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Corporate reputation is more valuable—and can be more vulnerable—than ever.
Consumers, more than ever before, expect brands to not only provide quality products and services but also to align with their values and contribute positively to society.
At the same time, traditional media’s influence is evolving, making it increasingly necessary for brands to be fluid and control their own narratives.
In this environment, custom content has emerged as a powerful tool for brands to tell compelling, reputation-enhancing stories.
At Branded Content Days 2025, Natasha Whitling, Senior Vice President in Burson’s Corporate & Public Affairs practice, and Crystal Luce, Senior Director of Public Relations for Dollar General Corporation, will take the stage to share how their partnership leveraged custom content to drive brand reconsideration and positively impact Dollar General’s reputation.
Amplifying brand and reputation among stakeholders
Dollar General, a major retailer with over 20,000 stores across the U.S., recognized an opportunity to improve its brand and reputation.
Together, Burson and Dollar General developed Here For What Matters in 2021, a long-term storytelling initiative designed to authentically showcase multiple facets of the company’s positive impact.
“When we launched the Here For What Matters campaign, we did so with the intent of helping amplify our brand and reputation among key stakeholders, as well as provide added clarity around the benefits that Dollar General specifically brings,” says Crystal Luce.
With misconceptions about the brand’s role in communities among its target audiences, Dollar General employed a strategy that would highlight its charitable and community contributions—providing affordable essentials, creating jobs, and supporting local organizations—while also resonating emotionally with its audiences.
“Here For What Matters focuses on the tangible impact of Dollar General’s mission and communicating it through owned, social, earned, and paid channels to drive positive awareness, often brand reconsideration, and improved brand metrics,” explains Natasha Whitling.
The campaign’s content pillars highlighted:
- Expanding access to fresh food and essentials
- Supporting employees through mentoring, training, and education
- Strengthening communities via philanthropy and local partnerships
Why custom content made the difference
While earned media has traditionally been the backbone of corporate communication, the rules of reputation management continue to shift.
“With the contraction of traditional earned media, we believe custom content and native advertising can have an increasingly important role to play in these plans,” says Whitling.
Choosing the right media partners was crucial. Burson and Dollar General evaluated potential partners based on four key factors:
- Audience reach – Did the partner have access to Dollar General’s target opinion elite audience?
- Topical fit – Would the content feel authentic and well-received by that audience?
- Effort alignment – Did the media partner understand Dollar General’s vision and show creativity?
- Track record – Had the partner demonstrated success in producing impactful brand storytelling?
Engaging in strategic media partnerships with outlets like FORTUNE, The Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, People, and Reader’s Digest enabled Dollar General to reach key audiences with controlled, yet authentic, messaging.
“The stories didn’t provide the necessary news hooks to drive earned media attention, but they had the heart we needed to help inform and move our target audience,” says Whitling.
Building trust for more authentic storytelling
For custom content to resonate, trust between brand, agency, and media partners was essential.
“Regular communication, candor, and flexibility were critical,” says Luce. “We needed media partners with emotional intelligence and storytelling skills to help stakeholders—many of whom had never been on camera before—feel comfortable sharing their stories.”
By fostering strong partnerships, the team was able to produce content that felt less like corporate messaging and more like heartfelt, meaningful narratives—something authentic to Dollar General’s brand that resonated deeply with audiences.
For Dollar General, success wasn’t just about storytelling—it was about measurable impact.
“We measured engagement with the content—views, completion rates, time on page—and conducted brand lift studies to understand the impact of the content on DG’s brand perception,” says Whitling.
The data showed that custom content was not just engaging but also effective in improving positive sentiment and brand affinity.
The future of branded content in reputation management
As branded content continues to evolve, its role in reputation management is only expected to grow.
“A strong reputation grounded in action, communicated clearly and creatively, and deployed as capital across stakeholders will enable clients to succeed in this complex and uncertain environment,” says Whitling, quoting Burson CEO Corey duBrowa.
For brands facing reputational challenges, native advertising and custom content offer an opportunity to take control of their own narratives and engage audiences on their own terms.
Or, as Whitling puts it: “In a world where reputation is one of your greatest assets and the communication landscape is constantly changing, branded content has an important role to play in helping promote and protect reputation.”
With thought leaders like Natasha Whitling and Crystal Luce driving the conversation, Branded Content Days 2025 promises to be a must-attend event for anyone serious about the future of branded content and reputation management.
Want to hear more? Join Natasha Whitling and Crystal Luce at Branded Content Days 2025 in New York City.
