Brand Authenticity in The TikTok Age: How to Get Real and Be Credible in 2024
In a time when the world has become so saturated with content and every social media feed has become a crazy mishmash of ads, news, memes, and everything in between, how does one even begin to define authenticity anymore?
Is authenticity simply being upfront about brand values? Does it entail a social media omnipresence? Does it mean weighing in on today's most relevant issues? Or riding on the latest pop culture happenings, perhaps?
Read on to find out what authenticity means today and how brands can best pursue it!
It's 2024. What's changed about authenticity?
Authenticity has gone from being a social media trend into a longstanding digital marketing principle, but the post-pandemic TikTok age has given rise to a new look to authenticity – one that is a direct response to life in an extremely online and wildly confusing time. How many “-core” suffixes did TikTokers use to categorize their aesthetic preferences before we got to today’s meta “corecore” and “nichetok”?
Today, authenticity means finding out what makes you different, and then doubling down on your uniqueness. Authenticity in 2024 isn’t just about being real! It’s also all about flaunting it and telling people exactly what makes you who you are.
How can brands make authentic content today?
Knowing how different authenticity is today, this is what brands can do to make sure they don't only stay authentic, but also relevant in today’s unpredictable online space.
1. Brag about your brand.
People don't want brands that have no story to tell because brands with no story have no personality. And brands with no personality have no perceptible identity.
Storytelling requires brands to offer consumers more than just their best and most unique product features or impressive product range. It means putting these parts of your brand into a larger narrative that is true about you, but also attracts your audience.
Your brand story lets you welcome customers into your world by grounding your brand into a story that people can relate to. And the great thing about this is that your brand already has a story: about its origins, the people behind it, and the motivations behind creating it at all. You just need to tell it.
Take the example from Pashion Footwear, a woman-owned convertible footwear brand. On their Instagram page is a highlight talking about “the pf story.”
The brand's story tells audiences about its backstory and philosophy, which resonate with women and regular wearers of heels. And when consumers feel like brands understand who they are, they're more open to supporting it!
2. Dare to be different with your campaigns.
When you have a specific brand personality and campaign goal, we understand how you’d want every post to capture this. But consumers crave fun! They want to be entertained! So it’s time to pluck up the courage to try something new.
Our customer success head Ella Sarol notes that campaign executions are a collaboration between your brand and the influencer. And collaboration can be magical when you let creativity run wild.
Zach King, a creator well-known for his digitally edited “magic” videos, collaborated with Amazon Prime for their Prime Big Deal Days promo. This proves that you can make great content when your influencer partners aren’t limited to a typical campaign brief!
You can also let your creativity bring you to collaborations with brands or influencers in different niches, which gives you room to push your brand’s boundaries to be silly,
Or as sweet as can be!
Pro-tip: Look into the profiles of influencers before partnering with them. Influencers whose content and personalities match your brand’s will be better equipped to make content that feels natural both for them and your brand.
3. Use user-generated content on social media.
Something the Near team has observed in our many social media campaigns is how much of a superpower user-generated content (UGC) can be for brands. We love to emphasize it because we've seen how much audiences love to engage with other people on the internet.
Look at it this way. What would convince you more to buy a product: a traditional brand ad listing its features, or a reel of a fellow consumer sharing how a product changed their life?
UGC is an endorsement of your brand and products by the people whom you want it to reach, so the product is put on the radar of the people who will most benefit from it.
See this example from Tip-Top Chicken:
Tip-Top Chicken provides healthy and affordable chicken options, which is perfect for busy moms who want to prepare food that kids will love and can feed the whole family. So when a mom tells you about what makes it great, it’s more credible than just a commercial.
Pro-tip: When people make posts about why they love your product, put the spotlight on them on your page by sharing and reposting!
Key Takeaway
Authenticity today demands that brands are certain of their identity and are unafraid of calling attention to it. So if you want to successfully make authentic content on social media today, remember these three things: tell your unique brand story, create collaborative campaign briefs with influencers, and feature user-generated content on your page.
