Content marketing is the new branding strategy, according to Thomas Punch, global executive creative director, Vice Media, one of six featured speakers at a session at Advanced Advertising at NYC Television & Video Week on Wednesday.

The panel, which focused on heightening marketing efforts via branded content, included Punch, Geoffrey Campbell, senior director of branded content at MediaCom; Mark Lewis, vice president, client and brand partnerships, Discovery Communications; Ofer Oved, chief strategy officer, HIRO Media; Babs Rangaiah, partner, global marketing solutions, IBM | ix; and Harry Brisson, director, Nielsen Media Lab.

“Branded content is where is the consumer is. The audience is interested in consuming this type of information and content, and this type of creative has become more appealing,” said MediaCom’s Campbell. “It’s a space that now plays within an overall strategic campaign, where the creative opportunities are unlimited. There are no creative barriers, just opportunities.”

“From a marketer’s standpoint, I don’t think brands build with straight advertising anymore the way you once could, whether that is television or digital, DVR or whatever the consumer has access to,” said Rangaiah. “You really need to do something more engaging. That could be content in long-form or short-form. It can be social media posts. It can be what we call different experiences that can provide both information and entertainment.”

“There can be great content in brands and businesses who invest in creating content that delivers entertainment to consumers,” added Oved. “And it no longer has to look – and feel – like a straight commercial. The availability to consumers is far more reachable.”

What makes branded content different from traditional advertising, according to Nielsen’s Brisson, is the use of characters people like, engage in and find credible; the relatability in the content where people need to feel there is a connection; the unique content; and understanding how the content can fit within the brand identity.

“Nielsen has branded custom research that we use, for example, where we look at brand recall and purchase intent,” said Discovery’s Lewis. “One of the great things we are hearing from advertisers these days is more recall when not being tied to the traditional 30-second message. It all comes down to not just doing something because the consumers expect it, but to create a branding message in a different way that is both effective and often unexpected.”

“As consumption continues to evolve, so does the brand messaging,” added Punch.

An example of tying traditional advertising to branded content is NBCUniversal’s work with TRESemme hair productions.

At Advanced Advertising, NBCUniversal and TRESemme discussed their work together over the past several years. The conversation included John Harrobin, chief marketing officer, Content Innovation Agency, NBCUniversal; Alison Tarrant, executive vice president, Client Partnerships Group, NBCUniversal; and Laura DiMiceli, senior brand manager, TRESemme.

TRESemme has been partnering with E!, one of NBCUniversal’s cable outlets, since 2014. The focus this year was to move the TRESemme brand into the Fashion Week space.

“Obviously, there is a very relevant connection to the E! audience and the TRESemme brand, so we needed to engage the audience with the right type of conversation,” said NBCU’s Tarrant. “This is a true example of a strong partnership because both brands were really tapping into the equity each brand had to elevate our presence with consumers.”

“TRESemme brings the access to the designers and the stylists; and E! brings the audience,” said DiMiceli. “So, we have an overall objective to make Fashion Week as accessible as possible to the masses. And we still feel the need to do both traditional advertising and content-focused advertising because we have a millennial audience and want to cover all bases. We look for media partners that help us tell our story using all available options.”

With the growth of social media and digital platforms, there are added opportunities to reach consumers across all the different spaces where they are engaging in content.

“You need your foundational elements of traditional advertising, but it is also critically important to find the right opportunities to engage the audience with a more content strategy,” said NBCU’s John Harrobin. “And, for this particular partner, this is a combination that continues to work.

Tags:


  Save as PDF