Atributos creativos del branded content: análisis de piezas premiadas en“El Sol” (2015-2021)

Branded content has become one of the most effectivecreativestrategiesforbrandstoachieve a complicit contact with their audiences. The demands of the current communication landscape have forced advertisers to bet on creativity to offer valuable content that involves the target in the construction of the brand itself. The purpose of this research is to identify and explain the creative attributes of branded content using a qualitative methodology. To this end, an analytical recording model was designed, based on previous theories; this was applied to a sample of the 23 pieces that have won a grand prize and/or a gold award at the “El Sol” Festival during its last six editions. The results allow us to delineate a creative pattern of success in branded content strategies, which has remained stable in recent years, and responds to content with affective objectives, often supported by behavioural and/or cognitive nuances; insights that combine, mainly, emotional and cultural aspects, and that articulate promises in the form of benefits for the consumer; emotional arguments; close and empathetic tones that use formats such as storytelling or analogy; and indirect concepts to convey the promises.