Branded content is becoming more of the norm, and more accepted by consumers. A new study by Television News Daily reports that it has actually managed to take over pre-roll advertising when it comes to recall, based on numbers reported by Nielsen.
The report indicates that branded content has managed to generate an average of 86 percent brand recall amongst consumers—a much higher number than the 65 percent with pre-roll ads.
Stats across the board show higher numbers for branded content over pre-roll, including with branded entertainment (28 percent compared to 18 percent); purchase intent (14 percent over 11 percent); and recommendation intent (20 percent versus 16 percent).
In addition, Nielsen also noted that branded content impact with future TV/video episodes of a popular series scores well into the positive side, with a 40 percent portion noting that they “probably will” or “definitely will” tune in to the next episode.
Marketers that have embraced brand content have seen a greater chance of working alongside publishers with partnerships, with a 50 percent higher average than marketers that simply work with content on their own behalf—indicating that finding the right kind of marketing partner to spread awareness is a solid business tactic.
Branded content is all about making sure the brand is in center view, but not necessarily in center view. So far, a lot of companies have embraced the tactic, but it’s all about putting it together the right way, without making the message all about the brand—but still keeping it in mind.
Some insight can also be found from an older 2013 report filed by the Content Marketing Institute, breaking down the benchmarks, budgets and trends within North America. At that time, 86 percent of those participating in the study used content marketing to some extent—and those numbers have probably changed for the better with the introduction of new, more convenient digital means.
A report from August by Marketing Profs breaks down more of the social media side of branded content and how companies are using visuals in order to attract consumers. “Posts that include images produce 650 percent higher engagement than regular text posts,” according to the team that put the report together, WebDAM. It also noted that, by 2018, 79 percent of overall Internet traffic will come from video content—a sure sign that companies may want to adopt some form of visual marketing sooner rather than later.
The report indicates that 81 percent of educated people prefer to skim through pages rather than do thorough reading, thus why the importance of memorable images proves useful. 20 percent of those who participated noted that they do remember reading text without visuals, but that leaves a hefty 80 percent that rely more on pictures.
