Brands have been approaching popular users of platforms such as Snapchat, Vine and Instagram to reach the coveted Generation Z through branded content, sponsored items and perks galore.

But, according to the brand influencers themselves, sponsored content is coming close to a breaking point and needs to take a step back in some cases.

At a ” Gen Z Influencers” panel this week, Snapchatters such as Shaun McBride (above) were asked what works best on platforms like his. Simple: “Be true to yourself,” he says. Like all other social media strategies, only authenticity works in this space.

McBride, who boasts more than 350,000 Snapchat followers, works with brands such as Marriott, AT&T and Disney to involve his fans in a branded experience, but his followers (Gen Z, so generally born between 1997-2002) can tell when he’s being used as a salesman. When he traveled on Marriott’s dime, he let his followers choose his destinations and itinerary, briefly thanking Marriott for free hotel stays along the way, but he says that he refused to post anything too obvious like discount codes or direct promotions.

Brand influencers like McBride are becoming increasingly in demand, as evidenced by Twitter’s recent acquisition of digital talent agency Niche.

Snapchat user Christine Mi has worked with ABC Family and 20th Century Fox on Snapchat’s Stories feature, and Amanda Jas, who has almost 80,000 followers on Instagram, has posted branded content for Adidas and Refinery 29.

Their sponsored posts get just as much love as their own personal content, but they are able to reach teenagers in a way that companies’ social teams never could. Hewlett-Packard is one brand that has embraced that relationship. Vikrant Batra, VP of worldwide marketing, says it is a relationship they don’t want to mess with. He says: “Here’s our brief: You guys have 6 million followers, because of the work you do, not because of the work I tell you to do.”

Read more at Ad Age.

Brief Take: According to prominent brand influencers, prominent Snapchat users can speak to their fervent fan base in an authentic way that is often not replicable through corporate strategies, and brands trying to reach the social teenager demographic should take notice.

[Image courtesy of Snapchat]

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