Conde\u0301 Nast has decided that while text and images will remain at its roots, video storytelling is the publisher\u2019s path to the future. \u201cVideo has to be the core medium by which we tell our stories,\u201d says Jim Norton, Chief Business Officer and President of Revenue.<\/p>\n
Given its significant investments in premium video to date and its plans going forward, Conde\u0301 Nast is in a great place at a great time. Producers of premium video content have two big leverage points\u2014brand safety and audience reach\u2014with which to pry traditional broadcast dollars from advertisers.<\/p>\n
In this interview with Beet.TV, Norton discusses rising video consumption and audience numbers that rival not just television, but programming like the NBA and primetime network shows. It represents a \u201creal blurring of lines\u201d between dollars that could be allocated toward broadcast versus dollars allocated toward digital.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re using the same writers, producers, directors that are producing academy award nominated content,\u201d Norton says.\u00a0\u201cWhat you\u2019re going to see is us moving from a very text- and image-based company to much, much more focused on video.\u201d<\/p>\n
Text and imaging will still be key building blocks. In fact, a number of the feature films that Conde\u0301 Nast has in production derive from stories in publications like GQ and The New Yorker.<\/p>\n
Conde\u0301 Nast does \u201ca ton\u201d of branded content via its 23 Stories studio, including an always on, cross-platform effort with Cadillac<\/a> involving more than 50 pieces of custom content. The next step is figuring out how to take that content and \u201cbring it to life in an experience.\u201d<\/p>\n To this end, the company recently acquired<\/a> an experiential agency called Pop2Life, which offers ideation and strategy, environmental design and creative services, full-service event production, talent procurement and event concierge services.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s really about bridging that last mile of consumer experience. Going from the screen or printed page to an actual, physical experience,\u201d Norton says.<\/p>\n Norton addresses the issue of brand safety from an overall perspective of trust in this interview with Beet.TV. He\u2019s says it\u2019s not just digital that\u2019s being questioned. \u201cConsumer trust and confidence in all of media is really at a record low. You factor in fake news, alternative facts, fraud, just overall brand safety and it\u2019s a bit of an epidemic,\u201d Norton says. Hence Conde\u0301 Nast\u2019s story for advertisers and agencies is about \u201cthe trust of our journalism.\u201d<\/p>\n As for the bigger digital picture, Norton calls on all players to pitch in and help to shape things up. \u201cWe want to challenge brands to comply with a lot of the industry initiatives that are happening right now, number one being tag certification,\u201d he says, citing the Trustworthy Accountability Group<\/a> and Conde\u0301 Nast\u2019s certification. \u201cMany major industry CMO\u2019s have made it a requirement. We are asking all of our distribution partners to get certified.\u201d<\/p>\n