I was at the 2023 SXSW panel on brand ethics when that speaker defended the 'authenticity' of that failed influencer campaign.

Everyone else was nodding along, but I think they missed the point that paying creators to act 'real' is the exact opposite of authenticity, and brands keep falling for it because they want a quick fix instead of building actual trust.

3 comments

3 Comments

casey_harris9d ago

That whole "paying creators to act real" thing is just brands buying a costume of honesty. It's like putting a "live laugh love" sign in a prison cell and calling it cozy. They want the good feelings without doing any of the actual work to earn them. The panel probably missed that paying for a performance makes the whole thing a script, not a real moment. How do people still not see the difference?

lindaowens9d ago

Yeah that "costume of honesty" line is perfect. It's all just acting once money gets involved. Feels like we're all supposed to play along and pretend we don't know.

murphy.linda9d ago

The panel probably thought "authenticity" was a brand of bottled water they could just order in bulk.