If you’ve spent any time on social media lately, you already know how powerful influencer marketing can be. Whether it’s a quick snack review, a “what I eat in a day” vlog, or a viral recipe that takes over your feed, influencers are shaping the way we discover and trust brands. And that influence isn’t slowing down anytime soon. As Ismael El Qudsi put it in Forbes’ Top 5 Influencer Marketing Trends for 2025, “Influencer marketing continues to be one of the most personable, connected ways of promoting products, highlighting brand differentiators and increasing engagement and connection” (2025).

That’s the beauty of influencer marketing – it brings brands to life through real people, in real time, for real audiences. And for brands like Hu, where authenticity and human connection are baked right into the company’s DNA, partnering with the right influencers can make all the difference.

Who is Hu?

Let’s start with a quick intro for anyone who isn’t already obsessed with their chocolate. Hu is a brand built on the belief that food should be simple, clean, and made with ingredients you can actually pronounce. Their products – from chocolate bars to sweet snacks – skip the weird additives and focus on real food that real people can feel good about eating.

You’ll find Hu on the shelves at places like Whole Foods, which gives you a pretty clear picture of their target audience: wellness-minded shoppers who care about both what they eat and how it’s made.

At the heart of it all is Hu’s guiding motto: “Get Back to Human.” It’s a call to ditch the overly processed, overly complicated food culture and embrace simplicity, quality, and transparency instead. That philosophy makes influencer marketing a natural fit for Hu – after all, what’s more human than real people sharing real experiences with products they genuinely love?

As Olivier Blanchard puts it in Social Media ROI, “You may have noticed that social communications are not stuffy and corporate. The more ‘human’ and colloquial the conversations and content, the more effective they are” (p. 118). For Hu, the right influencers don’t just promote products – they help bring that Get Back to Human mindset to life.

Who Would Be a Good Fit for Hu?

To find the right influencer partners for Hu, I turned to HypeAuditor, a tool that helps evaluate influencers based on metrics like content categories, engagement rates, and estimated reach. After digging into the data, two names stood out: Brett Chody (@brettsbites) and Meredith Hayden (@wishbonekitchen). Both creators bring something special to the table (pun intended), and both could help Hu tap into new audiences in authentic, impactful ways.

1. Brett Chody | @brettsbites

Brett Chody is the kind of influencer who feels like your cool friend who always knows where to find the best snacks. She’s active on Instagram (76.9K followers) and TikTok (138.5K followers), which puts her firmly in the mid-tier influencer category – big enough to have influence, but still relatable and approachable.

Brett’s Instagram & TikTok profiles

Brett’s content focuses on food, food reviews, and dessert, which is already a perfect match for Hu. One of her most popular TikTok segments, “Dessert Bowls”, would be a seamless way to incorporate Hu products into her content – whether she’s taking a few Cashew + Vanilla Bean Hunks before a run or layering a Hazelnut Butter Bar into a before-bed bite.

Because Brett’s audience trusts her opinions and follows her for authentic recommendations, this type of long-term ambassador partnership would make the most sense for Hu. Rather than a one-off post, Brett could consistently feature Hu products over time, building brand awareness and reinforcing her followers’ connection to the brand. Plus, her engagement rate and estimated reach are both strong, meaning her content doesn’t just sit there – it sparks conversation and inspires action.

Brett’s Instagram metrics via HypeAuditor

Brett’s TikTok metrics via HypeAuditor

2. Meredith Hayden | @wishbonekitchen

If you’re on FoodTok, you probably already know Meredith Hayden, aka wishbonekitchen. With 1.3 million Instagram followers and 2.3 million on TikTok, she’s firmly in macro-influencer territory. Typically, larger influencers struggle to maintain that personal connection with their audience, but Meredith is the exception. Her content feels like a fun, laid-back chat with your foodie friend, even when she’s showing off her professional chef skills.

Meredith’s Instagram & TikTok profiles

Meredith’s mix of recipes, food reviews, and organic food content makes her a natural fit for Hu. Whether she’s whipping up a dessert for a dinner party or packing her picnic basket, Hu products would blend seamlessly into her content. A long-term partnership would work well here, too, with Meredith acting as a brand ambassador who highlights Hu across different content types.

This could also be a great opportunity for affiliate marketing, giving Meredith a unique link or discount code her followers could use whenever they buy Hu products. Not only does this encourage conversions, but it also helps track performance more effectively. And with her high engagement rates and steady account growth, Meredith’s influence is only continuing to grow – a great sign for Hu.

Meredith’s Instagram metrics via HypeAuditor

Meredith’s TikTok metrics via HypeAuditor

How would Hu track performance?

Of course, no influencer campaign is complete without tracking the results. Key performance indicators (KPIs) like engagement rate, impressions, click-through rate (CTR), and conversions will all play a role in evaluating how well Brett and Meredith’s content is performing.

Instagram Insights and TikTok Analytics will be essential tools here, providing real-time data on reach, interactions, and audience demographics. For deeper analysis, Hu could also use UTM codes to track traffic from influencer posts directly to their website or product pages.

The challenge, of course, is attribution, or figuring out exactly how much of a sale or website visit was driven by an influencer’s content. Combining quantitative data (link clicks, purchases) with qualitative insights (like comment sentiment and follower feedback) helps paint a fuller picture of each partnership’s value.

Final thoughts

At the end of the day, Brett Chody and Meredith Hayden represent two different but complementary approaches to influencer marketing for Hu. Brett’s smaller, more niche audience offers high relatability and trust, making her an ideal choice for building brand awareness. Meanwhile, Meredith’s broader reach and trusted reputation bring widespread visibility and strong conversion potential.

Together, they offer Hu the best of both worlds – authentic voices sharing products they genuinely enjoy, in a way that feels personal and natural to their audiences.

Ultimately, that’s what Get Back to Human is all about. By partnering with influencers who share Hu’s values and speak to their audiences with honesty and personality, Hu isn’t just driving sales – they’re building real, human connections that turn into lasting brand loyalty.

At the end of the day, the best marketing doesn’t feel like marketing at all. It feels human.

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Works cited

Blanchard, O. J. (2011). Social media ROI: Managing and measuring social media efforts in your organization. Que.

El Qudsi, I. (2025, January 16). The top 5 influencer marketing trends for 2025. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/councils/forbesagencycouncil/2025/01/16/the-top-5-influencer-marketing-trends-for-2025/