| Course | BU 439 Digital and Social Media Marketing Strategy |
|---|---|
| Unit | Unit 6 |
| Paper type | Influencer or partnership plan |
| Length | About 770 words, 5 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Herzing University |
| Program | BS in Marketing |
| Updated | September 2026 |
Free sample paper for BU 439 Unit 6
A Local Skater, Three Videos and One Hosted Night, Labeled as Paid: An Influencer or Partnership Plan for a Composite Toledo Roller Rink
Student Name
Business, Herzing University
BU 439: Digital and Social Media Marketing Strategy
Instructor Name
March 25, 2026
A Local Skater, Three Videos and One Hosted Night, Labeled as Paid: An Influencer or Partnership Plan for a Composite Toledo Roller Rink
Why a Partner, and Which One
Skyline Skate Center, a rink that exists only in this course's case, reaches adult skaters through its own Instagram videos and a TikTok test. Its reach is limited by its own small following. This plan hands part of the rink's voice to someone outside it: a local skater who makes short videos of dance-style roller skating and has an audience the rink wants. The arrangement runs for eight weeks, April 13 to June 7, 2026, and is built around adult night, since the paid campaign plan already covers party bookings.
Fit is argued from who is in the partner's audience, not from its size. Three candidates were considered. A regional lifestyle creator with about 90,000 followers had the largest audience, but the audience breakdown she shared showed fewer than 10 percent in Ohio. A national skating creator had strong engagement but lived in another state and could not host a night. The chosen partner, a Toledo skater with about 14,000 followers printed on her profile, shared a screenshot of her account's audience data showing roughly 60 percent of followers within 50 miles of Toledo and about two thirds aged 18 to 34. Those figures belong to the composite case. A smaller local audience is worth more to a single rink than a larger audience that cannot visit. Lou and Yuan (2019) found that followers' trust in branded content depends on the influencer's perceived credibility and on the value of the content itself, and a skater filming at a rink she actually uses offers both.
Deliverables, Written as Clauses
The agreement sets out what each side provides in terms either could check.
| Clause | Content |
|---|---|
| 1. Videos | Partner publishes three short vertical videos filmed at Skyline during adult nights on her Instagram account, one in each of weeks 2, 4 and 6 |
| 2. Stories | Partner publishes at least six story posts announcing adult nights, each including the date and the rink's location tag |
| 3. Hosted night | Partner hosts adult night on Thursday, May 21, leading two short skating demonstrations and staying at least two hours |
| 4. Fee | Rink pays $900: $300 on signing, $300 after the second video, $300 after the hosted night |
| 5. Admission | Partner receives free adult night entry for the term and 20 guest passes to share with followers |
| 6. Creative control | Partner decides the content and style of her videos; the rink may request factual corrections, such as dates or prices, but not changes of opinion |
| 7. Usage rights | Rink may repost the three videos on its own accounts and use them in paid advertising for six months after publication, crediting the partner; partner keeps ownership |
| 8. Disclosure | Every video and story made under this agreement carries the platform's paid partnership label and the words "Paid partnership with Skyline Skate" in the first line of the caption |
| 9. Ending | Either side may end the agreement with 14 days' written notice; the rink may end it immediately for conduct that breaks its posted community rules; payment is due for deliverables already published |
Disclosure as an Obligation
Disclosure is not a courtesy to the audience; in the United States it is required. The Federal Trade Commission's guides on endorsements state that when there is a material connection between an endorser and an advertiser, such as payment or free services, that connection must be disclosed clearly and conspicuously where viewers will see it, and advertisers can be responsible when their endorsers fail to disclose (Federal Trade Commission, 2023). The fee and the free admission are both material connections.
The plan therefore uses two forms of disclosure together. The platform's built-in paid partnership label marks each post, and the caption begins with a plain statement rather than a hashtag at the end, where it could be missed. Evans et al. (2017) found in an experiment that plainer disclosure language, such as wording that uses the word paid or ad, helped viewers recognize posts as advertising more than vaguer labels did. The rink also checks each post within a day of publication, and a post without disclosure is flagged to the partner to correct before the next payment is made. This protects the partner's relationship with her audience as much as it protects the rink.
How the Partnership Will Be Judged
The partnership is judged on the same action as the adult night advertising: first-time adult visitors. The guest passes carry a code that staff record at the door, and the wristband question added for the paid campaign also asks whether a first-time visitor came because of the partner. Attendance at the hosted night on May 21 is counted separately. Views and likes on the partner's videos are recorded but are not the measure, since they would be earned whether or not anyone came to Toledo to skate.
The rink sets a threshold before the start: if the partnership brings fewer than 30 first-time adult visitors across the eight weeks, including the hosted night, it will not be renewed in the same form.
How the Arrangement Ends
At the end of the term the agreement expires without renewal unless both sides sign a new one. The rink's right to use the three videos continues for six months from each video's publication and then stops; the videos are removed from any running advertisements by that date. The partner may keep her videos on her own account indefinitely. If either side ends the agreement early, the same rules apply to whatever has been published. The rink will thank the partner publicly in a post labeled like the others. If the partnership works, a second term would test a different kind of partner, such as a local roller derby league, whose members skate at the rink and whose own events could share an evening with adult night. The skater, the rink and all the numbers here were invented for the course.
References
Evans, N. J., Phua, J., Lim, J., & Jun, H. (2017). Disclosing Instagram influencer advertising: The effects of disclosure language on advertising recognition, attitudes, and behavioral intent. Journal of Interactive Advertising, 17(2), 138-149. https://doi.org/10.1080/15252019.2017.1366885
Federal Trade Commission. (2023). Guides concerning the use of endorsements and testimonials in advertising, 16 C.F.R. pt. 255. https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-16/chapter-I/subchapter-B/part-255
Lou, C., & Yuan, S. (2019). Influencer marketing: How message value and credibility affect consumer trust of branded content on social media. Journal of Interactive Advertising, 19(1), 58-73. https://doi.org/10.1080/15252019.2018.1533501
Reading the BU 439 Unit 6 instructions
The sixth unit of BU 439 asks students to plan a partnership with an influencer, creator or another organization. Prompts usually require a justification of fit based on the partner's audience, clear deliverables, compensation, content control and usage rights, a disclosure approach consistent with advertising rules, a way to judge results and terms for ending the arrangement. Many instructors warn against building the plan around a real named creator. Legal requirements should be described accurately without being presented as legal advice. Partnerships with businesses or community groups are often accepted as alternatives. Most plans combine a short narrative with a clause table under APA 7 rules, linked to earlier channel and campaign decisions.
Inside the BU 439 Unit 6 example
The plan starts by explaining why the rink needs a partner and which goal the partnership serves. A fit section compares three candidates and chooses a smaller local creator on audience evidence, citing research on credibility. A nine-clause table sets out deliverables, fee, admission, creative control, usage rights, disclosure and ending. A disclosure section explains the federal requirement for material connections and describes the two-part disclosure, supported by research on disclosure wording, with a check before each payment. A measurement section counts first-time adult visitors through codes and a door question and sets a renewal threshold. The final section explains what happens to content rights when the arrangement ends.
Reading the BU 439 Unit 6 rubric
Partnership plan rubrics generally reward evidence-based fit, clearly defined deliverables and rights, accurate disclosure, sensible measurement and a defined ending, with presentation and sources. Fit earns full credit when based on who the partner's audience is rather than its size. Deliverables and rights score highest when written as specific clauses covering timing, control and reuse. Disclosure is judged on accuracy about the rules and on practical steps to ensure compliance. Measurement rewards counting actions tied to the organization's goals, not the partner's likes. The ending criterion earns points for covering early termination and what happens to content afterward. Instructors often credit plans that protect the partner's relationship with her audience.
Common BU 439 Unit 6 mistakes, and how to avoid them
Partnership plans commonly lose points by choosing the partner with the most followers regardless of where those followers are. Another frequent problem is vague deliverables, such as some posts about us, with no dates, formats or rights. Students often treat disclosure as optional or place it where viewers will miss it. Some plans give the brand full control of the creator's content, which undermines the credibility the brand is paying for. Others measure success by the partner's views and likes. Many forget to state how the arrangement ends or what happens to content rights. Finally, building the plan around a real named creator can misrepresent that person; a composite partner avoids the problem.
Get a BU 439 Unit 6 example written to your instructions
Forward the Unit 6 instructions with your BU 439 rubric and any partner or category the assignment names. We write a custom example that tests audience composition before size, profiles candidates against one set of questions, writes terms as clauses and gives disclosure a section of its own. First custom sample free, returned in 24 to 48 hours.
More BU 439 papers and marketing samples
- BU 439 Unit 1: Digital presence audit
- BU 439 Unit 2: Channel selection rationale
- BU 439 Unit 3: Content strategy per platform
- BU 439 Unit 4: Content calendar
- BU 439 Unit 5: Paid campaign plan
- BU 439 Unit 7: Community management plan
- BU 439 Unit 8: Measurement framework
- BU 302 Unit 6: Influence tactic comparison
- BU 321 Unit 6: Two sample comparison paper
- BU 380 Unit 6: Strategic commitment paper
- BU 421 Unit 6: Waste reduction proposal
BU 439 Unit 6 questions, answered
Can I build the plan around a real creator?
Yes, using what they publish, and cite where you saw it. Describe their output, the audience visible in their comments and the categories they already promote. What you cannot do is state their rates, their contract terms or their private figures as fact, or imply an arrangement already exists. Treat the document as a proposal addressed to them, which is exactly what it is.
How do I handle disclosure without giving legal advice?
Point at the requirement instead of interpreting it. Say that paid or gifted partnerships have to be labeled, name the guidance your course materials refer to, and check its current wording before citing it, since the detail changes. Write the labeling into the deliverables so it sits in the plan as an obligation on the partner rather than as an afterthought.
Is a partnership with another business acceptable instead of a creator?
Usually yes, and it often produces the stronger paper where the instructions leave the choice open. A business reaching the same buyers for a different reason has the identical structure: an audience to examine, deliverables to specify, rights to settle and an end date to agree. Confirm whether your section requires an individual before you commit to the other route.
Where can I find a free BU 439 Unit 6 sample paper?
The entire BU 439 Unit 6 influencer or partnership plan costs nothing to read here, with its nine clauses, the disclosure approach and margin notes. For a different partner or organization, send your assignment and we draft a custom plan at no cost, usually within 48 hours.
How should disclosure work in BU 439 Unit 6?
Clearly and where viewers will see it. The sample uses the platform's paid partnership label plus plain words at the start of each caption, citing federal endorsement guides and research showing plainer wording helps viewers recognize advertising.