Are you building a real community around your brand or just spending budget on meaningless partnerships and vanity metrics?

In this episode of Building Brand Advocacy, Verity sits down with marketing consultant Lauren Spearman who has worked with Global brands including Benefit Cosmetics, MADE.com, Trinny London to unpack what genuine advocacy looks like today vs. a decade ago and why most influencer strategies are still stuck in 2014.

We go deep on how to move from fabricated, performance-led “community” to truly invested brand advocates who buy, refer, and defend your brand online.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Evolution of brand advocacy over the last 10 years

• How Benefit Cosmetics build a ‘warm’ brand through effective influencer strategies

• How to find organic advocacy in your existing community

• How to build real relationships with your influencer partners

• What went into creative authentic advocacy at MADE.com

• The work behind Trinny London Tribe

CMOs, brand and social leads, and anyone tired of pouring budget into influencer campaigns that don’t convert into real advocacy, retention, or revenue, this episode is for you.

CHAPTERS

02:37 Netmums and Real Community

06:24 Inside Benefit Cosmetics

12:20 Employee Advocacy in Action

19:33 Benefit Mascara Maldives Launch

21:37 Reframing advocacy at MADE.com

24:52 Building the Advocacy at MADE.com

30:28 Brand Advocacy vs Performance

34:26 Treating Creators as True Partners

37:26 Behind the Trinny Tribe Community

40:36 Quick fire and Wrap Up

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CONNECT WITH LAUREN

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurenspearman/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurenspearman/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@spearmanlauren

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