Authenticity in Digital Content

Over 90% of UK women’s health content is being censored on social platforms 😱😱😱 Unfortunately, I’m not surprised. When I worked at a lingerie brand, I saw how often the social team had to battle shadow bans - not for anything offensive, just for sharing content about women’s bodies. This kind of censorship doesn’t just affect engagement metrics. It affects people. It creates silence around things that need to be spoken about. Imagine giving birth and not knowing how to care for your body afterward. Imagine not being able to get hold of a midwife to ask simple, important questions. Imagine feeling unsure, overwhelmed, or even invisible. Unfortunately, you don’t have to imagine: → 40% of women in the UK said they couldn’t access a midwife after birth → 1 in 5 experience a mental health issue postpartum → 1 in 3 feel unprepared for their baby That’s why campaigns like Frida Uncensored feel so important. Frida - the mum and baby care brand - launched a campaign that puts real, graphic, honest content front and centre. It offers support and education for women navigating one of the most vulnerable times in their lives. It includes: 💻 An online library of uncensored, visual guides for postpartum care 🇬🇧 OOH ads across London, sparking visibility for underrepresented topics 📣 A paid casting call to hear and share more women’s stories And it's all done with both purpose. Because impactful campaigns don’t have to choose between heart and commercial success. So, what makes a powerful purpose-led campaign? It addresses a real, human problem It aligns with the brand’s values and audience truth It educates as well as engages It makes space for community and real voices It builds equity over time, not just clicks in the moment “The world doesn’t need another giant CGI handbag. It needs brands to solve real problems.” – Stefanie Sword-Williams FRSA (she/her) Frida’s work is a great reminder of what’s possible when creativity and care come together. I hope it’s the beginning of a longer movement, not just a moment. I’ll drop the website in the comments. Would love to hear what you think. ❤️ ------ 👋 I’m Jo Bird. Creative Director & Brand Builder 🎤 Now taking speaker bookings 🔗 Work with me - Link in bio

Don’t overthink conversion. Qualified prospects only ever drop out for 3 reasons: 1. Comprehension: They don’t understand what you do 2. Urgency: They understand but don’t care 3. Trust: They get it, they care, but they don’t believe you. (And it’s always in that order.) Here’s how to diagnose and fix each of those 3 gaps: 𝗚𝗮𝗽 𝟭: 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗵𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗗𝗶𝗮𝗴𝗻𝗼𝘀𝗲: Show your headline to a prospect for 5 seconds. Ask them “What does that mean?” If they can’t explain it back clearly, you’ve found your problem. 𝗙𝗶𝘅: You’ve got 5 words + one image to show you understand their desired outcome. If your headline talks about your product, you’re asking them to guess. If your headline talks about their goal, you’re on the right track. 𝗚𝗮𝗽 𝟮: Urgency 𝗗𝗶𝗮𝗴𝗻𝗼𝘀𝗲: If prospects say “I’m too busy,” that means you’re not a top-3 priority. That’s an urgency problem. 𝗙𝗶𝘅: You can try simple tactics like time-limited discounts, and “problem agitation” copy that pokes at their pain. But here’s the real opportunity: Ask prospects what is on their top-3 list, and reposition or pivot to address a top 3 priority. 𝗚𝗮𝗽 𝟯: Trust 𝗗𝗶𝗮𝗴𝗻𝗼𝘀𝗲: Ask recent signups “what almost stopped you from signing up?” Their answers will reveal your trust gaps. 𝗙𝗶𝘅: It’s a mistake to view trust as an amorphous concept like “brand.” Trust is rooted in specific concerns like “What will my team think?” “Will I actually use it?” or “Are your providers vetted?” Your action plan: 1. Run the 5-second test on your headline 2. Interview prospects to discover their top 3 priorities 3. Address specific trust issues (not general “brand building”) 💡 Want the whole playbook? We’ve recorded “The 15 Minute Landing Page” workshop - I’ll drop a link to the replay in the comments. Know somebody who’s struggling with conversion? Tag ‘em 👇

It’s so hard to tell AI apart from reality anymore. The Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA), may have an answer. This collaborative effort, spearheaded by industry giants such as Adobe, Arm, Intel, Microsoft, and Truepic, aims to forge a digital environment where the origins of media content can be traced reliably, restoring a measure of trust to the online world. A notable implementation of the C2PA standard comes from OpenAI, which tweeted last week that it has integrated C2PA metadata into images generated with ChatGPT on the web and through its API serving the DALL-E3 model. Users can leverage platforms like Content Credentials Verify to ascertain if an image was generated by the underlying DALL-E3 model through OpenAI’s tools, unless the metadata has been removed. However, it is crucial to acknowledge that metadata like C2PA, while instrumental in establishing provenance, is not a panacea. The ease with which it can be accidentally or intentionally removed—by actions such as uploading to social media platforms or taking screenshots underscores the complexities of digital provenance. The cornerstone of C2PA's strategy is the development of open technical standards for certifying the source and history—or provenance—of different types of media. This initiative represents a unified effort, amalgamating the Adobe-led Content Authenticity Initiative (CAI) and Project Origin, driven by Microsoft and the BBC, into a singular force combatting disinformation online. Central to C2PA's efforts is the introduction of the CR mark, standing for "Content Credentials." This feature serves as a visual indicator of the provenance of digital media, enabling users to easily identify content that has been verified according to C2PA's technical standards. Content creators utilising tools that support these standards can embed cryptographically signed metadata into their media, encapsulated within the CR mark. As Adobe says, it works by scrolling over the CR icon to reveal a “digital nutrition label”. “This list of ingredients will show verified information as key context so people can be sure of what they’re looking at. This can include data about a piece of content, such as: the publisher or creator’s information, where and when it was created, what tools were used to make it, including whether or not generative AI was used, as well as any edits that were made along the way.” The ability to authenticate the provenance of content directly impacts copyright enforcement, licensing agreements, and the broader IP regulatory framework. The CR mark offers a robust tool for helping protect IP rights by embedding information on authorship and modifications directly within the content. It’s also potentially risky from an IP perspective if used with AI generated output. Currently in the USA, AI generated outputs are not protected by copyright. Advertising to the world at large that your works are effectively public domain is a risky IP strategy.

Content marketing is being dismantled as we speak. But not by some flashy new tool... And not by AI replacing jobs (despite what the linkedin thinkbois are saying) But by the slow erosion of everything that used to work. What used to drive pipeline... cold outbound, gated PDFs, over-engineered nurture sequences, and SEO-for-SEO’s-sake... now mostly burns cash and erodes trust. Here’s how I see it playing out: 1️⃣ Phase 1 (Now): The volume trap Companies crank out 50x more content thanks to AI. It feels like a win… but it’s just a content cold war. Mutually assured distraction. Strategy dissolves into production. But… the best of us (aka you!) are realizing that as content gets cheaper. Attention gets more expensive. What the best operators do here: - Refuse to scale noise. Raise the bar before increasing volume. - Audit by impact, not output (via Dreamdata). They ask: “What changed someone’s mind this quarter?” - Use AI for acceleration, not ideation. No prompting until the POV is nailed. - Gate nothing - until it's so good people ask where they can get more of it, or go deeper 2️⃣ Phase 2 (Next 12–18 months): The credibility collapse Audiences get smarter. They know when a piece was written by someone who’s never touched the problem. Trust erodes. Even “high quality” content without IP gets ignored if it doesn’t feel real. What the best operators do here: - Ship ONLY from lived experience. They write what they’ve done or seen up close. No more “best practices.” - Bring proof. Screenshots. Sales call transcripts. User messages. Real things. - Publish from product. They turn the most boring stuff (like changelogs) into narratives and feature launches into moments. - Close the empathy gap. They steal phrases from actual customers and inject them into copy. 3️⃣ Phase 3 (2–3 years): The unbundling of marketing itself Marketing becomes everyone’s job. Executives build brand. Sales drives narrative. Customer success becomes the best storyteller in the company. What the best operators do here: - Create systems, not silos. Content becomes ops that pulls signals from every team. - Train the org to ship. They enable product, CS, and sales to contribute (without bottlenecks). - Become editors-in-chief. They curate, sharpen, and distribute. Graduate from creator to conductor. - Center on Content IP. Invest in one durable concept that defines their POV and ties it all together. ⚡️ If this doesn’t match what you’re seeing… I’d love to be wrong.

Trust gravity will rule content economy For most of human history, information was scarce. People lived in small communities where knowledge was passed down through stories, traditions, and direct experience. With the invention of writing, information became more durable but was still controlled by a privileged few - scribes, priests, and rulers. The printing press changed that, unleashing a flood of books, pamphlets, and newspapers. Suddenly, ideas could spread faster than ever before. But history shows a clear pattern. As the volume of information increases, the ability to capture attention becomes harder. When books became abundant, literacy became the filter. When newspapers multiplied, editorial standards became the filter. When the internet removed those barriers, algorithms became the filter. Now, artificial intelligence is pushing this process to its extreme. For decades, the digital economy worked on a simple equation: content = attention = influence = power. If you could produce compelling content, you could build an audience. If you had an audience, you had influence. But AI is about to break this model. AI will make content infinite. It will generate blog posts, videos, music, and books at an unimaginable scale. The cost of production will collapse. And when something becomes infinite, its value disappears. Abundance of content will create content blindness. People will not see more. They will see less. Their feeds will be flooded with AI-generated material, most of it indistinguishable from human work. The problem will no longer be access to content, but knowing what to trust. Hence, Trust Gravity will become the only force that matters. People will not follow content. They will follow creators they trust. They will seek voices that consistently deliver value, cut through noise, and help them make sense of an overwhelming world. Trust Gravity will determine who gets heard, who gets remembered, and who gets ignored. Most creators will not understand this shift. They will use AI to produce more, thinking that volume still leads to visibility. But in a world drowning in content, more will be meaningless. The real scarcity will not be production. It will be judgment. The best creators will not be those who flood the internet with AI-generated content. They will be those who make careful decisions about what is worth saying, who use AI to sharpen their insights rather than replace them. They will go deeper, not wider. The creators who succeed will not be the ones who produce the most. They will be the ones whose words and ideas carry weight. When AI makes everything abundant, trust will be the only thing that remains scarce. And in a world of infinite content, Trust Gravity will be the force that pulls people in.

🔥 We’re in a trust recession. Trust is down. Consumption is down.     People aren’t showing up. They’re numbing out.    So if you think cranking out more content is the answer? It’s not. No one’s showing up because they’re exhausted from being sold to 24/7.    More content isn’t the answer. More connection is. This is something Alex Cattoni, founder of The Copy Posse, has been speaking on for years—because marketing that actually converts starts with trust.     And as someone who’s spent my career building personal brands, I couldn’t agree more. So instead of cranking out more noise, ask yourself 3 questions:    💜 How can I connect deeper with the right people instead of chasing vanity metrics?    💜 How can I help my audience lean in, not numb out?   (Authenticity > automation.) 💜 How can I show the process, not just the polished end result?   (Because trust is built behind the scenes.)    Trust is the new currency. The question is: Are you earning it? 👇    #ContentStrategy #PersonalBranding #Marketing #ThoughtLeadership #StandOutAuthority  

As mentioned last week, I'm going to deep-dive into the key trends emerging from our Human Experience report. This week it's trend number 2 - 'Reality Ctrl+R'. Read on to find out more: As the creation and manipulation of digital content becomes easier and more prevalent, the authenticity of information is increasingly questioned. The second key trend “Reality Ctrl+R” from Cognizant’s Human Experience report explores the challenges and opportunities in navigating a landscape where truth is continually redefined by new technologies.   With only 3% of consumers feeling in control of their data, trust is vital for building loyalty and driving growth. For businesses, this underscores the importance of accountability and transparency in privacy, data use, ethics, and internal practices to build trust and loyalty. Relying too much on algorithmic recommendations can disconnect us from our original intentions, as hyper-personalization shapes our perception of reality. With growing concerns over data privacy, a return to human-driven discovery is imminent. Future success for businesses will depend on collaborating directly with consumers to achieve genuine personalization, rather than just using algorithms. Generative AI makes it hard to tell what’s true and what’s not, which can harm democracy, increase division, and slow down innovation. To tackle this, we need smart rules and governance to curb disinformation while preserving free expression. Navigating this landscape requires collective efforts to foster resilience, critical thinking, and ethical innovation, to build a future where truth and trust go hand in hand. 👉🏼 For more detailed insights, read the full report here https://lnkd.in/g2tHycwt

Most brands publish content. But.... They should be distributing insight. Publishing says: → “We just released this 20 page PDF. Go read it.” But if no one’s doing that, the issue isn’t timing... It’s trust. It’s visibility. It’s belief that this piece is actually worth their attention. Because here's the thing: Marketers ruined it. Marketers ruined the POWER of gated content. They pressed publish on PDFs that were filled with meh content. They pressed publish on whitepapers that said nothing but buzz words. And they published reports that told us what we already knew... So the trust is gone. This is why your posts need relevance: → “Here’s what 98% of marketers in [INDUSTRY] are saying about [TOPIC]” → “We just realized XX% of [audience] are SCARED of [INSIGHT FROM REPORT]. ” Instead of this: “Our new guide is live.” Try this → “98% of CMOs told us [surprising stat] and here’s what that means for your Q3 playbook.” Instead of this: “Download our latest report.” Try this → “Most VPs of Marketing are quietly panicking about [X] and this data explains why.” Instead of this: “Check out our whitepaper.” Try this: → “We pulled 3 insights from a 20-page report so you don’t have to read it. Let’s go.” Marketers: Your job isn’t to drop links. It’s instill trust. Make them feel seen. Make them feel smart. Make them want to click. That’s the distribution mindset. #marketing #contentmarketing #socialmediamarketing

I watched a Creator kill a $600K/year business because the vibes were off. That's when I realized treating Creators like entrepreneurs is a mistake: Traditional business - Bad social sentiment? Buy ads. Most of those customers won't even see your IG. Creator business - Bad social sentiment? You're screwed. Your entire audience - your only source of customers - sees them...forever. Here's what happened: This Creator launched a membership on Patreon through my team. $50K/month recurring revenue, 5,000 happy members. Big win! Then a handful of subscribers complained: "You said we'd get 2 videos!" (The Creator was overwhelmed getting going and only put out 1 video the first month. It happens.) They lost sleep for a week and then decided to pull the plug. Not because of the lost revenue, but because those comments came from fans. Their lifeblood. They came to us and said "We need to shut it down." There's a happy ending - we worked with them to change the promise from 2 videos to 1 video. Simple. The subscribers stayed (they were happy with whatever they could get) the trolls were silenced, and the Creator felt better (and made a ton of money). But that willingness to bail on half a million bucks because of the vibes? That's the part most companies don't understand about Creators. The audience is their advantage, but it's also their biggest source of fear. When a brand gets product complaints, they issue a recall and a PR statement. When a Creator gets product complaints, they lose the core of their business. I've seen this pattern repeatedly: - Creator launches product - 99% love it, 1% complain - Creator reads every complaint 538208 times - Creator either pivots drastically or quits Traditional entrepreneurs optimize for profit. Creators optimize for trust. Audience satisfaction. One bad sponsor, product, or offer can destroy years of effort...or at least, that's the fear that every Creator has: One viral complaint can end everything. So if you work with Creators, as a partner, sponsor, platform, tool, or vendor, keep that in mind. Creators don't see their audiences as an asset to be exploited. They see it as a treasure to be protected. Have you seen any examples of this? --- 📸 This Indiana Jones meme of the Last Crusader protecting his treasure (the Holy Grail) felt like an appropriate metaphor. Indiana Jones had the heart of a Creator, and chose wisely.

OpenAI's first brand campaign doesn't mention AI. Their CMO calls it "bijou." I call it damage control. ChatGPT has 700 million weekly users but only 5% pay. Because people don't trust what they don't understand. What do I do with this? Will it take my job? Why pay? That's what happens when you optimize for hype over clarity. "Revolutionary!" "Disruptive!" "Change everything!" Great. Now everyone's scared. So their CMO did something smart and stopped talking about AI entirely. After years of tech companies preaching "AI will disrupt marketing," OpenAI bought 30-second TV spots, shot on 35mm film with human actors. Listen to how the CMO, Kate Rouch, describes this: - "Bijou moments-small, jewel-like moments of satisfaction, connection or achievement." - "Painstaking human craft. Shooting on 35mm film with custom-made lenses." - "Connecting with people on a human level is at the heart of this work." Every description emphasizes humanity. Why? You can't use AI to sell AI when the fundamental question is "Does this thing understand me?" The product is invisible, the fear is emotional. You need visible humans experiencing emotional benefits. A guy achieving ten pull-ups. A couple planning their first road trip together. Normal people, normal moments, quietly enhanced...not "our model has 175 billion parameters." Just...this gets you. This helps you. This is for you. The analog medium is a strategic necessity, for trust scales through proxies. Seeing "people like me" doing "things I do" with this tool as invisible assist. When your product triggers existential anxiety, capability proof makes it worse. You need reassurance proof. Reassurance is human trust transferred via human faces. The lesson isn't AI was wrong about marketing. Perhaps a quiet reminder that fundamentals are fundamental for a reason, and "bijou" is French for "we need to build a brand." Be it soap or superintelligence, humans buy from humans. Even when, especially when, the product isn't human.