Trendsettrs: Brooks Miller
A convo with EVP of Creator Marketing at Edelman, ex-Twitter and 72andSunny about trends in the creator landscape
Spring has SPRUNG in Raleigh and it is magical. ✨ The perfect temp, no humidity, the pollen is gone, and blooms are everywhere. I’m spending as much time outside as possible! If this newsletter got forwarded to you and you want more of where this came from, get pollinated below. 👇
Trendsettrs: Brooks Miller
Trendsettrs is a Pollinatr column about marketers blazing their own trails. They’ll share tactical advice from the front lines that will help you be smarter at your job.
Meet Brooks!
Brooks is Executive Vice President of Creator Marketing at Edelman and United Entertainment Group. Prior to Edelman, Brooks spent nearly 8 years at Twitter, where she helped build their influencer discipline, partnering with creators and brands across every platform and every vertical. Brooks started her career as an account manager agency-side at 72andSunny and barrettSF. Her work has won at Cannes, the One Show, the Shorty Awards and has been recognized in Adweek and AdAge. She lives in Brooklyn with her husband, son and perfect basset hound, Dirk Nowitzski. 🐶
Brooks is also from Dallas (hence her dog’s name ☺️) and also went to the University of Texas where we met (hookem!). She’s one of those people that is always doing something interesting and it’s been fun to see all of the different cool jobs she’s had. I find her role at Edelman particularly fascinating because historically Edelman has always been a PR firm, but they have evolved quite a bit and are doing some awesome work with brands like Starbucks, Amex, Gerber, and many others.
We had the best time catching up talking about all sorts of topics from Texas to toddlers to creators! Our convo below covers:
📈 Trends happening in the creator space
🤓 Interesting stats about influencer marketing
💗 Advice for getting laid off
Michelle: Career highlights/things you're most proud of?
Brooks: I LOVE creators. I love patroning the art that they readily give so many of us, at scale, for free. They aren’t just makers, though. Creators are CEOs and expert brand marketers who are really good at social. In 2021, I noticed that brands were overlooking all the consultative knowledge that creators have. I had an idea: why not set up a way for creators to school us?
Luckily, I was at Twitter at the time and had a lot of supportive teammates who let me create a program called #ConnectCode, where we paid top creators to give actionable tips to better connect to communities and moments that matter on Twitter. The first was around #Pride, then we did the #Holidays, #LatinxTwitter and #AwardsTwitter, all with custom webinars and blogposts.
I was able to bring a version of that program to Edelman with Creator Lab, our global collective that leverages our endless network of creators to advise, consult and ideate strategies that best engage audiences through the people they trust most: creators. We basically have an in-house consulting agency made up of the best creators on the internet. It’s amazing!
We’ve used creators to consult on everything from fashion trends, script supervising, marathon running, TikTok bans, and even our own definition of a “creator”. And the results are incredible. We won 3 Cannes Lions, a Clio, multiple Shortys, and got shortlisted for PRWeek awards.
I feel like brands – and even other marketers – finally understand that creators are more than just a TikTok account with a lot of followers; they are entrepreneurial business leaders who should be working alongside us every step of the way.
Michelle: What do you do at Edelman? And for those who don't know that Edelman is no longer just a PR firm, please tell us what Edelman is all about now!
Brooks: Edelman is a global communications firm with 6,000 employees across 60 offices. One of my favorite parts about Edelman is that it’s family owned and run – Richard, our CEO, comes in every day and one of his daughters, Margot, leads the New York office. It’s a family operation.
I have a couple of roles here. My main (and most favorite) is as global marketing lead for our Creator Offering. I spend time figuring out what makes the Edelman Creator team work and offerings special and then shout it from the rooftops. I constantly tweak that messaging according to what’s happening in culture, in real-time. If there’s a US election, if there’s a TikTok ban, if there’s fresh data; this colors how we talk about ourselves. With its pedigree in PR, Edelman is incredibly adept at working with creators in a way that keeps both the brand and the creators’ reputation a priority. Reputation builds trust and trust is everything!
I also oversee our creator offering at United Entertainment Group, Edelman’s global lifestyle, sports and entertainment offering, making some incredibly dynamic, cross-functional work for our amazing clients.
Michelle: What trends are you seeing in the creator landscape?
Brooks:
Trust & Safety: What I love about creators is that they are humans. They have real lives, opinions, lived experiences, families, hometowns. But what’s stressful about creators is that they are humans - because human beings mess up! It’s their greatest strength and their greatest liability. Brands are increasingly obsessed with creators (the industry is worth almost $500 billion) but have no idea how to navigate trust and safety while working with real human people at scale. We call this conundrum “the tightrope” and I feel like all day long I talk to brands and creators about how to walk it in the most ethical, compassionate, trustful way. [MB note: this is a great watch!]
Creators are the Cure: I *trulyyyy* think that creator marketing can make social media a healthier place! A lot of people think of creators as perpetuating the healthcare misinformation they see on social. But what they don’t realize is that when brands work with creators in a paid capacity, the work they make is some of the most trusted information on the internet. Why? Because creator marketing is controlled by two federally regulated agencies! The FDA and the FTC! My colleague Amaris Modesto wrote an amazing think piece about this on our blog and we have been trying to talk to anyone who will listen about getting more healthcare ads, on social, starring creators. No more drinking bleach please!
55+ trend: At work, we have been noticing a huge uptick in asks for creators over 55. Finally! There have been asks for creators in this demo before - think for arthritis topicals or menopause supplements - but now, we’re seeing it for fashion brands, CPG brands, even baby food! It’s a smart pivot for brands because, per the research we have, while Gen Z has all the influence, 55+ has all of the money - and yet they are completely under-represented in media (only 5% of marketing dollars go towards them!). There is a huge opportunity for brands talk to Boomers.
We have a whole collective called the Longevity Lab dedicated to this age group & teaching brands how to connect with 55+ better. They are a fascinating generation. Did you know that 60% of entrepreneurs are over 60? Or that people over 55 experience less negative emotions than younger adults? Boomers are not the sad, lonely grey-hairs, wasting away at home that people envision. Most are in the prime of their life - and there are some amazing creators that reflect that. I love Carla Rockmore and The Old Gays if you want to follow some 55+ folks for inspo!
Michelle: Can you share any data or stats about effectiveness leveraging creators?
Brooks: This is my favorite, most mind blowing stat: According to Edelman’s Trust Barometer, 60% of consumers trust what creators say about a brand more than what a brand says about itself.
Michelle: Any hot takes about social media or influencers?
Brooks: Every year there is a Tarte trip and every year my LinkedIn feed is flooded with think pieces on said Tarte trip. They are never flattering. “The Tarte trip promotes over consumption, the Tarte trip is unsustainable, the Tarte trip is why young women are bum rushing Sephora to buy Drunk Elephant Vitamin C serum.” Whether you agree or not I have to ask everyone: where is your think piece about men on a work trip? Because that’s what this is! These are a bunch of high-performing employees on a trip for work. If this wasn’t a group of women, in a female-driven industry, selling feminized products, there simply wouldn’t be the same scrutiny. Sure, they have tons of followers and the trip itself is a marketing tool, but you can’t tell me that there isn’t a layer of misogyny to it. So before you clutch your pearls & become a keyboard warrior after next year, ask yourself, “Would I be this mad about a man going on a trip for work?”
Michelle: Favorite creators on social right now and why?
Brooks: Subway Takes and Are You Ok? I am really into street-style interviews lately. I love how run & gun they feel. They are not too produced, super casual, and I think these two creators are great at sourcing guests. Every time they drop a new video, I see their guest and think, “Wait, I just saw that person on xyz. I love them!”
Michelle: Something that helps keep your creative juices flowing / inspires you?
Brooks: I probably get the most inspiration from Bravo, books and my friends & family in that order.
Michelle: Advice to anyone who has been laid off? Tell us about your story from Twitter.
Brooks: Not so fun fact: I got laid off from Twitter! (Yes, during those layoffs). It was an awful but strangely special experience. In getting laid off myself, I didn’t realize how many other people had gone through the same thing and how common it is to leave a job before you’re ready. In fact, most people will experience a layoff at some point. When I reframed it as a crucial learning experience versus a personality flaw, I started to pull some great lessons from my layoff.
Many of my layoff lessons veer on the personal, “woo woo” side, but there are two super tactical takeaways that I now share with anyone who’s worried about their job:
1. Get a personal computer: Computers are not cheap and because of that, for years, I had always used my work computer as my only computer. Why get another? But when you’re laid off, your computer is company property and is either confiscated or, like mine, turned off immediately. Trying to respond to emails, create a resume, and apply to jobs from an iPhone is impossible – no matter how good the Canva app is! You can get older generation laptops on re-seller sites, cheaper models like Chrome books, or buy from companies and schools – just make sure you have some sort of personal computing device.
2. Back up your files! And I don’t just mean your incredible projects and rolodex of contacts. If you are using your work computer as a personal computer, you likely have loads of photos, videos and files on there that you want to keep. Luckily, I did this before I got laid off from Twitter, otherwise all of my wedding photos would have been lost!
Layoffs, big or small, hurt. They hurt for the company doing them and the people they happen to. But they are a regular part of work and, at some point, you’ll likely be a part of one. Know that it’s not personal, we’ve all been there, and you’ll be okay. When one door closes another door really does open.
Michelle’s final thoughts:
Re: “Creators are CEOs and expert brand marketers who are really good at social”: This is a very important point and should color how you partner with creators—it’s a partnership between two brands where both parties have an equal seat at the table. Given that 60% of consumers trust what creators say about a brand more than what a brand says about itself, I’d imagine the media mix should only continue to increase in this direction.
Re: the Edelman Creator Lab: This is soooooo smart! I love that they tap into creators not just for content creation but also as consultants about trends they’re seeing on the ground floor. In my mind, this is similar to using comments on your social media as your next brief. Actually listening to what people are saying on social and leveraging that for your next initiative gives you a head start. Creators live and breathe these platforms every day, so they likely have a better pulse on what is happening than you do as a marketer.
Re: the 55+ creator trend: I loved learning about all of the trends but this one in particular I thought was fascinating, especially the stats (only 5% of marketing dollars go towards 55+). This is a HUGE opp for brands and a total white space! This age group has experience and wisdom under their belts that younger generations just do not have. Given 60% of entrepreneurs are 60+, I think there could be some very cool opportunities to do an influencer campaign with older creators on LinkedIn about different tools or services they use for their companies.
I’ve realized that my perception of what age is “old” shifts as I get older (how convenient, probably just self-preservation at its best lol). It helps that people are living longer than ever, but at this point I feel like 90 is actually old??? My personal favorite older icon are Ina Garten and Nancy Meyers. It feels like the perception of “older people” is shifting to be more dynamic, dimensionalized, and inspiring, which I love to see!
Re: getting laid off: No matter how you slice it, getting laid off is brutal. People compare the grief of getting laid off to the same level of grief you feel when you lose a loved one. Be kind and gentle to yourself and it’s also probably worth getting a therapist. Brooks’ points are great practical pieces of advice and I’d add one more to the list: Always be networking. A lot of people are SUPER busy at work and don’t have time for networking, but this is a false narrative—it boils down to priorities. Many people give 110% to their companies but not 110% to their own career. Invest in yourself by carving out 30 min a week to catch up with an old coworker or someone you think is interesting on LinkedIn. You don’t want to get caught on your backfoot not having talked to anyone in a few years and feel like you’re starting from scratch, I promise! This will also help you keep a pulse on what companies are doing well, what types of roles are out there, and what you might be interested in doing next.
Dinner Party Fodder
Tasty tidbits to talk about. 😋
📝 Follow ups of the week: Thank you, Daniel, for sending over some very interesting follow ups about last week’s Gen Z Christian revival newsletter! NYT’s Americans Haven’t Found a Satisfying Alternative to Religion and Derek Thompson's podcast episode, Is there a scientific case for believing in god? Also, my cousin Shannon shared this awesome article about how the Black church community here is really trying to solve some Austin issues! So inspiring. 💗
🌽🍅🍤 Recipe of the week: omg summer is almost here and this Shrimp Scampi With Tomatoes and Corn recipe is TO DIE FOR.
💬 Quote of the week:
👵🏼 Video of the week: Just call me grandma shelly
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Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browser▶️ Follow of the week: Rob Anderson revisits 90s movies, shows, and books and it CRACKS me up. I’d really like him to do a review of Curious George bc honestly I just reread it for the first time since childhood and the storyline is SUS.
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🐝 Michelle