Branded content is an effective tool for marketing. Nowadays, internet users are flooded with too many ads and information. At such a point, many users resort to solutions like ad blockers.
In this situation, brands or service providers need to look for creative ways to connect with their audience and convey the values they represent. So, branded content is a great solution to all these needs.
In this guide, we will learn what exactly branded content is, advantages of branded content, and how to set up branded content on Instagram & Facebook with some of the best examples.
What is Branded Content?
Branded content is a social media marketing technique that involves creating a post that is linked to a brand and it allows consumers to make a connection with the brand. It is the key to grabbing the attention of today’s consumer and driving real engagement.
Businesses can make essential connections by partnering with creators, influencers, and publishers to launch branded content campaigns. Through these partnerships, Instagram and Facebook users can learn about products and services from the voices of creators they follow. The use of a branded content tool is to tag the featured brand or business partner with creators, publishers, and influencers.
Branded content is not the same as paid ad and it does not require any payment that has been made to Instagram to promote that post.
Advantages of Branded Content for Brands
Show your Story – Don’t tell it
In today’s highly-competitive marketplace, you need to create something that can capture the attention of your target audience.
It Creates an Emotional Connection with the Brand
The branded content strategy must be emotional. You have to create a post to connect with the audience deeply. This emotion will be associated with the creators and influencers, to make users remember it for a long time.
Use Characters that Audiences can resonate with
If you’re creating a video or writing a blog, you have to ensure that your branded content has a human aspect. By implementing personality into your content piece, it will help you demonstrate what your brand stands for, and how it gives your customers something to resonate with.
Create Stories that Showcase your Brand
Branded content strategy isn’t telling customers to buy your products. You have to find a way to show what’s good about the product or service you’re offering to your customer.
How can you Add Branded Content on your Post with some of the Best Examples?
Creators, Influencers, and Publishers
Creators, influencers, and publishers can tag a business partner when they publish a post and that shows that the account has a commercial relationship with the business partner.
Important Things to note about Branded Content:
- After you tag a partner, people will see a Paid partnership with (Brand name) in your posts.
- Branded content posts are not the same as the paid ads, as you see on Instagram or Facebook.
When a creator or publisher shares a post or story with their audience, then they can permit a business partner to turn that branded content into an ad.
Steps on How to do this or Setup Branded Content Ads on Instagram:
See the below Instagram feed example of “@songofstyle” in partnership with “@amandawakeley” and the stories example of “@HonestlyYum” paid partnership with “@Heinz”.
Partner Approvals:
This is privacy security for brand safety. Business partners have to seek approval from their creator partners in advance before they tag them in a post. The default setting for every Partner approvals is always switched off so that no creator can easily tag their business partners without brand approval. However, business partners can turn on the Partner Approvals feature at any time to prevent unknown tagging. Once you switch on partner approvals, then creators request you for approval before they can tag the business partner. See below on how to turn on partner approvals step by step.
Step 1: Go to setting options and find Business Settings.
Step 2: Go to the Branded Content option
Step 3: Manually Approvals Tags are currently automatically off. Toggle to turn it on.
Step 4: If you want to find additional creator accounts to approve, they live below the Require Approvals toggle button.
Step 5: Any approved creator accounts will show up
Step 6: Once all creator accounts are approved, your brand approval tray will be empty.
Now Move to the Creators side (Influencers and Publishers) for Feed Post or Story Post.
Feed Post Creation
Now, creators have to upload the image, video. Click on “advanced settings” if it’s a feed post. Here, see the steps to tag business partner on your feed post.
Step 1: Go to advanced settings in the last of the creation flow.
Step 2: Click on the Tag Business partner field.
Step 3: Search for your partner.
Step 4: Now, adding a partner will disable cross-sharing on Facebook, Twitter & other social media platforms.
Story Creation
Step 1: Go to the link icon after taking a story photo or video but before posting it.
Step 2: Link icon opens a view with the option to tag a business partner.
Step 3: Search for business partners and tag them.
After Applying these Steps, Your Story Will Look Like
How does the Tool Work for Business Partners?
Once you tagged Instagram Branded Content partner, the brand will receive a notification on Instagram and Facebook.
The Notifications show in the notifications tab on Instagram, and see a section at the top of the page labeled “Branded Content,” as well as a notification alert for how many tags you’ve received.
If the business partner wants to remove the tag, they can do it in two ways:
Using Facebook pages/ Business Manager – Business must select the posts tab or stories tab, then click on the downward arrow next to the creator’s handle, and click the “remove” button.
Using the Instagram App:
The business partner can click the three dots on the right-hand side above the post and then select the “remove” option.
Accessing Insights
The business partner will also track organic insights in the “Branded Content” tab in FB Page Insights.
Feed Post Insights
Stories Insights
Steps on How to do this or Setup Branded Content Ads on Facebook:
Facebook posts contain different types of media that include text, photos, videos, micro articles, links, or live videos.
Branded content is different from ordinary and sponsored posts because of the following features:
- Influencers with + “Brand partner page” label placed next to the publishers/influencers/creators name.
Ex – Cristiano Ronaldo with “SIXPAD” - “Paid Partnership” label below the influencer name and placed next to the timestamp.
- “i” button on the post is used to define as “About the partnership”
Before you create your first Facebook-branded content, you need to request access to the Branded Content Tool.
After selecting the Facebook Page, you’re requesting access for and click to “Send”.
Now follow the steps:
Once your request is approved then you will be able to publish a branded content post.
Step 1: You have to compose a post on your Facebook page and choose the “Tag Sponsor” option.
Step 2: Fill in your business partner for this post and click “publish”
Facebook Branded Content Insights
To access insight on the performance of your branded content, you need to go the “Insights” tab on your Facebook Page then choose the “Branded Content” tab from the left-side menu.
Post Branded Live Video (iOS and Android)
- Go to your Page.
- Click Publish.
- Click on Tag a Sponsor.
- Select your business partner’s Page.
- Select live video and begin your broadcast.
The major purpose of this branded content tool is to engage the target audience and to drive curiosity around the product.
In Summary
If you don’t know branded content marketing strategies and how to create high-quality branded content, then you simply need to follow this guide step by step.
If you want to promote your brand on Instagram & Facebook, just do it NOW!
Leave a Reply