In an ever more fragmented U.S. media environment, branded entertainment has emerged as an increasingly viable way for brands to connect with their target consumers through creative storytelling that reflects their brand identity and core values. According to the Custom Content Council’s 11th Annual Industry Characteristics Study (2011), “the appetite for video continues to grow aggressively” and is “among the fastest growing forms” of branded content, with 57% of marketers reporting that “they will do even more this year.”The latitude for deploying branded entertainment is wide, with marketers using vehicles such as social media channels, portals, paid syndication and targeted digital media buys to reach audiences. However, due to strict “church and state” restrictions imposed by news organizations – ones which govern the separation of editorial and advertising content on their platforms – finding appropriate ways to support branded content initiatives within a news environment (our objective) can be a challenging endeavor.

Via a first-of-its-kind partnership with CNNMoney.com, a Cadillac Business Unusual (CBU) Home Page Content Module was placed on the site for the six-month run of the program. Containing a video promo featuring our host and clips of our entrepreneurs, the module alerted the business-minded CNNMoney audience to CBU’s “Daring Stories from the Road to Success” and linked to the program’s digital hub.A bi-weekly online campaign with banners and “push-down” video ad units on CNNMoney and across Time Inc. Digital (e.g. Time.com, EW.com, RealSimple.com), along with a push on Cadillac’s Facebook page and website helped draw in our audience.

Spanning six months and twelve episodes, the CBU program gave Cadillac the opportunity to reintroduce the brand and build relevance among target consumers by placing it directly in context of inspiring stories of entrepreneurs who – like Cadillac itself – use their ingenuity, ambition and perseverance to relentlessly pursue their passion and redefine what’s possible in their field. By focusing on visionaries across design, luxury, performance and style, we created a platform that spoke to the aspirations and aesthetics of the CNNMoney audience and provided an organic way to integrate Cadillac vehicles into the story. In addition to the episodes themselves, we provided business-minded consumers actionable “Lessons Learned” from each entrepreneur to apply to their own endeavors, an in-depth article about each business, relevant stories from Time Inc. brands, and links to six popular business blogs. Over the duration of the program, unique visitors to the exceeded Cadillac’s goal by over 20%. On average, consumers spent more than 10 minutes engaging with content resulting in a 14-point lift in brand favorability and double-digit increases in key brand attributes. And after seeing the show and interacting with site content, more target consumers saw Cadillac as Innovative, Inspiring, Modern and Distinctive.