Digital media and the rise of the accidental publisher
UCAS Media managing director Jeremy Phillips asks what it will take for brands to become successful publishers by sheer chance.
Perhaps counter-intuitively a recent study by Vibrant Media revealed that more consumers in the UK say they actually trust content from brands (27%) than trust content from publications (23%). In response to this, everywhere we look brands are morphing into accidental publishers, setting up specialised divisions that offer ever-greater swathes of content to already overwhelmed audienc-es.
Take Airbnb, for example. The meteoric recent rise of people using the accommodation finder (six million new guests in 2013), has provided the brand with a vast distribution network for trusted content. As a result, Airbnb launched a travel quarterly magazine called Pineapple in November.
Articles in the launch issue included a guide to London neighborhoods straight from the locals (at least one of whom happens to own a house listed on the site), a culinary tour of Seoul (penned by a pair of food writers staying at an Airbnb) and a photo story documenting a cycling trip around the Bay Area (which, of course, included a night in an Airbnb cabin).
Elsewhere fashion retailers such as luxury menswear brand Frank & Oak have launched editorial divisions since providing relevant content results in the collection of consumer sign-up data, which can then be used to seg-ment their website audience to find the brand advocates and provide more targeted offers, advice and style tips.
Even here at UCAS, we’ve found ourselves on the road of the accidental publisher. 20 years ago, UCAS was a form that applicants had to fill-in to apply for university places. From there, we evolved into an online gateway to offer applicants additional written and video content that will help them to make informed university lifestyle choices.
Publishing, in its traditional sense, may no longer be the business it once was but brands are nonetheless queuing up to implement digital publishing strategies – mainly because the numbers being reported by the social networks don’t lie. Facebook tells us that the number of users watching daily video content has grown from one billion in June last year to over three billion at the start of 2015, so the pressure is on brands to be a part of this insatiable appetite for video content.
Commercially, major advertisers are shifting around 21% of spend from display into native and content – including paid-for sponsorships, in-feed distribution and video pre-roll. This accounted for £216 million during the first half of 2014. As this number continues to rise, advertisers will look to more audience specific content providers.
In our case, students are a much sought-after market, and on the other side you have forums like Mumsnet who are piquing the interest of brands who stand to benefit from connecting with that audience.
So the appetite for content is gargantuan; advertisers are looking for innovative and targeted content to hang their hats on and brands are devising strategies that gather audience data and increase consumer advocacy.
From our experience to date, however, I would offer one word of warning. It’s important to remember that we’re ‘accidental’ publishers. That means it’s OK to admit that we don’t yet have the experience and expertise to be publishers and therefore we shouldn’t be afraid to seek partners, help and solid advice.
In our case, Telegraph Media Group is supporting our bid to launch content channels; we’ve made a conscious choice to get some expert advice on distribution and making our channels commercially successful from a recognised leader that knows the industry inside out.
The reason for this is because poor content, delivered badly is likely to do more harm than good to any brand venturing into this space. Consumers are largely overwhelmed with content, so it’s our responsibility to make considered choices about what we create and how we deliver it.
The opportunity may be big, but all of us accidental publishers need to recognise where our strengths lie and understand how best to serve our audiences content that they’ll wish to embrace, share and engage with.