3 Brands That Replaced Agencies With On-Demand Ambassadors
In a rapidly changing consumer landscape, legacy field marketing models are falling short. Traditional agencies are expensive, slow, and often lack the authentic, real-time engagement modern brands need—especially those targeting Gen Z and Millennial audiences.
Enter Mambo, a platform that empowers brands to book vetted in-person brand ambassadors with the speed, transparency, and flexibility of an online marketplace. Forward-thinking brands like Olipop, Clif Bar, and Chobani are already making the shift. Here's how they’ve ditched agencies—and what they've gained.
🌿 Olipop: Creating Campus Buzz Without Agency Overhead
The Challenge:
Olipop is on a mission to reinvent soda through prebiotic ingredients and low sugar—but reaching college audiences authentically meant going beyond social ads and influencers.
The Shift:
Instead of paying high agency retainers to run campus activations, Olipop partnered with on-demand student ambassadors through Mambo to run taste tests, pop-up events, and hand-to-hand product seeding.
The Outcome:
200% increase in student-led sampling engagements
4x more cost-efficient per activation vs. agency
UGC creation tied directly to in-person product trial
🏞 Clif Bar: More Values-Aligned, Local Representation
The Challenge:
As a brand rooted in adventure, sustainability, and energy, Clif Bar needed grassroots-level connection in gyms, parks, and campuses. But traditional agencies often sent reps who didn’t reflect the lifestyle values Clif stands for.
The Shift:
Clif Bar began sourcing Mambo ambassadors with niche alignment—college rock climbers, trail runners, and fitness instructors who authentically embodied the brand.
The Outcome:
98% ambassador-brand lifestyle match
Better product storytelling from real users
Improved sampling engagement rates at outdoor and campus events
🥣 Chobani: Scaling Without Sacrificing Local Relevance
The Challenge:
As a household name in yogurt, Chobani's national activations needed to feel local. But managing agency teams in every region was complex and costly.
The Shift:
Chobani used Mambo’s location-based ambassador platform to launch regional roadshows, retail demos, and community events—with local talent who understood the culture and audience.
The Outcome:
35% lower cost per event
Faster booking across 20+ cities
Richer consumer insights from direct ambassador feedback
