Pumping Value Through The Content Ecosystem - Maureen Norman - MediaBizBloggers

In my last posting I talked about Dr. Carl Marci and the work being done at Innerscope, where they continue to explore the use of neuroscience to put context and structure around the concept of engagement. Dr. Marci and his team have developed this simple and comprehensible definition: "Attention plus emotion equals engagement." That's a great foundation for approaching engagement from a planning and creative perspective. But how can we find value in engagement and help media professionals determine what it's worth? Let's start by acknowledging that people engage with content, not technology. No matter how big the HD TV in the living room, how cool the iPad, or how many cable subscribers have access to VOD, it's the content that captures attention and creates emotion, not the device. So what's the value of content?

The use of original content creation to support brands has followed what has sometimes felt like a plodding, tentative and zigzagging road to 2010. When Madison began to court Vine more than a decade ago (although some would argue that this was the rekindling of a long lost relationship in the spirit of Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdomand Hallmark Hall of Fame, to name but two) there was genuine discussion around whether brands should be paying to be integrated into content or whether media should be paying to associate with brands. The latter effectively proposed a 'brand as medium' model. No doubt there are some global brands whose reach and frequency dwarf that of some traditional media outlets - Coke, Nike, Apple, Ikea, to name just a few. But it was this debate that really opened the door for media professionals and marketers alike to figure out what the opportunity was worth and who should be paying for it.

Fast forward ten years. The emergence of user generated content has, to some extent, sidelined original content creation for marketers. And why wouldn't it? With video content in particular, creating a professional, television-quality product to support a brand is no different than creating programming to fill network schedules. It's risky, expensive and comes with no guarantees. UGC, on the other hand, costs nothing, so risk and guarantees are somewhat mitigated. But that's just the point. No cost, no risk, no value. Entertaining? Sure. Strategic? Can be. But what UGC can't do is add value to the content ecosystem. Conversely, brands that tread into the riskier waters contribute to the entire value chain.

Recently a client challenged us to optimize the placement of a brand message. Acknowledging from the outset that one of our networks was a great environment, the client asked us to explore production of custom content that would provide much greater context than any of the existing programming on the network. After a couple of working sessions to uncover where the network's brand and the client's brand shared attributes, we proposed two original, custom half-hour specials. As we worked through the concept development phase, and the subsequent execution and budgeting phases, the client gained a greater understanding of the value that creators and producers bring to the content ecosystem. The company's experience, based on many years of bringing quality television to audiences, was leveraged along with a solid understanding of the expectations of our viewers. With the negotiation of talent fees there are almost certainly efficiencies that arise from existing relationships media companies have with potential hosts. Oftentimes there are projects in development with the network and the spectre of these potential opportunities will enable the media company to negotiate more favorable fees on behalf of the advertiser. That's value being added to the content ecosystem. All of these inputs are quantifiable and can help media professionals assign dollars to content creation and ultimately understand what engagement is worth.

Maureen Norman is a highly strategic, creative and client-focused advertising professional, Maureen has extensive and progressive experience both agency side and client direct. She has an established a record of success developing engagement opportunities with measurable ROI in both traditional and emerging media. She can be reached at mnorman_6@sympatico.ca.

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