On this episode of Brave Commerce, Rachel Tipograph and Sarah Hofstetter are joined by Mike Westgate, sector lead of retail and global business solutions at TikTok, and Ben Sylvan, SVP of connected media at Keurig Dr Pepper.

Bringing together both a platform and an advertiser, they offer a behind-the-scenes look at how their partnership turned Dr Pepper’s viral “Romeo” jingle into one of the brand’s biggest marketing moments.

Mike and Ben discuss how the campaign came together, from identifying an organic creator moment to making the decision to feature it during the College Football National Championship.

They also explore how brands can build organizations that move at the speed of culture, collaborate more effectively with platform partners, and measure both the immediate and long-term impact of their marketing investments.

Key takeaways:

• Successful cultural moments happen when brands, platforms, and creators work together—not in silos.
• Community participation is one of the strongest signals of consumer demand and can help shape marketing decisions.
• Measuring incrementality alongside long-term brand growth provides a more complete picture of campaign performance.

This post was created in partnership with Collectively 

The campaign for SheaMoisture’s Silk Press in a Bottle generated millions of views and sales that doubled in peak retail weeks. The strategy behind those numbers started long before cameras rolled. 

During an ADWEEK House Cannes Lions panel co-hosted with Collectively, Rebecca Stewart, brand editor at ADWEEK, sat down with Raven Walker, SVP of client partnerships at Collectively, and Reema Amin, head of marketing at SheaMoisture, to discuss the listening-first approach behind the launch. 

Listening before briefing 

The SheaMoisture team aimed to earn consumers’ belief in the product by listening to their needs above all else. To do so, they watched thousands of videos, tracked social exchanges, and mapped what kept surfacing: heat damage, protecting curl patterns, humidity, and reversion. 

“When we were developing the product, the first thing we looked at was the data,” said Amin. “The same pain points kept coming up over and over.”

“Silk press season never ends” emerged straight from that listening. It translated something consumers wanted: freedom from the seasonal limitations that had long defined how Black women approached the style. That phrase became the campaign’s center of gravity. 

Creator selection followed the same discipline. Walker’s team studied the cultural conversation with relevance in mind. 

“It wasn’t who’s the most popular right now,” Walker explained. “It’s whose life is going to serve as the stress test for this product.” 

The team cast the creators as proof points, with the campaign showing different moments where a silk press would need to hold up. 

Each creator brought something distinct: different real-world conditions, audiences, and ways of proving the product. “That’s not a brand campaign,” Walker said. “That’s true resonance.” 

Paid and earned ran as one strategy from the first brief. Creators shaped the architecture, and the brand trusted them to lead the storytelling. 

Building trust before the click 

The launch unfolded like a story. Amin described a social-first rollout that used seeding and paparazzi-style content to build anticipation before the hero video debuted. 

Sheacation, SheaMoisture’s signature creator brand trip, carried the story into real life. Over three days in Miami, creators wore the product through nightlife, outdoor heat, and high humidity. Going on vacation with a silk press isn’t something many Black women have historically felt comfortable doing. That built-in skepticism gave the resulting content its credibility. The activation let creators show how the product performed under pressure rather than simply describing the promise. 

A pop-up with Walmart extended the campaign into commerce, where consumers could sample the product and shop directly from a digital magazine. 

Today’s sophisticated consumers can tell when a creator’s relationship with a product is transactional rather than genuine. Amin noted that authenticity can’t be layered in at the end. It gets established from the start and has to come from the purpose, product, and fit between the creator and the community. 

Creator marketing reaches its potential when consumer insight shapes the idea, the right creators prove the promise, and brands give them the room to make it real. Walker described the result: “They wanted to share it. They clicked, they bought it, and they trusted it before they ever clicked to buy.”

This post was created in partnership with Collectively 

The campaign for SheaMoisture’s Silk Press in a Bottle generated millions of views and sales that doubled in peak retail weeks. The strategy behind those numbers started long before cameras rolled. 

During an ADWEEK House Cannes Lions panel co-hosted with Collectively, Rebecca Stewart, brand editor at ADWEEK, sat down with Raven Walker, SVP of client partnerships at Collectively, and Reema Amin, head of marketing at SheaMoisture, to discuss the listening-first approach behind the launch. 

Listening before briefing 

The SheaMoisture team aimed to earn consumers’ belief in the product by listening to their needs above all else. To do so, they watched thousands of videos, tracked social exchanges, and mapped what kept surfacing: heat damage, protecting curl patterns, humidity, and reversion. 

“When we were developing the product, the first thing we looked at was the data,” said Amin. “The same pain points kept coming up over and over.”

“Silk press season never ends” emerged straight from that listening. It translated something consumers wanted: freedom from the seasonal limitations that had long defined how Black women approached the style. That phrase became the campaign’s center of gravity. 

Creator selection followed the same discipline. Walker’s team studied the cultural conversation with relevance in mind. 

“It wasn’t who’s the most popular right now,” Walker explained. “It’s whose life is going to serve as the stress test for this product.” 

The team cast the creators as proof points, with the campaign showing different moments where a silk press would need to hold up. 

Each creator brought something distinct: different real-world conditions, audiences, and ways of proving the product. “That’s not a brand campaign,” Walker said. “That’s true resonance.” 

Paid and earned ran as one strategy from the first brief. Creators shaped the architecture, and the brand trusted them to lead the storytelling. 

Building trust before the click 

The launch unfolded like a story. Amin described a social-first rollout that used seeding and paparazzi-style content to build anticipation before the hero video debuted. 

Sheacation, SheaMoisture’s signature creator brand trip, carried the story into real life. Over three days in Miami, creators wore the product through nightlife, outdoor heat, and high humidity. Going on vacation with a silk press isn’t something many Black women have historically felt comfortable doing. That built-in skepticism gave the resulting content its credibility. The activation let creators show how the product performed under pressure rather than simply describing the promise. 

A pop-up with Walmart extended the campaign into commerce, where consumers could sample the product and shop directly from a digital magazine. 

Today’s sophisticated consumers can tell when a creator’s relationship with a product is transactional rather than genuine. Amin noted that authenticity can’t be layered in at the end. It gets established from the start and has to come from the purpose, product, and fit between the creator and the community. 

Creator marketing reaches its potential when consumer insight shapes the idea, the right creators prove the promise, and brands give them the room to make it real. Walker described the result: “They wanted to share it. They clicked, they bought it, and they trusted it before they ever clicked to buy.”

In an era of endless hot takes and shrinking attention spans, two podcasters have managed to stand out in a crowded landscape by embracing depth and positivity.

At ADWEEK’s Social Media Week, Tefi Pessoa, creator and host of podcast Tefi Talks, sat down with Claire Parker and Ashley Hamilton, hosts of podcast Good Noticings, to discuss navigating internet culture and the business of podcasting.

Here are three takeaways from their conversation to inspire marketers and media professionals making their own content. 

Depth beats hot takes

Parker and Hamilton started Good Noticings to cover pop culture news in a way that goes deeper than the hot takes flooding social media.

“There are these headlines that go viral, and then by the time they’ve gotten to you, you’re not even reading the news story. You’re reading the tweet response to the tweet response to the tweet response that got posted on Instagram, and now there’s a talking head in front of it on TikTok,” Parker said. “What if somebody read the whole article, and then a couple other articles?”

They aim to do more research on topics to offer “more holistic” analysis, she added: “We don’t have to be the first, but we can be the most 360, the most in-depth.”

Enthusiasm beats toxicity 

Parker and Hamilton have hosted previous podcasts, including Celebrity Memoir Book Club and We’re in a Fight With Claire and Ashley. The latter show was about their friendship and allowed listeners to eavesdrop on their real fights, but the pair quickly realized “people don’t want two fighters in their ears,” Parker said.

That unlock pushed them towards Good Noticings, which has a more positive tone to stand apart from the toxic content on social media. The show offers recommendations that “elevate the artists we love,” Parker said.

“We really did not want to be the people known for our takedowns anymore,” Parker said. “We’re trying to be the positivity on the internet.” 

Experimentation beats early success

Their first show about Britney Spears had a very small audience, the pair recalled.

But that period “when no one was looking” allowed them space to experiment and learn, Parker said. She now sees those early episodes as critical practice that taught them how to create stronger shows for the future.

“Without that experience of truly podcasting into the void, we never would have been good enough for when a good idea came,” Parker said. “It’s such an iterative experience podcasting, and in order to get better at it, you have to have these reps.”

This post was created in partnership with Inmar Media

Creator-led social content can add authenticity and reduce friction to keep audiences engaged, but it works best when there’s brand collaboration. 

A Social Media Week session co-hosted with Inmar Media put that notion to the test in front of a live audience. The unique interactive session featured a user-generated content (UGC) creator with two special guests working in real time to capture and edit the perfect social image based on an impromptu creative brief.

The creator economy, live onstage

The session began with Heather Riccobono, senior manager, social solution engineer with Inmar Media, making the case for creator-led branded content.

“We know that most content in the social space is creator-led,” she said. “When it feels like it’s from a creator, your attention shifts innately, authentically. It’s not something that you have to pause and recognize.”

Riccobono then shared findings from a client case study in which the sales lift metric doubled when creator-led content was added.

“It’s not one or the other. They’re both equally valid. They’re both equally important,” Riccobono shared.

To test that hypothesis, Riccobono brought Hannah Lorsch, creator and photographer, to the stage and worked with the audience to put together a UGC brief. The plan: Have Lorsch plan, shoot, and edit the content, followed by a debrief, all in 25 minutes. The subject: A dog’s tug toy.

Behind every successful asset is a smart content brief

With audience input, Riccobono and Lorsch prepped a creative brief with the following guidelines:

• The image needed to convey that the product was fun and safe.
• It should project a friendly and relatable tone.
• The content style would be a lifestyle shoot.

Riccobono also set some basic guardrails, including that the image couldn’t make unverified claims, feature any competitor brands, or contain offensive imagery.

The perfect pose through a brand lens

And what better way to do a photoshoot for a puppy tug toy than to bring out an adorable puppy—and a special guest tug partner, Elias Weiss Friedman, creator and founder of The Dogist? Lorsch led the shoot, trying to set up a realistic-looking tug-of-war session between the pup and Elias while keeping the content brief’s guidance in mind.

To capture the fun and relatable vibe the brand asked for, Elias worked to get the pup playfully tugging on the toy, while Lorsch coached Elias on where to look and how to achieve a realistic smile.

“If you fake laugh, it changes the facial structure, looks more authentic, and translates better,” Lorsch explained.

Once Lorsch had a few images to work with, the audience helped her choose the best of the bunch. She then had nine minutes left in the session to edit the photo to meet the project specifications. After a few touch-ups, the audience was presented with the finished product.

That’s a wrap

Riccobono reminded the audience that although the live demonstration was a condensed example of how the creative process works, it was the best way to answer the question of whether brand- or creator-led content is best.

“The real answer is it’s not either/or,” said Riccobono. “Brand content builds control, and creator content is what builds that trust and authenticity. So, the brands that win are the ones that really know how to do both together to drive performance.”

This post was created in partnership with MNTN

Producing a TV ad has always been an expensive, time-consuming process, making it challenging to jump on real-time trends and viral moments. But with the rise of CTV and social ads, the need for speed is real, and brands are finding new ways to capitalize.

During a Social Media Week session co-hosted with MNTN, Fraser Woollard, head of business development, detailed how AI has unlocked the ability for small brands to compete in this new age.

Fastvertising has taken flight

Woollard began his presentation with a quick definition of “fastvertising,” which is exactly what it sounds like—an opportunity to create brand awareness by capitalizing on a “lightning in a bottle” type of cultural moment.

“It captures something to do with culture, something to do with the news cycle, or something to do with the social conversation,” Woollard explained.

An excellent example of this concept in action literally floated across screens earlier this month during the Artemis II space mission. “I actually saw that clip when the Nutella in zero gravity is flying through, and I thought, ‘Nutella’s got to do an ad!’” said Woollard. Within minutes, the brand went all in on the happy accident with some lighthearted social content.

While there have been similar real-time brand wins on social media (like Oreo’s famous “dunk in the dark” tweet during the 2013 Big Game power outage), creating a TV ad at that same speed hasn’t traditionally been feasible due to the high costs and longer production times. Until now, that is.

Beyond slop, AI is fueling fastvertising potential

Though the term “slop” comes up time and again when discussing AI’s creative pursuits, Woollard believes AI can unlock opportunities for more brands.

AI can also help brands create multiple versions of an ad, he explained, with different scenes based on locality, or targeted to specific audiences. And when you put those AI tools in front of a creator who actually understands how to make a compelling ad? That’s where brands can achieve amazing results.

Targeted, real-time ads powered by AI

While Woollard acknowledged that the biggest impact on an ad’s success is the message itself, where an ad runs matters as well. With AI’s ability to help brands create more variants customized to target markets or to the show the ad is running on, the “when and where” can become even more significant.

 “I think this truly is the future of fast advertising—the ability to very quickly generate ads that actually match the show that you’re in,” Woollard said.

This post was created in partnership with Sam’s Club

The creator economy is moving past the passive follower era and into the participation economy, where brands can build ecosystems with creators and communities to co-create their stories.

During a Social Media Week session co-hosted with Sam’s Club, panelists came together to talk about how brands can foster genuine community by rewriting the rules of social engagement.

More learning and listening

The conversation began by discussing what brands can learn from creators.

Charlotte Tansill, president of social, creator, and earned at Publicis Creative U.S., explained that creators experiment, know their audience inside out, and bring realness and personality.

“Brands understand their audience through personas, through dashboards. They’re thinking about how to target their audience, not how to engage their community,” she explained.

Catherine Ebs, lifestyle creator, added that  brands should do more listening when trying to be more community-focused, “especially in the comment section, where people say exactly what they want.”

Creators and the participation economy

MacKenzie McCarver, head of social and influencers at Sam’s Club, said as a membership-based model company, she views community as a participation economy, not a broadcast one.

“At Sam’s Club, we’ve grown our community 600% this year, and we’re focused on making a community of creators for creators by creators by a brand that really loves them deeply,” McCarver shared. “We believe creators are small businesses, and that’s what our brand was founded to support.”

Ebs added that as part of the participation-based community, she has focused closely on staying true to her morals and values, something that brands should build on.

“Companies also have, normally, pillars, which I consider their morals and their values. And if you’re sticking to those, it resonates really well,” Ebs said. “If brands just continue to do that and, again, keep their focus on what their goals are—not what all these other brands are doing—it’ll work.”

Alignment with brand plans and objectives

Tansill described what makes a good brand partnership with a creator: thinking about the full system and adapting work streams to the right creators.

“We’re partnering with creators against any and all business objectives,” Tansill explained. “Whether it’s becoming more culturally relevant as a brand or driving conversation or product consideration or conversion and commerce, influencers play a central role—a very powerful role—in driving any of those objectives.”

Ebs agreed and advised creators to talk with a brand about its objectives before accepting a partnership.

“What is the goal? Is it conversion? Is it just eyes? Is it views?” Ebs asked. “Because sometimes that’s what the brand wants. They don’t even care about the conversions. They just want to be on your page.”

As the session came to a close, an audience member asked what happens if a brand has multiple objectives during the Q&A. Tansill took the question, leaving the audience with a helpful tip: Depending on the budget, prioritize within the four C’s of culture, conversation, consideration, and conversion.