Sol de Janeiro’s skin and haircare products might not be in everyone’s house yet, but ask Gen Z and you’ll quickly learn it’s the gold standard for brand authenticity.

At its core, authenticity means transparency, communication, and a deep understanding of the consumer base. Interaction with customers is essential for any brand claiming to be “real,” and AdAge has dubbed Sol de Janeiro the darling of Gen Z for passing this authenticity test.

Long considered a buzzword, authenticity has proven its worth: it helps build loyal customer bases who return and recommend products to others. In fact, 86% of consumers say authenticity matters when deciding which brands to support. Gen Z especially values authenticity, and brands that don’t adapt risk losing their trust. However, the difference between succeeding and failing at authenticity marketing might be simpler to navigate than it first appears.

A Case-Study in Authentic Marketing: Sol de Janeiro

Sol de Janeiro threw its hat in the fragrance and body care ring just about a decade ago with bright colors to appeal to younger audiences, body-positive messaging, and a diverse, disruptive stance on the industry. It has since become a household name for Gen Z, with a focus on quality and viral skin routines fitting into their desire for an authentic consumer experience.

“Our brand ethos stems from the beaches of Rio de Janeiro, where we accept, embrace, hug and celebrate everybody, every curve, every fold and every truth,” founder Heela Yang said to the Moodie Davitt Report. “Treating our skin every day comes as naturally as showering or brushing our teeth. It is more than a daily habit, but an exciting and invigorating part of our day.”

They used the full breadth of their authentic marketing when they launched their new scent Cheirosa 59 and its accompanying product line in early 2024. The product sold out in store-fronts and online during its launch week.

The brand appeals to authenticity by paying homage to its Brazilian roots, featuring diverse body types and skin tones in its imagery, naming most products in Brazil’s native language, Portuguese, and using bright color-coding by scent to make its wide selection easy to navigate for new consumers. The brand goes beyond imagery to build a consistent and recognizable persona.

With Cheirosa 59, the brand kept things consistent with naming their scent after a significant year in Brazilian culture, and introducing the new scent through influencer and pop-up events encouraging the testing of the scent's perfume, body butter, and shower oil.

The secret to Sol de Janiero’s success in Gen Z with each scent launch is meeting customer expectations, a grassroots approach to social media, and alternating emphasis on body positivity or experiential campaigns. They also offer refills for products at a fraction of the cost to conserve plastic in manufacturing. It appeals to a desire for sustainability and affordability: important qualities in Gen Z audiences.

So while they might not be recognized by all generations, for Gen Z they hit a perfect storm of experiential marketing, social-awareness, and trend-setting.

Common Mistakes in Authentic Marketing

Trying and failing at authenticity can backfire, especially when a company gets called out. It results in bad reputations, losing customers, and being written off as a brand entirely. A poll found that 20% of people have unfollowed brands on social media when they felt they were inauthentic. So how can brands avoid the pitfalls of inauthentic authenticity?

At a time when purchases have increasing political implications, Gen Z seeks reassurance that the brands they choose are morally aligned. However, when taking a moral stance is not true to a brand’s persona, it can drive consumers away.

A survey of 800 Gen Zers found 47% of respondents agreed that a brand that advertises around an unrelated cause is engaged in no more than a sales ploy. The balancing act of authenticity is a desirable goal, but the real goal is finding a brand-aligned moral stance and sticking to it.

The main culprit is a lack of commitment to brand morals. Target serves as a prime example. The company has long touted its support for the LGBTQ+ community through its annual Pride collection, launched in 2013, along with advertisements celebrating Black History Month. This past year, it took a step back from their previously established moral stance, rolling back their DEI and LGBTQ+ support initiatives. This was done out of fear of federal backlash, leading to a similarly negative backlash: boycott campaigns, lawsuits, and a drop in stock price by as much as $27.27 per share. It seems the only thing worse than not taking a moral stance is taking one and eventually backing out. 

Another common mishap in authentic marketing is passively partaking in trends. “There’s nothing worse than companies jumping on every Twitter trend for likes while ignoring their own actions,” Lynn Rosenthal, CEO and founder of Periscape VR said to Rolling Stone. “Companies need to stop acting like teenagers and realize they have a social, ecological, and ethical obligation to the world. Focus on your customers and workers. That will deliver lasting returns, both financially and socially,” she said.

A clear example of Gen Z’s aversion to fake branding morals was their reaction to numerous corporate Twitter accounts posting for International Women’s Day. In response, a bot program flooded the comment sections with reminders about each company’s gender wage gap.

Companies often lean on moral stances and trends to prove their authenticity to Gen Z, but low-effort attempts in these areas risk backfiring over time.

How to Authentically Market to Gen Z

The most common way a brand will appeal to Gen Z’s authenticity is by giving their brands a face through influencers. However, influencer-based marketing can lead to more problems than revenue. Between over-saturation of sponsored content and managing the reputation of the influencer, there are a lot of ways to go wrong when making a social media personality the face of your brand.

Some studies have found that sponsored influencer posts actually drive down brand engagement while unsponsored influencer posts seem to perform exceedingly well in building brand reputation. The difference is a very fine line.

The way to create unsponsored influencer content is through focusing on electronic word-of-mouth. By encouraging content creation, exposure, and quality of content surrounding the brand, brands can cater to increases of organic, user-generated content.

An example of this done effectively is Cotopaxi, an outdoor gear brand focused on sustainability and accessibility. Most of their branded content focuses on outdoor lifestyles and how their products are made using recycled fabrics. Their sponsored influencer content is posted directly onto their corporate account to avoid claims of  “selling out” while they respond consistently to feedback from consumers in the comment section about product design. 

Another brand doing this well, especially for Gen Z is athletic clothing company, Gym Shark. Gymshark’s philosophy is to sponsor influencers who create fitness content wearing their clothing, rather than content that deliberately advertises the product. They also focus on long-term partnerships with influencers instead of paying for one-off videos.

“It’s all about being authentic,” Gymshark’s Head of PR Stephanie O’Neill said. “The vast majority of Gymshark ambassadors were once fans and consumers of the brand. Who better to represent the brand than those who actually love Gymshark?”

It’s no mystery that brands with a two-pronged approach to social media content tend to fare better in terms of building rapport with Gen Z. They have tailored corporate promotions and unique influencer campaigns to make a web of content that creates a feedback loop of normal people making content around the product too. 

The Case for Authenticity

Gen Z, ages 13 to 28, continues to grow as a consumer base. For marketers, the biggest challenge is delivering an authentic, unique experience to each individual within this group.

By leveraging transparency in marketing strategies, understanding the consumer base, and having clear communication with returning customers, brands can achieve a more authentic brand experience, but misusing those marketing tactics can always backfire if the brand doesn’t commit fully to using authenticity strategies. 

Authentic marketing is just one approach to engaging Gen Z and their preferences. It’s important to assess whether authenticity marketing fits your brand or if other strategies might better resonate with this audience.

Either way, it’s clear that individuality, consistency, transparency, and communication are the true markers of authenticity that Gen Z values.

Willow Pawlisch is From Day One’s summer fellowship reporter. She's a student at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, double majoring in Journalism and Latin American Studies/Language. 

(Featured photo by Makidotvn/iStock)