What are you most excited about in the digital marketing space at the moment?
What excites me most is the rise and rise of storytelling, but more specifically how different mediums are being exploited to tell these stories – and how the nature of these mediums affect the way a story is told. I’m a fan of Vine and Instagram video and love how the restrictions placed on these formats often generate remarkably imaginative, powerful and concisely told mini-stories. There are currently two challenges which excite me: how to unite mediums so that they complement one another, and how to get content in front of as many eyeballs as possible through the art of distribution and the science of its measurement.
What’s your favourite example of innovative digital marketing?
I don’t know if it counts, but I always return to ZeFrank when I need inspiration or help making judgements regarding the emotional pitch of a video or other piece of content; while he’s not marketing a product, he is marketing himself. I’m also intrigued by the idea of companies selecting individuals as voices of authenticity in the social sphere so as to eschew the impersonal company. ZeFrank may not be to everyone’s taste, but his videos are often at once whimsical, profound, funny, educational, idiosyncratic, original and, above all, entertaining. He has an uncanny ability to balance all these factors, and I admire him for that.
What’s next for digital content?
There are certainly lots of innovations happening among the tools we use. I’ve long been interested in the power of video particularly interactive video – where user behaviour can be tracked and iterated upon. There are a couple of companies, such as Videopath, doing interesting things in this space.
At the more global level, the most interesting cultural shift may be the development of companies’ publishing arms. Red Bull is perhaps the prime example; they started out trying to sell as many tin cans as possible and in doing so became a behemoth in the world of media production. This example is quite exceptional in scale, but is indicative of a general trend which could have myriad consequences. This includes subordination of traditional PR; blurred lines between products and marketing; further opportunities for embedded marketing; and the development of new revenue streams.
What defines good content?
It must fulfil its purpose, which means that the purpose of content must be defined prior to its creation. Success is then measured against this purpose (or KPI), which can vary in significance depending on its timing.
We’ve driven collaborations by flattering potential partners in promoted content, and we’ve concentrated on generating buzz around national holidays and celebrations – but my main focus is to produce evergreen, jack-of-all-trades content that we can build a stable channel on. For me this means a continuous stream of organic traffic through search and a constant influx of traffic through social shares, as well as acceptable conversion rates from paid visits and a strong appeal to potential partners. Boring I know, but that’s my staple diet!
What is the biggest myth about content marketing?
With the help of content discovery systems such as Outbrain and contemporary analytics platforms, there is no reason why content marketing can’t fall under the umbrella of performance marketing in the same way as search engine marketing and other traditional performance channels. The implications of this are that smaller companies and startups can start investigating content distribution without having to gamble large sums of money.
How are you amplifying and maximising your content?
We have a portfolio of content distribution systems along with social media channels and an increasing number of direct partnerships with publishers. One of the truly wonderful things about content marketing is how partners actively seek you out in order to publish your content, often resulting in much more effective and mutually beneficial campaigns.
Where do you go for great content?
I must admit I’m an avid Guardian reader, so I’m responsible for quite a few direct hits. I then use my Facebook feed for updates from US publications like The Atlantic, The National and The Verge, who all publish posts regularly and know how to capture a good story in a short teaser: a skill I’ve grown to admire. Aside from that I often have great content delivered to me by friends and members of our team. Almost by definition, I guess that’s the way great content should be discovered! Ah, and YouTube. I adore YouTube!
Please provide a link to great content you have discovered recently and tell us why you think it’s great?
The North Face mix great storytelling with beautiful imagery, and they’re not afraid to mix mediums with animation which echoes real footage. This latest teaser epitomises this, and simply makes you want more. You then find yourself watching a whole episode and you still want more!
If appropriate, how do you work with Outbrain and what has been your experience thus far?
I work with Outbrain at a truly global level, promoting articles in our magazine across six languages and in Europe, North and South America, Australasia and increasingly in Asia. I mentioned SEM before, which is a channel which can be scaled through Google very quickly thanks to the extraordinary reach of their networks. I see Outbrain as a tool which can be used to scale in a similarly rapid and controlled fashion, and am therefore excited about our prospects for the future.
This advertisement feature is brought to you by Outbrain, sponsors of the Guardian Media Network’s digital content hub
