This year at MIDEM, a gathering in France for the music industry elite, a number of panels focused on branding. Execs from Converse, NASCAR, PepsiCo, and Carhartt shed some light on the current state of music-based branding efforts. Advertising and the music industry are getting in harmony, Brandweek explains.

Another highlight is Converse’s Connectivity series. With the help of Pharrell Williams, Santigold and Julian Casablancas, it released its popular, exclusive track, “My Drive Thru,” which illustrated the brand’s originality and rich cultural history.

Both projects work with artists to push relationships past logo-slapping or product-placement—together they create something real.

Arby’s is the dialogue king of fast food restaurants. Its success was largely driven by clever online promos and good ol’ fashion free food giveaways.

As reported by BrandWeek, J.D. Power and Associates studied some 475,000 online conversations across the social media landscape.

The younger generations found significant value in Arby’s and were fanatics of the food giveaways each summer Wednesday. And, unlike previous generations confined by face-to-face interactions, they could take to the web to share opinions and spread the news — thus stirring important brand discussion.

Arby’s Wednesday deals were promoted on the web by a Facebook app and an online video that mocked competitors’ greasy cuisine. (And it didn’t hurt that the video went viral.)

As cost continues to become an issue for young adults, brands like Old Navy and Forever 21, for example, are well received because, well, they’re simply affordable. And these financial incentives help brands score in word-of-mouth web conversations across the board.

But the report doesn’t follow results to the cash register. So does the e-chatter translate to sales? Arby’s must be sure to follow through. Creating the conversation is the first step; participating is part two.

Here’s true brand strategy for the post-ad age: collaborate with your most dedicated consumers to design a grassroots approach to social media marketing. The chicken lovers at Chick-fil-A have done just that.

BrandWeek reports that Chick-fil-A has been uncommonly successful in the world of social media — without even trying. When it first checked out Facebook, the brand happily discovered that superfan Brandy Bitzer had created and was operating a hearty Chick-fil-A fan page. And it already had 25,000 fans.

Instead of acting out, shutting down the page and threatening a lawsuit as some brands have done in the past, the company embraced it decided to work with Bitzer. The brand fed her fresh content to grow the page’s user base to more than 1.2 million fans.

Since Chick-fil-A got involved last year, it’s used social media to interact with a pool of self-appointed C-F-A aficionados chiefly through giveaways and contests. Plus, it’s even asked for feedback on new menu items.

In turning an unofficial page author into a brand ambassador, Chick-fil-A empowered one of its most enthusiastic fans, which helped jump-start its digital marketing efforts. Who better to help build an engaging social media presence?

Most brands have enthusiastic supporters. Finding yours could be the key to stronger consumer support.

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