business of blogging

Everything You Need to Know About the Facebook Branded Content Tool for Influencers (Updated Nov 2017)

April 14, 2017 by The Motherhood

Disclaimer: Information below represents our findings to date. We will continue to update this post as we learn more about the Facebook Branded Content Tool for Influencers.

In April 2016, Facebook announced the release of a new tool for branded content on verified pages to create easier collaboration on sponsored posts between Pages and brands.

The initial reaction to the announcement was mostly confusion about what exactly these new guidelines meant for brands and bloggers. This was especially the case for social media influencer marketing agencies, including The Motherhood, since we work with a network of “micro influencers” who promote sponsored content on their Facebook pages frequently.

According to Markerly, marketers are seeing higher engagement results with “micro influencers,” meaning those smaller-in-reach pages produce high value for brands through their devoted and active Facebook audience.

Before we answer what this tool means for marketers running influencer campaigns, let’s back up:

What is the Facebook branded content tool?

It’s a tool integrated into Facebook that allows pages and profiles to mark content that includes a third party, brand, or sponsor.

Branded content can be a post, Instant Article, link, photo, or video. Through the branded content tool, publishers of these posts tag the marketer or sponsor’s page. The marketer who is tagged will get a notification and receive access to insights on that post (such as the number of people who have seen it, click-throughs, etc.). The brand tagged will also have the ability to boost the post through their own account.

Facebook wants sponsored content to be marked clearly, therefore updating the branded tool to include the word “Paid” in the post.

Do all influencers have to use the Facebook Branded Content Tool?

When the Branded Content Tool originally was launched in April 2016, Facebook only allowed verified pages (and then later, verified profiles) to access the branded content tool. However, Facebook recently announced that they are making the tool more widely available and offering it to non-verified pages, as well.

Starting in April 2017, for users on iOS and the web (and Android in the near future), any non-verified page can submit an application to access to the branded content tool. Facebook will begin to offer the tool on a rolling basis to non-verified pages that it predicts are most likely to use it. Pages will get a notification in Facebook if they are selected for the branded content tool.

We recommend that influencers apply for the Branded Content Tool. Once you are approved for tool (it usually only takes up to two days), you can easily mark which posts are sponsored by clicking the handshake icon when composing a new post. If you have any questions about using the Branded Content Tool within your current campaign with The Motherhood, feel free to reach out to your account manager to discuss.

Do I need to include a disclosure statement if I’m using the Branded Content Tool?

This one has caused some confusion among influencers and agencies. The short answer is yes, you still need to include a proper disclosure statement (“ad” or “sponsored”) for sponsored posts, even when using the handshake tool. Facebook has clearly defined the rules for branded content, which includes using disclosures in addition to the handshake tool:

“Comply with all applicable laws and regulations, including by ensuring that you provide all necessary disclosures to people using Facebook or Instagram, such as any disclosures needed to indicate the commercial nature of content posted by you.” (Facebook, August 2017)

Best practices for the Facebook Branded Content Tool for influencers moving forward:

If you have not already, request access to the Branded Content Tool here.
If a post is flagged as not complying with their branded content policies, Facebook will notify the publisher and the post will not appear in the News Feed until fixed.
If you are a brand or company reaching out to influencers to share branded content on their Facebook pages, we highly suggest consulting a marketing agency that has knowledge on the subject and is up-to-date on all policies. You can contact The Motherhood with inquiries at [email protected].

In our research since publishing this post, we have come across interesting articles on the topic that we would also like to share with you:

We are still following the news on the Facebook Branded Content Tool for Influencers, and we will be sure to keep our readers updated as the situation evolves — which, as many social media marketers know, is bound to happen! We welcome any feedback.

Updated: November 1, 2017

Influencer Spotlight: Green & Gorgeous

December 1, 2016 by The Motherhood

“Blogging gives us all a voice. It’s just up to us individually to decide how to use it.” – Jennae, Green & Gorgeous

Whether you’re looking for examples of the right way to work with brand partners or just a few good style tips, Green & Gorgeous is a resource for both instructional and inspirational content. As her tagline states, Green & Gorgeous is where life, style and creativity meet substance.

We encourage you to read more in the spotlight below, and give her a shout at @jennaepetersen.

Want to see more? Check out our Influencer Spotlights here!

How does the Blogger Spotlight Series work? Each month, our internal team convenes and discusses our latest programs, stellar partnerships and top-performing influencers. It’s not about numbers, but rather, the quality, authentic content they’re delivering consistently. It’s about reliability, professionalism and partnership. We discuss our nominations for the month and ultimately decide on just one blogger to invite as our featured blogger. Stop back in 2017 to see how we’re giving a nod to our valued partners!

Influencer Spotlight: Jessica McFadden, A Parent in America

September 15, 2016 by The Motherhood

What has made click-throughs on one social media channel nearly obsolete?

What will steal the scene in lieu of toys this holiday season?

Where is engagement happening in 2016?

Jessica McFadden of A Parent in America and A Parent in Silver Spring has the answers, and we’re sharing them (and more!) with you in this month’s blogger spotlight.

Read on to learn more about why her blog is not her personal journal and what always results in a win when it comes to brands, bloggers and their readers. Give Jessica a shout-out at @JessicaMcFadd!

Want to see more? Check out our Influencer Spotlights here!

Advantages of Using an Influencer Marketing Agency

July 27, 2016 by The Motherhood

Influencer marketing is a discipline that’s continuing to grow and attract brands’ attention: More than half of marketers recently surveyed have reportedly increased their budgets for influencer marketing in 2016.

This comes as no surprise, as we know that influencer marketing is one of the most effective ways to seed authentic, searchable content that drives purchase over time. The Motherhood found that 80 percent of consumers are more likely to purchase from brands they’ve read about from a trusted blogger, and additional industry data reveals that marketers who implemented an influencer marketing campaign earned an average of $6.85 in media value for every $1 they spent on paid media.

As influencer campaigns are on the rise, many brands are exploring the most effective and efficient ways to incorporate a sponsored content strategy into their overall marketing plans. One of the most critical decisions is whether a brand will manage influencer marketing in-house or through an agency. As evidenced by Google’s search history for the term “Influencer Marketing Agency,” brands are exploring their options at a record high rate.

The Motherhood team is made up of professionals who have worked at the world’s top PR agencies, so we have a unique, first-hand understanding on how these decisions are made by brands at the firms that represent them. As a social media marketing agency that specializes in influencer marketing, we understand the power and perks of leveraging a specialty network to act as an extension of a brand’s team.

Three advantages of using an influencer marketing agency

1. Gain an expanded circle of trust. Hiring an influencer marketing agency requires that the marketer allow the agency to act as a steward of their brand — and leap of faith requires a great deal of trust. The Motherhood understands this — we’ve been on the other side! However, marketers should feel confident that hiring a credible, long-standing influencer marketing agency will offer a level of expertise and reliability that expands far beyond the four walls of a brand’s headquarters.

While many agencies tout their large networks of influencers, it’s imperative to know that the agency you’re engaging has a unique understanding of each individual influencer’s preferences, strengths and specialities. For marketers who want to create mutually beneficial partnerships built on a foundation of trust, pride in the brand and investment in creating exceptional work together, quality — rather than quantity — should be weighted heavily.

2. Save time, save money. A partnership with an influencer marketing agency allows brands and their PR agencies to work more efficiently by eliminating the time internally that’s required to research, identify, vet and manage a group of bloggers. A survey found that 75 percent of professionals consider identifying the right influencers to be the biggest challenge of a sponsored content campaign. Influencer marketing agencies have the right institutional knowledge and infrastructure in place, offering a better and more efficient way to manage relationships with influencers.

Using our proprietary database, The Mometer, The Motherhood makes it our business to provide the most strategic, targeted partnership recommendations between our bloggers and the brands who trust us to help represent them.

3. Offload details. When you hire an agency that specializes in influencer marketing, you’re gaining a partner with a deep, fine-tuned understanding of how to run a successful sponsored content campaign. Brands can weigh in on the aspects of the campaign that are most relevant to their direct role: key messaging, coverage pacing and key performance indicators, for example. However, turning over the reins to an experienced influencer marketing agency means that someone else will handle minute but important details such as blogger negotiations, product shipping, giveaway rules, managing bloggers’ adherence to the coverage deadline, disclosure compliance and hashtag use — just to name a few. When using an agency, these details are not the responsibility of the brand; rather, the agency is on-call for all related program management and implementation.

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If you are interested in teaming up with The Motherhood on an influencer marketing campaign, please email [email protected].

The Motherhood Blogger Network: Why Work with Us

August 28, 2015 by The Motherhood

Ten years ago, public relations veterans Cooper Munroe and Emily McKhann recognized the power and marketing potential of the communities growing online, particularly around parenting and families. At a time when the term “blog” was just beginning to enter the national conversation, Facebook was in its infancy and most social platforms didn’t yet exist, they founded The Motherhood and began building a dynamic network of PR-friendly mom blogs to apply that marketing potential.

A decade later, their vision is flourishing as brands, agencies and nonprofit organizations search for ways to join and contribute to the conversation online – and for good reason.

According to Nielsen (as reported in She-conomy), by May 2012, about one in three U.S. moms were bloggers. Research compiled by The Next Web outlines a number of compelling reasons to put your product, service or cause in front of moms online:

Women drive 70-80 percent of all consumer purchasing through their buying power and influence.
More than three-quarters of women in the U.S. use the Internet for product information before making a purchase.
Nearly two-thirds of moms ask other mothers for advice before they purchase a new product.
90 percent of moms are online, and nearly 20 million Internet users who are moms read blogs at least once a month.

Many companies use blogger networks like The Motherhood to help them connect these dots: With the right blogger influencers sharing information, stories, reviews and positive word of mouth, they can build awareness and drive purchases.

As a parent blogger network and social media marketing agency, The Motherhood functions as an experienced partner in helping companies identify and approach highly targeted bloggers for both small and large-scale coordinated online marketing campaigns.

Here are a few of the benefits of working with blogger networks in general and The Motherhood in particular:

We can pinpoint your most influential consumers. The Motherhood’s proprietary database includes thousands of bloggers we’ve personally worked with over the years. We make it our business to know what’s important to the influencers in our network, and we can quickly identify and mobilize a team according to the specific criteria most important to you. Our approach to blogger engagement is personal, resulting in a team of influencers who are advocates of your brand and deeply invested in the program’s success.

We work with influencers to create rich, dynamic content. Working closely with you, and always with your overarching brand objectives in mind, we create opportunities for trusted blogger ambassadors to develop compelling, shareable content online. That content lives indefinitely and contributes to great SEO and search results for your company or client.

We know social. We partner with bloggers on a daily basis and live on social media, and we’ve done it for years. We can help you find exactly the people you want to engage in short-term blog campaigns, long-term ambassador programs, Twitter parties, virtual focus groups and more to spread the word about your product, service or cause.

We’re experienced in PR. The Motherhood team comes from the world’s top PR agencies. We provide you with powerful ideas based on insight and years of experience in the industry, and we can move at your pace – fast.

We guarantee coverage. We identify influencers who fit your objectives and target audience and love your brand, so it’s a win for everyone – and we guarantee coverage and engagement. Every step of the way, we provide detailed results reporting, insights and analysis.

Brands, PR/ad agencies, nonprofit organizations and other companies: To learn more about our online campaign options to reach influencers or inquire about partnering with The Motherhood to supplement your integrated marketing efforts, email [email protected].