Consumers crave independent brand information

The rise of influencer fatigue has led to a more worrisome lack of trust in paid endorsements, putting a premium on independent (i.e. trustworthy) brand information. When asked about barriers to purchase, US Gen Z consumers rated a lack of independent information as #1:

The most obvious kind of “independent information” on social media is #UGC, and because TikTok’s algorithm allows anyone to go viral, even small accounts can do very well.*

Less obvious but just as important, search plays such a huge part on social that savvy creators often post for free about popular brands just to attract more search-led views. Call it an investment in their community growth.

Most brands aren’t popular enough to get that much organic UGC, but the good news is that they do have access to the most ubiquitous form of “independent information” on social: comments on the content they post (owned) and commission from paid influencers (earned).

Because they are unfiltered, comments are possibly the largest source of independent information on social (on TikTok definitely), they are the most overlooked, and arguably the most powerful.

Not only do comments extend the time viewers spend with a branded post, they also get the video rewarded with more views (algorithms reward stickiness). All viral videos owe most of their views to vibrant comments sections.

Most importantly, comments enrich what is considered a “biased” brand/creator point of view with an unbiased ‘community take’.

Given resistance to content that’s not independent, how can branded posts compel viewers not just to watch until the end, but to spend MORE TIME?

As the worst politicians and the best ad men have always known, emotions are the key. Sceptical consumers only spend more time with branded content if they’ve been moved by it. Perfectly rational, well structured left brain arguments are rarely motivating enough, especially when dopamine friendly content lies just one swipe away.

By overlooking the role of comments, content creators end up trying to do too much in their video/visual: tell stories, engage, explain, convince... Since consumers don’t trust ‘biased’ content anyway, forget about trying to reason with them!

The only objective should be to engage so deeply that viewers can’t resist heading to the comments to discuss with peers, ask questions, commune with each other. Leave the convincing part to other viewers.

*Yet another reason why Instagram needs to further tweak its algorithm to be more meritocratic, less oligarchic.