generated content on Instagram by identifying several influencers to drum up interest in a new product launch, which segues into a mobile contest.

Stance Socks is gearing up to bolster interest in its Wildly Comfortable/Comfortably Wild campaign, which sees the brand use ReadyPulse?s influencer network tool to identify the best individuals on social media for promotional prowess. The influencers are encouraged to shoot a mobile video of themselves doing a wild activity in their underwear as a way to prompt Instagram users to do the same for a chance to win a $25,000 prize.

?Instagram is Stance?s largest channel, with over 722,000 followers,? said Kelly Meyer, social media coordinator at Stance Socks. ?Also, with the content being visual, we felt this would be the most appropriate venue to host the content.

?We wanted to make sure that we were reaching people with a passion for photography and videography, since this contest is aimed at highlighting great imagery with a flair for the wild side.?

Into the unknown
The twelve-week-long campaign ends on February 24, 2016, with the grand prize recipient announced during the first week of March. Consumers interested in participating and showing off their own wild activities are encouraged to follow @stancesocks on Instagram and browse the #ComfortablyWild hashtag.

The accessories brand is now branching out into offering Stance underwear. Its campaign is relying on branded content to drum up excitement for the launch, but is also tapping into the popularity of social media influencers as well as user-generated posts.

Stance has teamed up with ReadyPulse to take advantage of its influencer network, a tool that enables marketers to reach out to influencers to develop unpaid user-generated content. Each chosen individual has been sent a product kit, with which they are asked to create a mobile-optimized video or himself or herself doing a wild activity in his or her underwear.

The purpose of this tactic is to encourage their followers to do the same. The entrant with the wildest video will be selected to win a $25,000 ?bounty.?

This marks the first time that Stance is using the mobile prowess of social influencers for a campaign.

?Social influencers were a key component of this campaign,? Ms. Meyer said. ?Stance has a dedicated fan base that has followed along as we?ve expanded into new sock categories.

?Expanding into the underwear category also means that Stance has the chance to connect with a new customer base, one that may not be interested in Stance as a sock brand,? she said. ?Given this, we decided to depart from how Stance normally approaches a brand campaign.

?We have an in-house photography and videography team to develop branded content for campaigns like this, but given the unique objective of this campaign, we chose to look outside the box. We have leveraged influencers for past campaigns to promote a new product launch or to drive awareness of a contest, but with the Bounty contest being so dependent on user-generated content, we knew we would need to reach a mass audience.?

To enter the contest, participants must develop their video and upload it stance.com/bounty or to Instagram via the #ComfortablyWild hashtag.

One dozen weekly winners will have their video showcased in the ?Winners? Circle? gallery on Stance?s campaign page. They will also receive a Stance and GoPro prize pack valued at $1,000.

Meanwhile, one grand prize winner with the craziest video is set to earn $25,000.

Unraveling wider outreach
Teaming up with influencers often envelopes social campaigns in a much more organic feel. Many consumers foster deeper connections if they spot an admired celebrity or industry expert interacting with a brand.

A Schick executive at the 2015 Mobile Marketing Association Forum New York affirmed that tapping social media influencers catapults the effectiveness and reach of mobile video advertising, provided that the influencers are allowed creativity to expand on the brand?s message (see story).

Stance also leveraged top-tier influencers, called Punks and Poets, to create inspiration videos

?Stance truly understands the power that influencers have,? said Dennis O'Malley, CEO of ReadyPulse. ?Ads often just don?t work. What does work are real people and crowd-sourced content.

?People trust people, not ads,? he said. ?All our social influencers are authentic and credible content creators. We bring them directly into relationships with brands and Stance has successfully leveraged those relationships to build a community of engaged, inspired consumers.

?Consumers are looking for an authentic connection with brands they love. It?s exciting when a brand elevates a piece of your content. You get your own 15 megabytes of fame! ReadyPulse allows brands to access influencers on demand to create authentic content.?

Final Take
Alex Samuely, staff writer on Mobile Marketer, New York