sponcon

noun

spon·​con ˈspän-ˌkän 

variants or less commonly spon-con

: content (see content entry 1 sense 1c) posted usually by an influencer on social media that looks like a typical post but for which the poster has been paid to advertise a product or service

Kendall Jenner regularly does sponcon on her Instagram, but yesterday, she put a special (and rare) twist on her post for Moon oral care: She went makeup free in the mirror selfie she shared .

—Alyssa Bailey

… Fishel did spon-con for Cinnamon Toast Crunch-flavored CoffeeMate …

—Rebecca Alter

Using influencers to sell products to the sick can be a particularly insidious form of marketing …. With today's ambiguous regulations, health care sponcon will continue to saturate our feeds with posts that appear sincere but end up being misleading.

—Suzanne Zuppello

Examples of sponcon in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Brilliantly incorporating the sponcon, Doja Cat tracks her feline friend to the ends of the universe using its Tile collar. —Vulture, 31 Jan. 2022

A number of Special Operations veterans have built brands on the back of their wartime experiences, peddling tactical sponcon on Instagram, landing brand partnerships with energy drink companies and firearm manufacturers—and, of course, teaching tactical firearms courses. —Rachel Monroe, Wired, 15 Jan. 2021

After a nod to Mama Ninfa Laurenzo, who popularized fajitas in Houston and nationwide, and another eyeroll-worthy sponcon aside, this time for Chipotle, the contestants were asked to cook their own iterations of the dish. —Emma Balter, Chron, 5 May 2022

This was a fine week for fake sponcon. —Vulture, 4 Mar. 2022

This is James’ coming out party for a still-top-secret-at-the-time-of-publishing sponcon event. —Ariana Romero, refinery29.com, 19 Aug. 2021

Word History

Etymology

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First Known Use

2015, in the meaning defined above