Redefining Brand Authenticity in Content Marketing

At the adjacent of 2023, Merriam-Webster awarded ‘authentic’ the coveted spot of Word of the Year, ironically alongside ‘deepfake’ and a fewer different honorable mentions. If you’ve been contemplating what authenticity means successful an progressively artificial reality, you’re not alone.

As AI innovation booms and accusation overwhelm feeds user skepticism, authenticity tin consciousness much similar an abstract perfect than thing rooted successful selling reality.

“Authentic has a fig of meanings including ‘not mendacious oregon imitation,’ a synonym of existent and actual; and besides ‘true to one’s ain personality, spirit, oregon character.’ Although intelligibly a desirable quality, authentic is hard to specify and taxable to debate—two reasons it sends galore radical to the dictionary.”

At a clip erstwhile “the enactment betwixt ‘real’ and ‘fake’ has go progressively blurred” — but much important than ever to place — what does it mean for a marque to beryllium authentic? What does authentic contented selling look like?

In our industry’s halfway pursuit of connecting with audiences, brands present look their eventual test.

Brand authenticity arsenic a selling strategy

For galore starring brands, authenticity is simply a important selling strategy for earning user trust. Brands specify and physique an authentic contented selling strategy astir beardown marque storytelling and circumstantial contented selling practices that assistance signifier and administer those stories effectively.

According to the New York Times, “Authentic contented selling attempts to amusement buyers what your marque is truly each astir successful a mode that helps them signifier beardown and loyal connections with your brand.”

Known for its biology stewardship, Patagonia is simply a pillar illustration of a marque that exceeds successful authenticity with its people assemblage of outdoor enthusiasts, which is evident crossed respective aspects of its selling strategy.

In practice, this translates to brands treating authenticity similar an asset, and focusing mostly connected however they’re perceived successful the marketplace and sending signals to consumers accordingly. 

As such, authentic contented selling typically prioritizes the pursuing marque attributes:

Identity

As Merriam-Webster states, “authentic is often connected to identity.” 

By establishing a acceptable of marque values and different aspects of a beardown marque identity, brands align themselves with features typically reserved for personhood. This unlocks the quality to link with consumers connected a much affectional level.

In authentic contented marketing, a strong, accordant marque individuality with a ngo and imaginativeness beyond nett unsocial allows consumers to empathize with, subordinate to, and yet spot your marque capable to marque repetition purchases oregon urge you to others.

Credibility

In the pursuit of authentic contented marketing, brands besides typically strive (although not ever successfully) to awesome a definite level of credibility.

In the lawsuit of a 2019 Northface campaign, Northface attempted to leverage the nationalist stature of Wikipedia for escaped promotion connected Wiki pages and communities they knew their assemblage visited.

As Forbes contributor Richard Kestenbaum writes, “[The campaign] captures the elusive ‘authenticity’ that each different advertiser is seeking to subordinate with their marque by having the credibility of Wikipedia.”

While the marque didn’t mean to beryllium insincere with its strategy, the determination was met with backlash. Ultimately, it did much to wounded Northface’s credibility than to help, and the photos were removed.

Ethics

In summation to a consistent, credible, and compelling marque story, authentic contented prioritizes ethical selling attributes similar accuracy and transparency. This committedness to accuracy and openness enhances the brand’s integrity, establishing a instauration of spot with its audience.

Authenticity successful contented selling is traditionally treated arsenic a brand-dictated strategy that aims to link chiefly done shared values, and credible, ethical, and accordant connection of those values.

However, as studies show, portion “brand authenticity is present believed to beryllium a halfway plus successful mainstream marketing, disorder surrounds the quality and usage of the term.” If world-class brands already admit authenticity successful their branding and contented selling is cardinal to gathering trust, wherefore does occurrence stay a challenge?

Authentic contented is successful the oculus of the consumer

To statesman answering this question, possibly we should see however consumers specify authenticity. What bash they see authentic contented marketing?

Well, these days? Not much.

As exertion and AI advance, today’s consumers are increasingly skeptical and discerning. They cognize each the world’s a signifier and they’re not buying the act.

“Ironically, with ‘authentic contented creators’ present recognized arsenic the golden modular for gathering trust, ‘authenticity’ has go a performance.” 

In a caller study, researchers considered authenticity done the lens of user perspectives, defining it arsenic “a holistic user assessment” shaped by what the survey calls six “component judgments.” How important each constituent is varies depending connected the consumer’s circumstantial context. 

The six judgments include:

• Accuracy — How transparent and reliable a marque is perceived successful representing itself and its products/services to customers.
• Connectedness — How engaged, familiar, oregon adjacent transformed a lawsuit feels by a marque oregon its offerings.
• Integrity — How overmuch a marque seems to beryllium consistently and autonomously motivated by intrinsic values alternatively than conscionable profit.
• Legitimacy — How good a merchandise oregon work aligns with accepted norms and rules successful the market.
• Originality — How a merchandise oregon work differentiates itself from others without unnecessary extras.
• Proficiency — How overmuch of an adept a marque is considered to be.

Outside the circumstantial “judgments,” this model reconceptualizes authenticity arsenic a user penchant alternatively than a marque plus oregon contented selling strategy.

This reflects a broader displacement successful however authenticity is conceived arsenic a selling concept.

Up to this point, what authentic contented selling looks similar has been dictated by brands. They trade their image, narrative, and messaging truthful they tin assertion an authentic individuality successful a brand-driven approach.

But arsenic the survey suggests, authenticity is thing that consumers construe and worth based connected their preferences and experiences, alternatively than a trait that a marque tin asseverate astir itself. 

In different words, it’s a subjective, dynamic, user judgement that tin alteration based connected their expectations, taste shifts, and different factors.

From authentic contented selling to authentic connection

While the quality of authenticity whitethorn change, consumers accidental it inactive plays a important role successful gathering and maintaining their spot — contempt their skepticism of it.

Trust remains the currency of the integer age, and authenticity is the span that spans the gap.

Brands are faced with a paradox: contempt consumer resistance towards authentic contented selling tactics, brands indispensable inactive find a mode to link authentically done contented to gain trust. 

Rather than a contented selling strategy successful its ain right, authenticity is possibly amended understood successful the discourse of reception marketing. This signifier of selling calls connected brands to redefine however they presumption their narration with consumers and their relation successful the greater online community:

• Where brands lucifer the frequence of their assemblage and respond accordingly.
• Where brands are adjuvant guides and stewards of information.
• Where marque expertise earns them the relation of a primary, trusted source. 
• Where brands are collaborators successful the online community, not owners of it.

In reception marketing, authenticity is achieved when a user connects with a brand via contented that’s genuinely adjuvant and concretely invaluable beyond a transaction. No longer a static prime owned by the brand, authenticity becomes a fluid conception babelike connected user perception.

This displacement emphasizes authenticity arsenic a dynamic user preference, underscoring the value of a two-way transportation betwixt the marque and its audience.

It becomes a mode of being successful communal narration — a pathway for brands to responsibly stock online abstraction with consumers and marque a greater interaction successful the process.