This week we spoke about Brand Journalism in front of a large audience of marketing and comms managers from firms large and small, including Microsoft and HCL. Several speakers, including our boss of Northern Europe Robert Almqvist, talked about the ever-changing communications and media relations landscape. Located in Soder – Stockholm’s most hip and trendy district – we were right at home. Perhaps a bit older than many in the audience, but as we know, advanced age often comes with flair, experience and sophistication.
On the subject of experience (I leave flair and sophistication aside on this occasion), it was fascinating to discuss comparing the development of brand journalism in Sweden with other parts of the world, from a global perspective. I am a firm believer that all industry trends are directly or indirectly caused by changes in the economy. If you have money, you can experiment – if you are short of it you have to adapt, survive and think differently – some would call this to innovate.
Technology, social and cultural developments will, of course, also define and shape industry trends. The popularity of social media has changed the face of communications as we know it – but its impact would be less significant if the economic crisis had not wounded traditional communications models such as print media and advertising.
So, Brand Journalism is following the same path. We can’t rely solely on traditional media to get our story out, advertising spend is tight and social media has turned us all into avid followers, fierce critics and passionate commentators about things we care about. So, the opportunity to turn an organisation into a story teller – a Brand Journalist – is ripe. Some are doing this with phenomenal success – such as Swedish bank Handelsbanken who has its own TV channel, Studio12. A bank with a news channel? Yes, it’s a fact. This is where the economy argument comes in. In a country that has weathered the economy and stayed on track, this is possible. If RBS had done this in the UK, there would probably be an outcry on wasting tax payers money.
Although the economy is the cause of these trends, we should never let it limit us – we must adapt and reinvent. A person in the audience asked: ‘What to do if you don’t have the money to set up your own TV studio, or pay Forbes to publish your organisation’s content (as another firm successfully did)?’. The answer is simple: start about thinking about yourself in a very different way. Don’t ask what your organisation or product does. Ask instead why it matters, what would happen without it and what bigger debate you cause and influence. This is what people care about and that is the start of a story. If you then tell that through a TV studio, a web portal or simply through a vox pop on your site doesn’t really matter. What matters is that you tell a story where others are at the centre.