1. The document discusses brand journalism and how big brands like Cisco and Verizon are using content to humanize their brands.
2. It provides examples of Cisco's "The Network" and "My Networked Life" documentary series which tell stories with real people without overtly promoting Cisco.
3. The key lessons are that branded content works best when it focuses on readers rather than the brand, and that all companies can do brand journalism through various content types and by leveraging internal thought leaders.
7. 3 True StatementsAbout Brand Journalism
1. Brand journalism is a modern marketing imperative.
1. Use brand journalism to become a multi-dimensional
conversationalist.
2. Use brand journalism to become a multi-dimensional
conversationalist.
8. Cisco’s “The Network”
What’s the 5x rule?
Why?
• Traditional Marketing not as effective.
How?
• Recruit contributors who had thought leadership, reputation and influence.
• Divert ad spend from banner ads and promoted tweets to procuring high
quality content.
Goals?
• Hire good writers
• Produce quality content
• Get people to talk about your business in a new way.
9. Cisco‘s My Networked Life
Documentary series exclusive on the site.
Only mention of Cisco is a supporting fact from their
annual report appearing for a few seconds.
10. Cisco: Brand Journalism Done Right!
• Stories have to be authentic, full of real people doing real
things.
…AND don’t forget to use your own people…Could be your
best micro-contributors are right under your nose
13. Key Lessons
• Where did it fit with the overall marketing strategy?
• News is hard for brands to pull off, particularly when
they’re ruling out coverage topics.
14. Key Lessons
• Branded content works best when brands put the needs
of their readers ahead of their own, usually by removing
themselves from the story entirely.
15. Big or Small – You Can Do it!
• Podcast
• Guest bloggers
• G+ Hangouts live + recorded
• YouTube “How To’s” or “Tip of the Week”
• Internal thought leaders + contributors
• Social advocacy + amplification
• Use goals that are realistic to your size
As a culture, we lost faith in companies and stopped trusting them. We changed both the way we perceive companies and the way we make buying decisions. or companies, the implications are huge. Traditional approaches to marketing are not working like they once did. Customers don’t respond to campaigns, and even when there is a large market for what a company does, customers are just out of reach, giving one marketer reason to call traditional display advertising a ‘branding black hole.’
Here we see Unilever’s strategy to reduce Paid media expenditure to 60% by 2015, with an increase in Earned media.
It allows the company or organization to become “human.” Being human is about having a real, honest connection with people, about being transparent, responsive and above all accessible. Brand journalism involves telling journalism-style stories about a company that make readers want to know more, stories that don’t read like marketing or advertising copy.
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