Successful Branded Entertainment Requires More Than a Creative Brief

In a SXSW panel entitled Branded Entertainment: Do Brands Hurt Good Storytelling Proximity SVP Matt Di Paola said there is a fine line between selling and story telling. Each can't cross too far over the line of the other. Branded story telling must align with the brand's business, not a creative brief. The partnership is much bigger than a simple creative project.

Making a distinction, Di Paola said Product placement is not story telling. Product placement is a media buy. Story telling is a deep partnership between brand and content.

Disrupt Group Co-Founder Shira Lazar Says ad agencies are the new studios. For content creators, Lazar said the relationship must go beyond just business. Successful creative relationships require more than the simple exchange of money.

Lazar says the genesis of a good creative relationship comes from a poo poo platter of ideas. They can come from anywhere. And there are no set pathway to story telling success.

Vuguru CCO Kristin Jones said a new trust is forming between brands and filmmakers that has resulted in some very impressive and effective brand-based storytelling. From the content creator standpoint, it is imperative to know brands' business cycles so when a creative idea presents itself, money is there to do so.

An audience member asked how to start a branded storytelling relationship. Answer: see what a brand is already doing. Contact them directly or find out who there agency is and contact them.

Another question centered on what strategies can be employed by content creators to encourage brands to allow their sponsored content to include both good and bad representations. Answer: forget about targeting conservative brands. Go after the ones who traditionally take risks.