To stay relevant, more and more publishers are working with their clients to create engaging marketing content for their customers. Some publishers have integrated this content into their own so smoothly that it’s sometimes difficult to tell what’s paid and what’s owned. Hear from Vox Media and one of its clients on how they successfully managed this integration. Presenter: Marty Moe, publisher, The Verge @mtmoe1

1. “CONNECTING BRANDS AND
AUDIENCES THROUGH CONTENT”
MARTY MOE, CHIEF CONTENT OFFICER
CO-FOUNDER OF THE VERGE

2. THREE PREMIUM DESTINATIONS
25 MILLION UNIQUE VISITORS
THE MOST INFLUENTIAL AND AUTHORATIVE WEB NATIVE TALENT
CORE VALUES OF TRADITIONAL MEDIA AND JOURNALISM IN AN
ELEGANT, DIGITALLY
NATIVE EXPRESSION
50 MILLION MONTHLY SOCIAL INTERACTIONS
AN EDUCATED, INFLUENTIAL, MALE AUDIENCE
LEADING TECHNOLOGY PLATFORM
Who’s doing it right? It’s a simple answer:
Vox Media — marrying talent and technology.
- Forbes, May 2011

3. WHAT IS BRANDED CONTENT?

4. WHY BRANDED CONTENT?
THE ROLE OF THE DIGITAL PUBLISHER is to
create content that connects to and creates
audiences online
THE GOAL OF BRAND ADVERTISERS is also to
connect with audiences online
Consumption of online content is at all time
highs and approaching broadcast levels
Brands have to adapt a publisher competency
to connect with audiences online
Connecting brands to audiences through
compelling content, when done right, is
highly effective
Content is the new “ad server”

5. WHAT WORKS
Transparent
Authentic
Context for the audience
Editors act as focus group for the concept
Multiple interaction points
Awareness via standard and high impact
media
Supported by original content vehicles
- Text
- Video
- Audience Conversation
Distributed on and off site
- YouTube
- Twitter and Facebook
- Others
- Offline events where applicable

6. WHAT DOESN’T WORK
Lack of transparency or authenticity
No context for the audience
No collaboration between agency and
edit
Singular point of distribution
Works best when all forms
of media are coordinated
(DISPLAY, VIDEO, WRITTEN WORD, SPONSORSHIP)

7. MICROSOFT IE9 “PRESS RESET”

8. MICROSOFT IE9
PRESS RESET
#1 Performer across the
entire campaign
According to Nielson in brand recall and
brand awareness
Driving a nearly 2% increase in IE browser share
by Verge users on a weekly basis
High impact media on The Verge
is outperforming CTR across the
campaign by nearly .5%
“Press Reset” earned an estimated 11MM media
impressions 24 hours
after launch
“Press Reset” has garnered 100,000+ unique
views through first six episodes
“Press Reset” episodes have over
10,000 comments
and counting

9. FORD AND CES:
BRANDED CONTENT
This past January, ford partnered with the
verge as the premier sponsor of the site’s CES
2012 coverage. Ford was featured at the
event and across the site, most notably as the
exclusive sponsor of all CES 2012 video
content.
Solution: Ford partnered with Vox Media
Studios to create two versions of a custom
commercial spot in the form of pre-roll and
custom interstitials that ran across:
129 pieces of original video content from
interviews to hands-on demos of products
5 full length original video podcast shows
Result: a beautiful, behind-the-scenes look at
The Verge’s CES coverage with ford featured,
elegantly, as the vehicle for CES success.

10. UNIQUE SOLUTIONS FOR
BRANDS IN A CHANGING
DIGITAL LANDSCAPE
ALIGNMENT WITH SPECIFIC, PASSIONATE
COMMUNITIES
BRANDS AS PART OF THE CONVERSATION
OWNING THE CONVERSATION
DIRECT INTERACTION WITH CONSUMERS
CUSTOM CONTENT CURATION
When we localize how we talk
and engage a consumer, we get
such a greater
response rate and engage-ment
rate because of that local flavor.
- Dave Marsey, Digitas
as quoted in Digiday