Pearpop

Brands Struggle to Scale Employee Creator Programs

Companies are experimenting with employee-as-creator programs, but implementing them raises operational, legal and measurement challenges. Some retailers, like Gap Inc., are folding employees into existing creator initiatives across their brands, while others, such as Starbucks, are building bespoke programs that require dedicated strategy, oversight and new measurement tools. Past examples — notably Amazon’s 2018 “FC Ambassadors” — show risks around authenticity and disclosure. Industry practitioners and consultants warn that unclear rules on compensation, working hours, legal clearances, manager buy-in and content quality can undermine the value of employee-driven content for brands.

Beauty Brands Become Entertainment Content Creators

Beauty brands are increasingly creating entertainment-style content and embedding products into entertainment to engage audiences, especially Gen Z. Examples include Innisfree’s comedic street interviews with Tommy Brennan, E.l.f. Cosmetics’ nearly 10-minute true-crime mockumentary starring Phoebe Dynevor, and Rare Beauty’s campaign tied to a TV character. Agencies and creator-marketing firms say platform algorithms reward serialized, watchable content, prompting brands to own entertainment production or integrate into TV and streaming storylines. L’Oréal Group and its brands have leaned into product placements in hit shows, though heavy-handed placement can risk viewer backlash.

Devotion Launches: New AI-Powered Platform for Influencer Marketing

Cami Tellez and former TikTok executive Jon Kroopf launched Devotion, an influencer-marketing platform designed to help large brands scale creator discovery, management, content workflows and payments using AI with human review. Devotion automates tasks such as analyzing influencer posts against brand guidelines, recommending which posts to boost, providing a brand-fit score, and managing creator payments. The startup emerged from beta with more than 10 clients and seven-figure revenue, and announced a $4 million seed round led by Basecase and Will Ventures. Tellez — founder of Parade (sold in 2023 to Ariela & Associates) — said Devotion aims to enable high-scale creator ecosystems and plans to hire engineers and brand operators while expanding AI capabilities.