Will Corry’s insight:The notion of advertising as entertainment isn’t anything new – but it is being pulled out of the closet here. Score 78
We heard last week that Sainsbury’s is rethinking its marketing structure in order to put content at its heart. This represents an evolution from purely transactional activity online to a commitment to delivering its brand promise, “Live Well for Less”.
It’s a radical shift that comes on the back of huge traffic to Sainsbury’s Tu content portal, suggesting that consumers are ready to engage with brands in a more meaningful way than ever.
Another brand taking content seriously in 2013 is Coca-Cola, with the recent release of a short film featuring the animated polar bears that have come to represent the brand on screen.
Titled simply, “Bears:2013”, the seven-minute animation boasts some impressive credentials.It has been produced by Ridley Scott and directed by John Stevenson of “Kung Fu Panda” fame and so is bound to attract significant attention online. The film was created by CAA Marketing, a division of Creative Artists Agency (CAA).
Only last October, CAA’s co-chief David Messinger was profiled in Variety , revealing a thoroughly progressive outlook on the future of marketing: “The notion that you create a single campaign and send it out in the world and that’s it, those days are over,” he claimed, predicting a rise in branded shorts, web and TV series delivered for and by brands. And Coca-Cola isn’t the only brand gearing up to produce entertainment to raise its public profile; QVC, BestBuy, Chipotle and Cirque du Soleil are among the companies signed up to CAA’s roster alone.
The notion of advertising as entertainment isn’t anything new, yet Coca Cola’s film doesn’t engage in any overt product placement, the only branding being a logo at the start of the clip.You could, however, argue that those polar bears are so synonymous with Coca Cola that they serve as a pretty powerful branding tool with no need for a curvy Coke bottle in sight.
For companies without such a strong visual imprint in the public imagination as Coke, a more plausible option is to develop content that offers relevant information first and foremost, with entertainment as an optional added extra. Well-known brands doing this include H&M. Its inspired holiday shopping guide offered fashion forecasts and tips from industry experts.When content is this useful, most consumers are happy for it to be peppered with ads and relevant links to products, perhaps even hoping for directions to make purchasing their next on-trend outfit that bit easier.
ConversionPlanet,
H&M’s branded microsite is powered by ConversionPlanet, a customised content development agency with a mission to create “clicks with a purpose”. Given that brands are experts in their field, and that consumers are hungry for advice and information, the onus is on brands to develop a richer, more engaging relationship through content. Websites can be dense with information such as contact details and product information, so branded microsites offer a more compelling way for people to connect and discover more about a company’s products, services and brand values.
For brands without a stock of visual or entertaining content at their fingertips, and still rather accustomed to measuring online success via clicks and conversions – branded content in the form of attractively-designed, information-rich microsites could be the ideal stepping stone into content marketing.