Following the 2016 Digital Content NewFronts, Trusted Media Brands managed to produce 65 videos for its advertising partners. Along the way it learned that it needed even more digital video capabilities.
“We’ve got a really high bar to get past in 2017,” says Rich Sutton, CRO of the more than century old publisher “gets it in the digital age.”
That realization led to a partnership between Trusted Media Brands and Arcade Creative Group, the creative and marketing agency born from Sony Music. “They’re masters at video storytelling,” Sutton says in this interview with Beet.TV at the 2017 Digital Content NewFronts.
The publisher of such venerable titles as Reader’s Digest took to the NewFronts to announce seven new video series aligned not only with RD but also with its Taste of Home and The Family Handyman/Haven Home Media properties. To meet demand for marketers’ increased appetite for video advertising and integrated brand campaign options, Trusted Media Brands will add more than 25 new roles to its digital team.
Citing the heritage of the company formerly known as The Reader’s Digest Association, Sutton credits its growth directly to content. “The more we produce, the more people like it,” he says.
Among other things, going digital-first has given the company a platform for the company to “get a read on” stories before they appear in print. This helps to explain why Trusted Media Brands’ newsstand sales are up by double digits while other magazines are down by double digits, according to Sutton.
Asked to look ahead 12 months, Sutton says, “My wish list is that we double down and we go to 130 custom videos a year from now and that we do some great work together with our friends at Arcade Creative Group.”
This video is part of Beet.TV’s coverage of the IAB’s Digital Content NewFronts 2017. The series is sponsored by the IAB. For more videos from the #NewFronts, please visit this page.
