A creator campaign can take weeks to plan and only minutes for the internet to decide whether it feels authentic.
Tate McRae, a Canadian singer, songwriter, dancer, and the face of Neutrogena, posted a sponsored post-show routine on TikTok featuring its products. Viewers were quick to notice the makeup wipe and cream appeared barely to touch her skin, while makeup remained visible and the seal on the cream container intact.
The video attracted significant criticism, with many commenters questioning how the content was approved. Neutrogena later responded on Instagram and TikTok with a humorous video acknowledging the conversation.
@tatemcrae On route to Chicago @Neutrogena #Sponsored ♬ LTTL – Miya Folick & Chrome Sparks
What Can Brands Control When Working with Creators Whether Big or Small?
The lesson here is that authenticity does not mean giving up brand oversight. Creators should have the freedom to produce content in their own voice, while brands need to ensure that the content accurately represents their products and meets their expectations before it reaches the public.
That oversight should start before a creator is hired. Review their past content and look at how they communicate with their community. Do their values and audience align with the brand? Have they been involved in previous controversies, and if so, how did they handle them?
Whether a creator is a celebrity, has a large following, or has a smaller, highly engaged community, brands need to set clear expectations from the beginning. This can include providing a creative brief at the start of the project, reviewing content drafts and providing feedback, and having appropriate levels of internal approval in place before content goes live. An agency can help manage each of these steps.
Brands should be asking themselves:
- Were product-use requirements clearly communicated?
- Was there an opportunity to request changes before publication?
- Was the final cut reviewed?
- Did anyone evaluate how the content would look to an ordinary viewer?
How Can Brands Manage Negative Publicity When Content Goes Viral for the Wrong Reasons?
When a brand partners with a creator, it isn’t just borrowing their audience. It’s also putting its reputation alongside theirs. Brands need a response strategy before a negative conversation becomes a PR crisis.
Start by monitoring the conversation from the moment content is published. Look at comments, shares, reposts, parodies, and responses from other creators.
Next, determine the severity of the backlash. Is the criticism gaining momentum? Is misinformation spreading? Is the product itself being questioned? Is the brand being blamed rather than the creator?
Then, respond appropriately. This is another area where an agency can help. A response should be timely without becoming defensive. Depending on the situation, the best approach could be no response, a social post, a correction, or a formal PR statement.
Neutrogena responded by turning an awkward moment into branded content. They understood the tone of the conversation across communities, acknowledged rather than pretended it wasn’t happening, and demonstrated that a brand can participate without attacking back.
A good crisis response doesn’t replace good crisis prevention. The better outcome is catching preventable problems before the content goes live.
@neutrogena_us I’d like to thank everyone for the sudden attention. Please respect my privacy as I adjust to the fame.
Read more on our approach to reputation management for your brand.
The Role of Content Approval
Your brand doesn’t need to try to control everything a creator says or does. It should, however, have a process for making sure the content is on-brand, feels authentic, and is ready for public consumption.
Having an agency manage content approval and distribution can help brands maintain consistency, catch potential issues before publication, and reduce the risk of avoidable public backlash.
Looking to build a creator strategy? Need help managing UGC or EGC? Don’t have the resources to review and distribute content? Need support with social media monitoring and reputation management?
That is where we can help.