Dive Brief: 

• Social media platform BeReal today (April 10) announced the launch of its native advertising platform in the United States, per details shared with Marketing Dive. 
• Over 200 advertisers have already marketed on the platform internationally, including Levi’s, which launched a lifestyle activation that saw five-times higher engagement compared to other social apps. Initial ad products include targeted in-feed ads and takeovers.
• BeReal is supporting the launch with the appointment of Ben Moore, who previously led global media buying partnerships at TikTok, as its U.S. managing director. The company is also building a dedicated team in the region focused on sales, partnerships and user growth. 

Dive Insight: 

BeReal is upping its bid to advertisers with the launch of its U.S. advertising platform, a move that has been anticipated since the platform’s 2020 launch. The platform, which has over 40 million monthly users globally, promotes authenticity and tasks users to post a real-time, unfiltered snapshot of their experiences at a random time each day. Posts leverage a dual-camera feature, called Dual Take, which captures a front and back photo simultaneously.

BeReal’s ad formats are meant to mirror the user experience, according to the brand. Targeted in-feed ads are integrated into the flow of the platform’s content for low-friction engagement, while takeovers offer brands exclusive ad placement for one full day. Advertisers including Nike, Netflix and Amazon are among those who have already run ads on BeReal, while Levi’s launched one of the first lifestyle activations on the platform. 

“With BeReal, we’ve found a space that reinforces our cultural relevance,” said Laëtitia Garsaud, head of media Europe at Levi’s, in a statement. “This partnership lets us connect with our audience in a sincere, modern way.”

Supporting the launch is Moore, who brings know-how from his time at TikTok along with over a decade of experience of scaling monetization strategies across platforms and agencies, per release details. Moore oversees U.S. revenue and user growth, agency and brand strategy and partnerships with ad-tech platforms and will drive BeReal’s expansion into the region. Additional support comes from Ian Lutfiyya, who serves as BeReal’s director of agency partnerships. The exec held previous roles at Google, Meta and Snap.

BeReal’s announcement is also paired with details regarding its user base, a notable move from a platform that has been notoriously private about its numbers. Of its 40 million monthly active users, 85% are Gen Z. Its top markets include the U.S., Japan and France, with over 50% of users active six days a week, per release details. Still, some stats, which estimate that its user count peaked at around 70 million in 2023, signal that BeReal could be struggling to maintain its momentum. The platform was sold to French video game and app developer Voodoo for $500 million last June.

The introduction of BeReal’s ads platform comes as TikTok’s fate in the U.S. remains uncertain. Though the final day of its 75-day extension to work out a sell-off deal in the U.S. or face a ban arrived last week, President Trump announced another 75-day extension of the deadline. The potential ban has forced many brands to develop contingency plans for where they would redirect their social spending, a reality BeReal is no doubt looking to capitalize on.

BeReal also nodded to recent studies indicating that ads placed in positive environments perform better than those on traditional platforms for brand recall and purchase intent, adding that 80% of its users report that they feel the safest on its platform. Focusing on positivity — a strategy also leveraged by Snapchat — could help BeReal strengthen its bid to marketers. 

“BeReal was built as a pressure-free space where people connect authentically – and that philosophy extends to how we introduce advertising,” said Moore, in a statement. “Our goal is to help brands show up in a way that feels real, respectful, and aligned with how our users already engage.”