Viacom’s branded content unit, Viacom Velocity, has formed an exclusive relationship with social influencer Shaun “Shonduras” McBride, who will serve as a creative strategy consultant for Velocity.
McBride will contribute strategic and creative ideas to Velocity projects for advertisers, which run on linear, digital and social platforms.
Viacom primarily targets young consumers who have been turning away from traditional TV and entertaining themselves on digital and social instead. Marketers and media companies are turning to influencers like McBride, who have built up followings on social media, to reach those audiences.
His first project will be to appear as a special social correspondent for MTV’s Woodies awards at SXSW on March 16. After that he will shoot video from the set of Spike’s Adam Carolla and Friends Build Stuff Live that he will distribute across his social media network.
With Velocity, McBride will also produce first look original and branded content, consult on campaigns for advertisers (good ones will get an “Approved by Shonduras” stamp) and develop strategies to increase fan engagement and growth on social platforms for Velocity activities.
“As one of the earliest influencers to organically emerge on Snapchat, Shaun has an innate ability to craft stories across various social platforms that create meaningful interactions with fans, and this aligns perfectly with what we do at Viacom Velocity where we make powerful connections among our fans, content, and marketing partners," said Thomas De Napoli, senior director of content & platform strategy at Viacom Velocity. “Shaun's pioneering spirit and innovative approaches will no doubt yield innovative collaborations with us.”
McBride, whose social footprint spans more than 2 million followers, was a pioneer in creating a marketplace on Facebook when he turned his skate shop into a successful online business. He was one of Snapchat’s first viral stars, and in 2015, he expanded onto YouTube where his daily vlog, Best Day Ever, attracted one million subscribers in just over a year.
