Why working with publishers on native executions can drive more value for advertisers
The Audience: Served Up On a Platter
We all have “our” sites that we visit every day. There’s an endless supply of sources from which we can get the same information, but individually we’re drawn to particular publishers not just because of the content they provide but the voice they use to convey it. Frankly, there is no shortage of sites offering movie coverage and reviews, but A.O. Scott at NYTimes.com is my guy, therefore NYTimes.com becomes one of my go-to sites.
For years, having an established voice has been how the top publishers “break through the clutter” in their categories and build loyal audiences who not only come back each day, but multiple times per day. Now, as native advertising takes its place in the digital arsenal for many advertisers, there’s a major benefit to be had by leveraging these publishers’ already established and sought-out voices to achieve content marketing objectives.
The Publishers: Masters of Their Domain
At this point, there has been no shortage of articles instructing advertisers on the key tenets of native advertising, particularly around four central ideas:
- No blatant marketing! To make it seem like you’re selling is to immediately turn off the reader
- This is about education/emotional connection/thought-leadership/entertainment
- Your native ad should naturally fit within the publisher’s editorial landscape
- Transparency. Transparency. Transparency.
With these things in mind (and they should always be kept in mind), the importance of connecting with a publisher that has a distinct and credible voice that works strategically with an advertiser’s brand initiatives becomes even more apparent.
It may initially feel unnatural for an advertiser to invest in something that discourages overt marketing and branding, but this is a chance for brands to create a new kind of value for the user, beyond a product or service, by providing information, inspiration, excitement, laughter or even tears. Publishers are the advertiser’s biggest ally in creating this extra value, lending both their voice and their expertise in storytelling, arguably the heart of any good native play.
News and information sites, for example, lend a journalistic sensibility for an educational or thought-leadership play. Fashion and beauty sites, with editorial teams that are often considered arbiters of taste, can offer a variety of voices, from the cool older sister to the stylish BFF and the wise guru. The list goes on and on, the voice transforming for each site.
The Brand: Positioning for Prosperity in a Brave New World
It’s up to advertisers to identify that perfect storm of right audience and right voice to determine the publisher(s) with which to align, and then loosen the reigns a bit around the brand to let the content marketing team working with (or for) the publisher do what they do best: create a compelling piece of storytelling in a voice that site visitors will be drawn to because it operates naturally, both in look and feel, within the site’s flow.
When the publisher’s voice is harnessed effectively for a brand, the brand reaps the rewards of an audience that is engaged and curious, in both clearly measurable (views, shares) and more ambiguous (brand lift) ways. Regardless, the result is that a brand has augmented its value to the consumer and really, isn’t that what it’s all about?
