What You Should Know About Facebook Branded Content

If you spend any time on social media, you may have noticed that sponsored posts are being shared by some bloggers on Facebook. More and more influencers, for the purpose of partnered posts, are using the Facebook Branded Tool.

The following information will focus on Facebook branded content, the tool available to those who wish to use it, and some fast facts about the branded content tool Facebook promotes.

Branded Content – What Is It?

Generally speaking, branded content is defined as any post that features a third-party sponsor, brand, or product including the following:

• Live videos
• 360 videos
• Links
• Instant Articles
• Videos
• Photos
• Text

Typically, it is posted by celebrities, media companies, or other influencers.

• The History of Branded Content

One of the first types of television marketing used branded content. Around the 1930s, brands sponsored soap operas created for entertainment. Across TV and radio, it eventually evolved to sponsorships and product placements. Now, to highlight the service or product of a marketer, it includes digital editorial content.

Depending on which historic source you reference, it is thought – by some television commercial history aficionados – that the first ever television commercial aired during a Brooklyn Dodgers versus Philadelphia Phillies game back on July 1, 1941. The company who was represented in the commercial? Still in operation today, the ad was for Bulova Watches.

Today, some of the most successful TV commercials include those by Nike, Life Cereal, Old Spice, M&Ms, McDonald’s, Budweiser, Coca-Cola, and other big names.

Influencer Marketing – What Is It

Having the power to make a difference in someone else’s perception, an influencer can also be someone who convinces someone else to change things up. Do something differently or try something new. Today’s influencers on social media should be able to combine three important key factors:

• Salesmanship
• Contextual credibility
• Reach

The better they are at those three factors, their influence potential will be higher. With social media on the rise, companies have learned how to make the most of it. It takes more than just an interesting website, after all, to successfully market a business online. To promote their services and/or products, they’re working with social media influencers.

Facebook Branded Content – What’s Involved?

In the interest of marketing ethics and transparency, Facebook developed a way for influencers to use a branded content tag to disclose partnerships. On a post, this tag signifies if an influencer is being paid for their post regarding a message or product… and who’s paying them.

Branded content tag use consists of an organization, company, or business (a page) – or public figure, influencer, etc. (profile) – tagging a sponsor, brand, or product within a post. The post will be connected to a sponsor by displaying a “with” tag in a newsfeed view (organic).

What does a branded content tag do? In addition to assisting consumers with awareness regarding content that is brand-sponsored, it supplies advertisers with increased transparency and power regarding what they’re paying for by influencer partnering.

Branded Content Tags – Key Benefits

So, why should advertisers participate in this whole “branded content and influencer” thing? It has its benefits.

• It provides the ability to amplify your message and boost your content – Once an advertiser is tagged by an influencer, directly from their Ads Manager, the advertiser can boost the tagged post. The tagged post (by the influencer), just like any other advertiser’s page post, will be available for boosting.

• For tagged businesses, it provides access to insights – Tagged advertisers, in their Facebook Page Insights, can access tagged post reach and engagement metrics. In their Page Insights and app insights, influencers will keep seeing metrics. Advertisers can’t view engagement and organic reach from posts by influencers without getting screenshots directly from the influencers, without the tag.

Using Boosted Posts to Amplify Content

Due to Instagram and Facebook algorithms, only a subset of an influencer’s follower base is reached with organic content. This is despite the thought that, based on their audience being made up of the target market of a certain brand, influencers should be worked with. There are simply no guarantees.

An advertiser, by boosting the content of an influencer, can amplify the message. How?

• Behind the content, advertisers invest some of their marketing money.
• Based on interests and demographics, advertisers control the target audience.

In this manner, an advertiser’s influencer marketing investment can be maximized.

Influencer marketing, as time goes on, continually adapts and becomes smarter. Whether that means further transparency for advertisers or guidelines to protect consumers, it’s information you want accessible as a business, advertiser, or investor in Facebook branded content.

Facts about The Facebook Branded Content Tool

(The following information is subject to change. Check with the Facebook Branded Content Policy regarding any requirements, adjustments, or other changes.)

• The branded tool for Facebook must be applied for. For the application page, click here. Use the drop-down menu to select the appropriate page if you manage multiple fan pages.

• Unverified and verified Facebook pages are included. Application for the use of the Facebook Branded Tool can even apply to unverified Facebook Fan Pages.

• Within an hour, your application should be reviewed/approved. You don’t have to worry about missing deadlines or missing out on opportunities. If a brand partner or sponsor wants you to utilize the Facebook Branded Tool for posts, the approval process is usually expedited. Once an application is submitted, denial or approval notifications usually are available in an hour. On your Facebook application, the notification will appear.

• You can use the Facebook Branded Content Tool for sponsored reviews and posts. If a brand is mentioned in a blog post or shared image, though it’s not required, it’s a good idea to use the tool. Some influencers, before they were approved for the tool, have reported getting messages to update shared partnered posts. On the other hand, others have mentioned that some of their past posts have been hidden or deleted by Facebook.

When you tag a brand, they “see” you. It’s possible that your post may be boosted on Facebook by a partnered brand that you’ve tagged. They may reach out to you. When you tag a brand, the marketer:

• Is notified
• Can access post-level insights
• Has the option of boosting/sharing the post

Now that you’re more familiar with branded content, Facebook can be even more beneficial to your business (or your presence as an influencer) than it may already have been. If you haven’t yet started using Facebook in relation to marketing and your business, there’s no time like the present. Rest assured, your competition is already familiar with (and putting to good use) the Facebook branded content tool.