A 6 second video from a Justin Bieber look-alike is probably not the first tactic in your marketing plan, but maybe it should be. Celebrities have long played an important role in creating brand awareness and buzz around social causes because of their mass market of consumer followers. With a growing millennials consumer base and an increasing desire to reach audiences beyond TV screens and magazine pages, brands and advertisers are shifting gears from mainstream celebrities to the “new” celebrity on social media.

YouTube star Jenna Marbles has more subscribers than Katy Perry or Taylor Swift. Instagram and Vine stars sold out stadiums across the country on the DigiTour. Simply put, social media is transforming celebrity.

Connecting the “new” celebrities to a social cause gives organizations or brands more access to new audiences on emerging platforms, resulting in social sharing and real action. So how do we implement this successfully?