Publishers are flocking to subscriptions and membership programs for a variety of reasons, but chiefly because of the advantages associated with recurring revenue, Digiday research found.
Seventy-three percent of the 62 publisher executives surveyed at the Digiday Hot Topic: Subscriptions and Memberships event held last week in New York City said a recurring revenue stream was a key reason subscription products appeal to them.
“On TV And Video” is a column exploring opportunities and challenges in advanced TV and video. Today’s column is written by Frost Prioleau, CEO at Simpli.fi. Part of the promise of over-the-top (OTT) and connected TV (CTV) is that they marry the benefits of traditional television with digital marketing capabilities. A large part of digital’s… Continue reading »
Here’s today’s AdExchanger.com news round-up… Want it by email? Sign up here. Let’s Stay Together A growing chorus of media industry leaders, privacy activists and even legislators have called for anti-monopoly cases against Apple, Amazon, Google and Facebook. And those calls have only gotten louder since the European Union hit Google with a record-breaking $5.1 billion… Continue reading »
Facebook has been letting some media companies sell their own mid-roll ad inventory while loosening up restrictions on content exclusivity on Watch, and some publishers are starting to reap the benefits.
Earlier this summer, Facebook began began letting some publishers sell their own mid-roll ad inventory after initially doing all the selling itself. Only a handful of publishers are participating in this test, and while participating publishers could initially only sell inventory across their brands, they can now can sell inside individual shows and pages, sources said.
Continuing its charm offensive with news publishers, Facebook has been testing a tool with five publishers including BuzzFeed to help them improve their reach on the platform.
The organic content testing tool lets publishers test up to four versions of a piece of content, with variations in elements like headline, description and image, in real time — something publishers would otherwise have to pay for by boosting a post. Using the tool, the publisher can see data like interactions and click-through rate and predictions of those metrics in real time so it can pick the best-performing version to show all its followers.
Facebook said it was too early to share any test results, but Mollie Vandor, a Facebook product manager under Alex Hardiman, head of news products, said that more than half the time, publishers in the test have ended up selecting a version of the story that was different from the one they would have originally used. This suggests that the tool is helping publishers get more traffic back to their sites. (That’s because for now, the tool is limited to testing link posts that take users back to the publishers’ sites rather than Facebook Instant Articles, which keep the reader in the platform.)
Facebook has been lavishing a lot of attention on news publishers over the past year or so. It’s created a breaking-news tag so that they can put on stories to help them stand out in the news feed, and it’s testing a subscription tool to help paywalled publishers, cracking down on fake news and paying publishers to create news shows for its video section, Watch.
It’s also angered publishers by deprioritizing publisher content in the news feed and by creating a political-ad-labeling policy that treated promoted news articles as political content. To publishers who remember Facebook punishing them for using clickbait to game its algorithm in the past, a tool to help them optimize for the algorithm might come off as ironic if not suspicious. “Is it some kind of trap?” wondered one.
Asked about Facebook’s motivations in creating the organic content testing tool, Vandor said it was all about helping publishers.
“This tool is a way to maximize how they pitch their content to people on Facebook,” Vandor said. “Instead of us saying, ‘Here’s a list of universal best practices,’ we’re trying to give publishers the tools they can use to develop their own best practices.” Asked how much of a difference she thinks the tool could make, Vandor said: “My hope is that this tool gives publishers a better sense of control and ability to make the best possible use of their investment in Facebook. Ideally, this tool is flexible, easy to use and is a value add.”
Facebook wouldn’t identify the other publishers in the test, saying only BuzzFeed gave permission to share its name. Fran Berkman, deputy director of news curation for BuzzFeed News, said the tool has helped BuzzFeed News validate its assumptions about how to optimize stories on Facebook and that based on the test results, the publisher has made some tweaks in how it posts content. But he said it’s not exactly a game-changer.
“This comes as everyone’s traffic on Facebook has gone down a lot, so it’s good to be able to get the most out of our posts, but we’re still getting a lot less,” he said.
There’s no timeline for extending the tool to other publishers, but Vandor said Facebook is “actively exploring that” as it works to make the tool easier and less resource-intensive to use.
Flipboard has seen a return on its ad campaign to promote the mobile reading app earlier this year.
The app’s monthly user base has grown from 100 million people to 145 million, with 11,000 publishers applying to distribute their content on Flipboard since the campaign’s debut in January, said Flipboard CEO Mike McCue. For comparison, roughly 5,000 publishers had applied in the four months before the campaign’s launch.
Flipboard bought full-page ads in print newspapers such as The Financial Times and The Wall Street Journal and ran digital ads on publishers’ sites, email newsletters and podcasts. The campaign involved an estimated $3 million to $4 million and three agencies: Red Square, Moniker and 1185 Design. Flipboard wanted to promote the app as more selective than other places where people get their news (cough, Facebook, cough). The campaign had been in the works since spring 2017, but its launch coincided with Facebook’s fallout among news publishers, following its de-emphasis of publishers’ content earlier in the month and struggle with the spread of fake news across its network.
Following the campaign, McCue says the company has seen a lift in users, engagement, publishers on the platform and advertisers, helping position Flipboard to be cash-flow positive. He said the 8-year-old private company’s revenue is “good” and “continuing to grow” but declined to provide numbers.
McCue was quick to note that other factors have contributed to the app’s growth with users and publishers. For example, he said the app’s monthly audience had already been on the rise over the past six to 12 months, though the app hadn’t updated the public figure from 100 million users to 145 million until this month. And the increase in publishers applying to be on Flipboard was set in motion before the campaign’s launch. In October, Flipboard introduced a self-serve tool for publishers to pipe their RSS feeds into the app. Flipboard declined to say how many have been approved but that 4,000 publishers are on the platform.
Flipboard’s campaign has also coincided with the app’s rise as a referral source for publishers, on par with Twitter and Google News, though far behind Google’s search engine and Facebook. According to Parse.ly’s network of more than 2,500 sites, Flipboard accounts for 1.9 percent of publishers’ traffic. That’s shy of Twitter’s 2.2 percent and Google News’ 2.1 percent. Since Flipboard surpassed Google News last year, the company hopes to top Twitter as well, if not this year then next.
Several marketers said they’ve seen high engagement in groups, but it’s difficult to justify focusing on them given the lack of advertising and tracking. Pixel changes that by creating more data points for marketers to understand their audience.
“Building a community around a brand, product or subscription allowed marketers to create loyal fans and ambassadors,” said Chris Mikulin, a digital strategist at Calder Batema. “It’s the new marketing. Facebook Groups are one of the easiest and best ways for doing this. I can make a stronger case now for the times when we feel that a Facebook Group will be a great tactic.”
Pixel, as is available on Facebook Pages, has helped advertisers with their targeting on Facebook. A Facebook spokesperson said the pixel update is unrelated to its other efforts to monetize groups, including through subscriptions.
“We launched Group Insights last year as a way to help admins see metrics regarding the growth, activity and membership of their groups. We’re now expanding Group Insights to let group admins and brands link their groups with their existing Facebook ads pixel, allowing them to understand how members in their group engage with their websites,” the spokesperson emailed.
The data from the pixel will show up on groups’ insights page and be visible to groups’ administrators. Facebook is limiting access to the pixel only to groups with 250 or more members.
Facebook Groups have already been useful for some brands who want to extend their reach on Facebook. While pages can be good for news updates and content marketing, groups are intended to help brands and organizations build a community. Some groups have been slow to grow, while Nik Sharma, who runs direct-to-consumer advertising at beverage company Hint, said he’s seen high engagement and personalization in some groups such as “Good Morning America’s” Deals and Steals or TheSkimm.
“TheSkimm’s group is so engaged that one person left their jacket on an airplane, posted about it in the group, and had it back within a few hours,” Sharma said.
For large groups on Facebook, the pixel could help with everything from organizing events or targeting messaging by location or demographics, said Troy Osinoff, cofounder of agency Juice.
Sharma likened Facebook Groups and the addition of pixel to a new form of email marketing.
“Facebook Groups are the new email for brands. They get push notifications. The engagement rate of Groups is extremely high. It makes sense they’re going to put a pixel in there, just like you would with email, because now through groups you can track conversions,” Sharma said.
To win over the Canadian market, Nordstrom is borrowing from its U.S. playbook.
On Monday, the company debuted its first national Canadian campaign, titled “True Nord.” Shot in Toronto by native-Canadian photographer Justin Tyler Close, the included images and videos feature 13 Canadians — models and inspiring non-models — representing various ages, races, religions, sexes and sizes, meant to celebrate locals’ individuality and diversity.
The Canadian campaign will encompass digital ads, TV, YouTube, out-of-home placements (including billboards and posters in transit shelters), social media, the local e-commerce site, Nordstrom.ca, and TV. Scott Meden, Nordstrom’s CMO, said the company recently upped its overall TV spend,but declined to specify the rate of increase. As in the U.S., Canadian Nordstrom stores have dedicated Instagram accounts, at the ready to run the ads: Vancouver’s @nordstromva and Toronto’s @nordstomto have 40,000 and 18,000 followers, respectively, which speaks to Canadians’ excitement for the brand. To compare, @nordstromthegrove, in Nordstrom’s top market of LA, has just 12,000 followers. @nordstromsf has 6,000.
“True Nord” was inspired by “True North,” a phrase in the Canadian national anthem — ”Nord,” plucked from “Nordstrom,” means “north” in Canada’s co-official language of French. Lines including “strong and free,” “with glowing hearts” and “from far and wide,” also in the anthem, were worked into the commercial’s on-screen text and voice-over.
Meden said Nordstrom sees the featured Canadians as influencers — though they weren’t likely chosen for their social media follower count. They include Biko Beauttah, a transgender United Nations Goodwill Ambassador; Harjas Singh, a fashion stylist and consultant, who tags his posts with #sikhstyle; Mel Kobayashi, the 50-something founder of the Bag and a Beret fashion blog; and Yolanda May Largie, co-founder of The Canadian Curvies, a group celebrating body positivity. Each has between 1,200 to 35,000 Instagram followers.
Meden said size diversity was important to show as Nordstrom is dedicated to keeping it a key focus. Earlier this month, the department store exclusively launched Good American’s activewear collection, ranging from sizes XS to 4XL, celebrating with a buzzy rooftop workout with Khloe Kardashian at its Seattle headquarters.
Nordstrom set its sights on an international physical presence four years ago, opening its first full-line Nordstrom store in Calgary in late 2014 and five more across Canada within three years. Since, the company has been rolling out locations of its off-price chain, Nordstrom Rack, in Canada, launching three this in spring, with three more set for fall. By the end of 2018, in total, it will have 12 Canadian stores. (It launched international shipping in 2009.)
The local angle is not a departure for Nordstrom. In 2016, it launched its first brand campaign in 15 years — spearheaded by vp of creative projects Olivia Kim, it was reportedly meant to be “accessible, appealing and open,” and centered on “optimism, rebirth and energy.” Subsequent campaigns included fall 2017, featuring “real people who are doing great and extraordinary things,” and holiday 2016 and 2017, both titled “Love Nordstrom,” and focused on the relationship of Nordstrom shoppers with both the store and each other.
A “True Nord” campaign image
Among the Canadian brands featured in the campaign is jewelry label Poppy Finch, one of many direct-to-consumer brands Nordstrom has recently brought into the fold. Founder Amanda He said the company picked up her line during its Canadian expansion, allowing her to expand its wholesale presence, including to the U.S. — her sales are now evenly split between the U.S. and Canada.
Also featured is contemporary, vertically integrated menswear brand Wings and Horns, which moved from Japan to Vancouver in 2004. It calls Nordstrom its biggest wholesale partner, selling in 35 Nordstrom doors across the U.S. and Canada. Locally, it’s tapped into the retailer’s in-store events and has featured window installations at select stores.
Nordstrom’s isn’t the only retailer now building a name in Canada, thanks in part an influx of wealthy immigrants from China, said He. She said luxury brands including Van Cleef & Arpels and Saint Laurent have recently opened local standalone stores, as have mainstream retailers including Uniqlo and Muji. “We now have a lot of affluent shoppers who are brand conscious and want the freshest designs and brands,” she said.
Catering to the emerging Chinese population, Nordstrom launchedAlibaba and WePay purchase options to Canadian shoppers this year.
The campaign is one step in Nordstrom’s drive to improve its Canadian business, where competitors include Holt Renfrew and Hudson’s Bay’s The Bay. Meden said Nordstrom.ca is not yet where it should be in terms of features and functionality. In the company’s latest earnings call, for the second quarter of financial 2018, executives called out problems getting merchandise across the border to Canada and a continued focus on working through the nuanced needs of its diverse stores, including improving merchandising in Canada. Executive vp and president of stores James F. Nordstrom said the three Nordstrom Rack locations that opened were delayed. The company doesn’t break out specific revenue figures for its Canadian business.
On the earnings call, Nordstrom reported an overall revenue boost of 7 percent over last year, including a 4 percent growth for both Nordstrom stores and Nordstrom Rack locations.
Off-price retail is booming in Canada. Along with Nordstrom Rack, Saks Off Fifth, Winners, HomeSense and Marshalls have recently opened Canadian stores.
“It’s a big off-price market,” said Meden, who confirmed that the company’s Canadian Rack stores are exceeding expectations. “There’s a lot of opportunity, and we’re moving in the right direction.”
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A “True Nord” campaign image