CES 2023: Social Media Advertising Should Feel ‘Authentic’

LAS VEGAS, January 4, 2023 – Brands that advertise in partnership with social media content creators should tailor their advertisements to appeal to those creators’ audiences, experts told an audience Wednesday at the 2023 Consumer Electronics Show.

Brands that partner on advertising campaigns with content creators must decide how much creative control to release, the panelists said, noting that campaigns that strictly adhere to a preexisting formula may seem canned and stale. When the influencer is given freedom to shape the advertisements, however, his or her followers are more likely to perceive the campaign as authentic.

“When we see [the advertising process] work really well, it’s because the brand is creating the outline and letting the influencer fill it in with their own personality, with the way they want to show up in market,” said Anthony Iaffaldano, vice president of sales, marketing, and insights at Fandom. “You want that person to have the freedom to express themselves in the way that got them the followers that they have in the first place,” he added.

Ashley Menschner, senior vice president of media at the Ad Council, said her organization has varied its advertising strategy between various social media platforms. “We’ve really leaned into…both micro and macro-influencers – who’s going to resonate with the audiences on those platforms and then build really integrated campaigns that have an authentic voice on those platforms,” Menschner said.

Danielle Johnsen Karr, the head of media company Team Whistle’s MAGNET agency, touted possibilities for “niche” content creation. Karr said that new technologies give creators freedom to tell stories in innovative ways.