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Duolingo is now \u201cAI-first,\u201d job postings are emphasizing AI competency as a desired skill, and it seems every company is hungry for AI-powered efficiency. The AI boom is officially in every business corner, and branded social media is no exception\u2014but should it be?<\/p>\n
Much of social media content creation relies on creative thinking and production, and creative types haven\u2019t been shy about criticizing AI reliance, particularly the kind that might eliminate jobs. At the same time, the allure of taking advantage of a moment like the ChatGPT-generated-action-figure trend is too strong, and all of a sudden, it seems the hottest (and quickest) thing a social media manager can do is get in on the AI buzz. It\u2019s an impulse made even easier when companies like Adobe and OpenAI roll out creative-focused AI products.<\/p>\n
But social media consultant and writer of the newsletter Link in Bio Rachel Karten has a theory. Rather than AI being the next big thing in brand social, it could end up encouraging an alternate route, a phenomenon that she\u2019s dubbing \u201cproof of reality.\u201d In an effort to emphasize quality and craftsmanship, Karten expects some brands to use their social media feeds as a place to emphasize their human creativity, attention to detail, and the real, human-led work that went into making certain content for the brand.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs the ways that posts are made on social media become more and more unclear\u2026we\u2019re going to see brands ramp up this proof of how they made the post,\u201d Karten told Marketing Brew. \u201cI don\u2019t think it\u2019s new necessarily, but I think those types of posts are going to hold more weight, especially for the consumer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Karten said she got the idea for proof of reality from watching The Studio<\/em>, a satirical Apple TV+ show about a Hollywood film studio. In promoting the show, Apple put out a behind-the-scenes clip showing how an episode featuring one long continuous (and chaotic) shot was made. That\u2019s when the proverbial light bulb went off.<\/p>\n \u201cNot only does the content of the show feel [like it\u2019s] in reaction to slop online, but so did the promotion of it,\u201d Karten said. \u201cWe\u2019ve seen this on social as well, with like BTS of the campaign\u2026and sometimes the BTS even gets more engagement than the original post itself.\u201d<\/p>\n Even as behind-the-scenes posts find resonance, companies both big and small are taking the opposite route. Coca-Cola faced backlash last year when its holiday ads were loudly and proudly created with AI, and the fast-fashion retailer H&M is planning to use AI-generated replicas of its models.<\/p>\n Karten said she has noticed AI-generated images being used on social accounts, like the athleisure brand Set Active. On TikTok, Set Active\u2019s chief brand officer has noted that Set Active uses AI (and Midjourney, in particular) for some social image creation.<\/p>\n Karten surmised that small businesses in particular might find AI tempting as they try to capitalize on trends and figure out their own social media approach. But while the tech might speed things along, brands using it risk receiving negative comments and their campaigns becoming a talking point for the wrong reasons.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s a piece of marketing that you need to think about now,\u201d she said. \u201cIf you piss off some customers, they\u2019re not just a few customers in your database that are leaving. A few customers\u2026might create a TikTok that is bashing your brand that goes viral, and everyone is piling on.\u201d<\/p>\n According to freelance brand designer and Adobe Express ambassador Julie Christie-Clark, small businesses are exactly who can benefit the most from AI tools. Christie-Clark frequently uses Adobe AI products like Firefly and Express for client work, and she makes educational content on TikTok showing how AI can be implemented in creative design.<\/p>\n Marketing Brew informs marketing pros of the latest on brand strategy, social media, and ad tech via our weekday newsletter, virtual events, marketing conferences, and digital guides.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cI have lots of small businesses that can\u2019t afford brand photography, brand photo shoots, or even buying lots of stock imagery, and they can\u2019t quite find what they want in the libraries,\u201d Christie-Clark said. \u201cSo it\u2019s kind of game-changing for small-business owners to be able to have really impactful, professional graphics.\u201d<\/p>\n Christie-Clark uses AI throughout the strategy, production, and final-delivery processes, finding that it can save time and improve her brainstorming abilities. She particularly leans on Adobe\u2019s brand-safety tools, which Adobe Express\u2019s VP and head of product Ian Wang emphasized is key to what makes tools like Firefly useful to brands.<\/p>\n \u201cFor us, it\u2019s all about commercial safety and on-brand creation,\u201d Wang told Marketing Brew. \u201cWe have custom models that our brands now are training based on their own content and data\u2026when you do that, that\u2019s another lever to make it look realistic, because all that\u2019s clearly coming from this brand.\u201d<\/p>\n As AI usage in brand social media ramps up, there\u2019s still plenty of gray area. Karten has noticed some brand images looking similar to previous campaign concepts, and she wondered if AI is enabling ideation that doesn\u2019t meaningfully diverge from prior creative work.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you can feed your mood board into AI and generate something original for your brand, where is that line?\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s very tricky.\u201d<\/p>\n The rise of AI\u2019s usage across brand social seems to signal a change in attitude toward the tools. Christie-Clark was \u201ca wee bit skeptical\u201d of using AI tools, but she changed her mind on the matter over the last year, which she said was because of the quality of AI products. She now believes in using AI in final products, not just in the brainstorming process, which is a method that some social media experts, like Karten, prefer.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m tending to start to work AI-first, which I\u2019m actually really surprised myself, with how long I\u2019ve been doing things the same way,\u201d Christie-Clark said.\u201cI\u2019m embracing the change to keep moving with the times.\u201d<\/p>\n Whether or not AI is the next big thing in brand social, Wang said what will make AI products stand out is identifying ways to make the tech useful, not just exciting.<\/p>\n Being useful in creative fields doesn\u2019t need to always mean using generative AI. According to him, incorporating AI into already existing brand work could be a step forward.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a massive bridge that needs to be crossed between exciting stuff that you love to play with, and it looks cool, to it being truly useful for your day-to-day and your livelihood,\u201d Wang said. \u201cThat bridging layer is really what we\u2019re focused on to make sure that it\u2019s really useful to everyday users. I think [if] we do that, it becomes less intimidating.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\nGive it a try?<\/h2>\n
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