In the earliest stages it was difficult to get big influencers to be OK with doing a pay per performance affiliate structure. Many of them wanted money up front and were unsure how ButcherBox would convert. Turns out we convert great and they make more money doing pay per performance than a fixed payment upfront. That is not the case for everyone, but for influencers with high authority it certainly is the case. Once you get a few big influencers pushing your brand it's WAY easier to onboard more top tier influencers. Nobody wants to be first.
One challenge we continue to face is identifying big influencers. The platforms that say they can 'find the influencers for you' don't seem to work, at least not for us. It's been a very manual process finding and on-boarding big influencers, but it has worked very well. Followerwonk is a great tool for seeing who category thought leaders follow, and then those folks are often great influencer leads.
If I could go back in time I would have offered influencers more money. Since we increased their affiliate payment plans they have been promoting ButcherBox more frequently. It's a win/win for both parties.