Let’s Talk About Brand Partnerships

and why some are so much better than others!

I’ve been doing brand partnerships for a very loooooong time, and I think there are still a lot of questions around how they actually work. So lets get into it…

Here’s what’s at the core of a brand partnership - a brand has something they want to say, a good creator has spent years building a POV and an incredible relationship with their audience, and the two parties figure out how to tell that story.

The best partnerships and the real magic happens when brands let creators do what they do best. The brand spends time and does the research to find someone they trust and can tell the story that aligns with their community and their brands guidelines.

GOOD creators know their audiences… and they know them very very well. They know what their communities love, what makes them giggle, what they’ll immediately click out of, what questions they will want answered, and what kind of content actually IS helpful in their day to day lives. That intel came from years of cultivating their corner of the internet. By making things, testing concepts, reading comments, answering DMs, meeting IRL and building trust with a community. Start paying close attention - you’ll pick up on it more and more.

So… when a brand hires a creator and then hands them something incredibly formulaic that says exactly what to say, how to stay it, where to shoot it, which three talking points need to happen in the first seven seconds, what kind of nail polish you can and cannot wear blah blah blah... we’ve defeated the purpose.

At that point, you’re making a commercial. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that! Make a great commercial. Hire actors. Hire creators. Use a creative agency. Put paid media behind it. There is an entire industry built around doing that and when it’s done well… its fantastic. Think of all the great commercials from years past that stay with us. The Carne Asada Taco Bell commercial with the lions from 25 years ago STILL lives rent free in my head.

But creator-led content is different. If you’re hiring someone because you like the world they’ve built, the best thing you can do is give them the room to make something that actually fits into their world.

That doesn’t mean brands shouldn’t have goals, messaging or talking points etc. Obvi they should. But there’s a huge difference between saying, “Here’s what matters to us, tell it in your words” and saying, “Do it exactly like this.”

The first is a true partnership. And that’s what works.

It’s also why I’m such a believer in long-term relationships. When you work together for six months, a year, or multiple years, you have so much more time to tell a story. Every piece of content doesn’t have to introduce the brand or product from scratch and you still can incorporate all the important points into your video / post / recipe etc. Your audience gets to see the product actually BE part of your life.

And what is even more important (the MOST important part if you ask me) is that it’s real. No one feels like someone rented your platform for a day. (I won’t even do these as no amount of money is worth it) It’s just two brands that figured out why it made sense to work together in the first place and then trusted each other enough to make something epic.

I obvi have more to say about partnerships but I think this is a good start! Everyone always is very curious about that world so hopefully this is a good peek behind the curtain to start. And for some other goods:

Recipes on Repeat Currently:

• Miso Salmon Bowls are on heavy rotation for that quick and easy weeknight meal. If you need more quick dinner ideas - here is my back to school recipe bible.

• Same goes for the Greek Chicken Bowls. The kids are obsessed with the new Greek seasoning.

• Grilled Corn and Zucchini Salad bc tis the season for both zucchini and corn!

What I’m Watching / Just Finished

• Lioness is consuming me - WHERE THE F IS JOE AND WHY HAS SHE NOT BEEN RESCUED. If you haven’t watched all 3 seasons, get your act together immediately.

• The Night Manager - I accidentally watched half of season 2 on my flight to London not knowing it was season 2 so I went back to the beginning and it’s right up our spy loving alley!

Where I Ate:

• Anajak always and forever. I went back… again.

• All Time - same story. I need to branch out but it’s so HARD!

Influenced

• Mrs Derm influenced me to get a new pair of AYR jeans that are cropped and way flattering and I love them deeply.

• I also got a new tank from them that is kinda the perfect tank. And doesn’t require a racerback bra which I didn’t own up until yesterday.

Ask me anything! You know my DMs are always open but if there’s a subject you’re dying to talk about, lay it on me.