Allocating significant budgets to traditional advertising agencies is no longer the only way for brands to reach their audience. In the current landscape, a branded content video strategy in Australia must be more deliberate. The truth is that for branded content to work, it requires three specific pillars: strategy, story, and succession.
Traditional advertising approaches are often explicit in their attempts to sell a product or service, where the product is the number one priority. Today, with the dominance of on-demand streaming and sophisticated ad-blocking, brands are forced to rethink this approach.
Enter branded content - specifically, branded video content that entertains, educates, informs, or otherwise stirs emotion. Branded content tells a story people are interested in hearing. As Molly DeWolf Swenson famously noted, if a story is moving, audiences won't mind that it is brought to them by a brand; they will be glad the brand provided the experience. The art is creating stories people connect with. Attention first. Brand second.
The data today confirms that audiences are increasingly resistant to "hard sell" tactics. Current research from Magna Media Trials shows that culturally relevant branded video can triple purchase intent compared to general content. Furthermore, their studies on "emerging media" (which includes branded content) show that brand recall is the #1 driver of brand lift, often outperforming traditional display and pre-roll formats by significant margins.
However, many businesses become unstuck when they treat video as a one-off. If a viewer visits your site or social channels and finds no other content to support the initial film, they will likely go elsewhere to fulfil their entertainment needs. Branded content, especially video, is as much about consistency as it is about the story. Provide your audience with a constant stream of content across your digital channels, and the brand will become known for more than just its products or services.
This is a great example of how storytelling can be used to effectively communicate a brand's mission. By evoking emotions such as nostalgia, pride, passion, and hope, it provides the viewer with an engaging and relatable piece of content.
Even though this video was created to outline Cricket Australia's four-year plan, it concentrates on how future aspirations will benefit both players and viewers of the sport. The brand is putting the best interests of others before its own.
In order to attract new students to its engineering program, Deakin University used branded video content to create a conversation about the subject. It asks the audience what they think and feel when hearing the word ‘engineering’, before launching into its myriad applications.
The voiceover combines with vision to get your mind racing about the power, potential, and possibilities of engineering. Instead of an explicit call to action, Deakin University simply states how the word engineering has the same latin root as ingenious - something it challenges would-be students to exhibit.
While championing a good cause is what the Wilderness Society does on a daily basis, it used branded content in this instance to generate greater awareness and empathy. It offers a tearjerking scenario, which is bound to resonate with viewers and elicit support.
By comparing the plight of endangered species to the human race, its message has extra gravitas and quickly becomes a sombre reminder of society’s collective responsibility. A simple call-to-action allows for careful contemplation without forcing the issue.
Branded content is in no way taking over from advertising; it merely offers modern audiences a different format for content consumption and brand connection.
How can your business take advantage of the many benefits of branded content video? Create a strategy built around storytelling, conversation, or common values and make a plan to continue this into the future.
It sounds simple, and in reality it is - the hard part is remaining consistent, and staying true to engaging your audience rather than pushing sales communications down their collective throats.
Need help with your branded content? Contact us today.