Founded in 2018, The Fifth is an influencer marketing agency on a mission to do things differently, putting storytellers at the heart of its brand client’s advertising. Following its well-deserved success in the Business Elite Awards 2021, we caught up with Oliver Lewis to find out more.

Based in London, The Fifth invest the time to truly understand its client’s challenges and objectives to build long-term strategic partnerships for the brands it works with. Through a personal and tailored service, the firm help brands navigate the complexity of influencer marketing. To begin, Oliver provides a brief overview of the firm and offers more insight into its clientele.

“Here at The Fifth our team of social media strategists, talent experts and creatives lead with storytelling to put influential talent at the heart of advertising for some of the world’s most recognised global brands. Since launching, we’ve had the pleasure of working alongside the likes of Disney, TAG Heuer, Boots, Kendo Brands, Sky Sports, Square and bareMinerals, delivering outstanding results along the way. Last year, under The Fifth Group, we launched The Fifth Talent, a talent management business now commercially representing a roster of the country’s most exciting creators, artists, journalists and mainstream talent who all stand for a purpose and positive action.”

Competing in the marketing world can often be a very challenging experience, however as Oliver goes on to explain, the firm’s client approach and ability to maintain high standards has allowed the firm to stand out from the closest competition.

“Currently, influencer marketing is pivoting away from media into a creative space and we consider ourselves as much the storytellers and creatives as the talent we work with. Together, we want to create award winning work that can transcend social platforms and in turn elevate influencer marketing into a respected and creative omnichannel solution. To succeed and stand out from others in the industry we are professional and transparent at all times, while meeting the standards expected.”

Since its establishment, employees have played a crucial role in the success of the firm.

“The passion, expertise and shared values of our brilliant team have proved to be hugely significant factors in our journey” Oliver highlights “As a small business, it’s so important that everyone feels empowered to break down silos and work outside of their core roles to help achieve client or business goals. In this regard, we give all our staff the opportunity to express themselves in our environment.”

Despite the outbreak of COVID-19, the pandemic has only accelerated innovation for the firm, as Oliver elaborates further.

“COVID-19 has in fact accelerated our space, shining a light on positive influencers and as a result influencer marketing has taken a series of leaps in its evolution over the last year. It has expedited the channel towards purpose-driven marketing and propelled digital creators and talent into the mainstream consciousness as much as it has into the creative void left by exposed production crews. As consumers in this time of crisis, we’re turning more than ever to our communities and to those voices who add value to our lives. To those creating compelling content which entertains, supports, drives conversations, and nurtures communities, think Joe Wicks, Dr Alex, or Marcus Rashford. All of these have used their influence for good, and in turn brands have been turning to influencers through this crisis to help them to humanise their brands and give them an authentic voice.”

Bringing the interview to a close, Oliver discusses the firm’s approach to recruitment before outlining some of the exciting plans the team at The Firth have in store for 2021 and beyond.

“When it comes to recruitment, we are always striving to create the most culturally diverse team to help us to understand all cultures within our society. By doing so, our staff feel like they can be themselves at work and help our clients to connect with and speak to broader audiences. Moving forward, we will continue to grow the business in line with the market and increasing client demands. Furthermore, it is our hope that 2021 will be a year of expanding our operations into new markets!”

The campaign reached 1.2 million consumers and had 121,000 engagements, delivering on all KPIs and driving positive sentiment for HUN Wines. 

Mark Woollard, Co-founder and CEO of HUN Wines comments: “We were delighted to be offered the opportunity to be the first brand to use The Fifth and Storyful’s new measurement tool. The comprehensive metrics will allow us to evaluate how well aligned the selected influencers are to our strategic aims to then enhance future campaigns.” 

Oliver Lewis, Group MD and Founder of The Fifth, added “As the market grows exponentially, this tool will be invaluable in enabling brands to navigate the space and connect with the right influencers. When combined with our premium influencer discovery and management service, it gives clients an in-depth examination of how each carefully selected influencer performed in a campaign, far beyond impressions or reach.”

Dara Healy, Executive Director of Intelligence at Storyful concluded: “We have long considered the role of influence in the new information environment. Out of this work came Storyful’s Cosmos tool, which maps digital communities and the interconnections within those communities to analyse influence and information flows between individuals. Our collaboration with The Fifth has been built around Cosmos and the result is an accurate assessment for each influencer.”

We decided to choose an exciting, diverse and ‘genreless’ line-up that we thought best captures the exciting sounds in the UK music scene right now. It was such a pleasure to work with Kimbo, Babeheaven, Cheryll and Ella Grace.

Nobody in the room had heard live music for almost a year. When each artist took to the stage and made their first noise, it was electric. It was like experiencing live music again for the first time, in a new and bizarre intra-Covid safe zone, but the way my body reacted was familiar; the goosebumps hugged the back of my neck like an old friend. 

To see all of the exclusive performances and interviews with the emerging artists, check out our Youtube channel and subscribe here.

If you represent any up and coming artists or are a brand looking for sponsorship, we’d love to hear from you. 

Thanks to my team at The Fifth and extended fam at WhyNow. The artists, Babeheaven, Cheryll, Ella Grace and Kimbo for being superstars. The presenters Arielle Free and Jake Denton. To the Shoreditch Studios team. Becky and Millie at UROK Management, Emma at Your Army, Charlotte at Kobalt, James at Red Light Management, Pip at Friends Vs Music, Jason at Developing Sounds, Ace at Starseed Entertainment. Lighting Designer – Jamie Corbidge, set by Lucie Brooks Butler. Lighting supplier – Dave at Storm Ltd, Sound suppliers – Robin at Capital Sound and Luther at SSE Audio and Cover it Up.