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Starbucks is ramping up its investment in employee-led marketing with the launch of a new pilot scheme in partnership with TikTok.
Through the “Creator Network” program, the coffee giant will issue briefs to employee creators and compensate them for the content they produce through a share of advertising revenues.
The partnership with the social media platform marks an ongoing investment in employee-generated content (EGC) at Starbucks, an increasingly popular marketing tool in which staff are directly encouraged to post about the brand or organization they work for.
Starbucks & TikTok launch EGC partnership
The partnership between Starbucks and TikTok, per Marketing Dive, was announced at Cannes Lions, a major festival for the marketing industry.
It will allow Starbucks to create and manage a dedicated pool of colleagues on the platform, who will produce and post content on behalf of the brand.
Starbucks staff are savvy social media users, with the employees reportedly posting three times more than those of similar-sized food and beverage chains.
The announcement reaffirms the company’s emphasis on EGC as a part of its paid advertising strategy.
“Every day, our partners bring Starbucks to life by creating moments of connection with our customers and with each other,” said Erin Silvoy, Senior Vice President of Global Marketing at Starbucks. “And more than ever, they are sharing those moments with the world online in authentic, creative and unique ways.”
Silvoy added that the new partnership will help Starbucks to “celebrate and amplify our partners’ authentic storytelling.”
‘Authentic social content’
It builds on existing Starbucks initiatives that encourage and reward staff for publishing user-generated content.
In 2024, it launched a ‘Green Apron Creators’ program. Starbucks’ Global Chief Brand Officer, Tressie Lieberman, detailed its impact in November 2025: “At the heart of the Starbucks Experience is our partners (baristas), and we are elevating partner voices through the program Green Apron Creators, which we have been piloting for the last year.”
“We have found an incredible group of baristas who are creating authentic social content about working at Starbucks, in their voice, for our social channels,” she wrote. “I love seeing their creativity and passion show up through engaging content.
The exec also noted that it has served as a “development opportunity,” particularly for Gen Z colleagues who make up most of the company’s barista workforce.
“This helps drive sales and connection as the program enables us to extend the coffeehouse experience beyond the walls of our cafes,” Lieberman noted.
Why employers are betting on EGC
Companies are increasingly using EGC as a tool to promote their brands, as Silvoy suggested, through the “authentic” nature of the content they create.
According to a 2025 Harris Poll study, 78% of adults agree that posts from employees are more authentic than posts from corporate accounts.
As well as supporting marketing efforts, EGC can also help develop a company’s employer brand, showcasing what it’s like to work in a particular role, team, or organization.
Historically, many employers have been wary of EGC. Concerns range from how to effectively control what is posted to whether staff should be compensated for the content they produce.
In many cases, workers who have posted EGC without permission from the company have been ordered to stop posting, however successful their posts may be – prompting online backlash.
A third of employee respondents in the Harris Poll study said they would not feel confident to post on social media without fear of retaliation.
Another question mark is whether to make posting mandatory or option. 80% of respondents believed brand ambassadorship should be voluntary.
The challenge for employers remains how to encourage and incentivize EGC that is consistent with existing brand messaging, without stifling the authenticity and passion this type of content offers.
Starbucks’ partnership with TikTok, albeit a pilot scheme, is an example of how employers can more proactively manage EGC, while also ensuring staff are fairly compensated.
