Leveraging The Convergence Of Content And Commerce For Campaign Success
DMARGE is an Australian men’s publisher that recently won Publishing Company of the Year and Branded Content Studio of the Year in the 2021 Mumbrella Publish Awards.
As brand marketing and e-commerce converge, marketers are increasingly expected to provide tangible results to justify marketing spend on media related activities. ‘Content commerce’ is an exciting new area for marketers, but with squeezed budgets, fragmented audiences and ambiguity of digital measurements, the pressure is greater than ever to deliver branded content that addresses consumer needs and ultimately drives conversion.
Digital media revolutionised and democratised access to consumers, enabling brands with limited budgets to act bigger than they are and reach consumers at scale. The challenge, however, remains to develop creative ideas that inspire high quality content, which effectively can guide consumers through the funnel and drive action – preferably that of brand uplift and ultimately purchase.
Why niche publishers like DMARGE can offer more effective environments for publishing branded content
In early 2021, we conducted an independent study with Nature Research to understand how DMARGE fulfills our male audience’s needs. Results suggested there was a clear level of purchase intent that was driving visits and longer consumption of content. These results indicate a broader need of readers for high quality and informative content they can trust in order to make the right choice for them.
Key insights from the Nature Research study included:
- 87% want to be ‘entertained’ by content they read and watch
- 78% are looking to discover ‘new things’ to buy when visiting
- 77% want product recommendations to help make better purchasing decisions
- Importantly, 72% trust the product recommendations put forward by DMARGE
The consumers are savvy enough to see through off-the-shelf, one dimensional ideas without purpose that don’t pass the ‘so what?’ test (e.g. plonk an influencer in an x brand car and hope for the best). This often results in pumped up expectations and disappointing results leaving marketers underwhelmed and reluctant to invest more into branded content.
The key to the success of DMARGE is creating a win-win situation for brands and consumers alike; we treat each brand campaign the same as a creative agency would – always creative, original, informative and based on purposeful insights that mean something to our audience. In turn, we build trust with our readers, allowing us to reliably guide them through the decision-making process of buying a new car, applying for a credit card or choosing health insurance.
When branded content is done well, what can success look like?
In late 2020, we were able to help Pernod Ricard change the dusty image of cognac by making Martell Blue Swift the ‘cool’ dark spirit that would rejuvenate the category. The insight-led ‘Flip the Sip’ campaign encouraged Australian men to ditch their tired drinks repertoire and try Martell.
Through the quick-witted fictional character ‘Mr Swift’, we were able to create content that was not only emotive and inspiring, but the narrative enabled the talent to explore product features in a way that was authentic and engaging.
This one big campaign idea was then executed across multiple content commerce pieces, targeting niche audiences at key occasions. The integration of shoppable content smoothed the path to purchase for readers inclined to give Martell Blue Swift a try.
Whilst the campaign delivered 3.8x ROI on media value and was highly successful across key metrics such as dwell time, it also delivered significant sales uplift of Martell Blue Swift across retail during the campaign period. Pernod Ricard saw a 9.2x return on campaign investment with Martell Blue Swift becoming the key growth driver for the category.
The campaign received a ‘Highly Commended’ in Mumbrella’s 2021 Publish Awards for Best Publisher-Led Campaign of the Year. (Watch the case study below)
So what are the elements that make branded content a positive and effective experience for brands?
- Regardless of budget, there needs to be a deep understanding of the audience’s needs and wants. This leads to more authentic storytelling that won’t seem out of place in the environment.
- Make allowances to push the boundaries and translate ‘brand speak’ in a way that resonates with the audience. This may feel counterintuitive to a lot of marketers, but publishers often know better than anyone else what makes their audiences tick (and click).
- Remove complexity wherever possible, be that scripts, voice overs, production or multiple cut downs and edits. Many moving parts are invariably more difficult to pull together, and continuous rounds of changes dilute the message and stakeholders become less invested the more complicated it gets.
- Consider sacrificing mass reach by targeting a smaller audience with a genuine intent and interest in hearing your brand story.
- Make a point of working with the publisher to understand what performed well creatively (and why) as this will make planning future campaigns easier.
For more information on how to increase branded content engagement and efficacy and explore what makes men click, read our recent case studies or get in contact with DMARGE today.