Sponsored Content: Two Approaches to a (Potentially) Sticky Wicket
Sponsored content can get a bad rap. Not those Squarespace ads heard on every single podcast ever. Or the Living Proof ads heard over and over on Modern Love.But podcasts that are fully created and funded by advertisers. Let's look at two examples with very different executions
The Open Account podcast is sponsored by Umpqua Bank, produced by Panoply, and hosted by media personality SuChin Pak.
At the top of each episode, it's announced that "the following content is sponsored by Umpqua bank." SuChin then explains who Umpqua Bank is ("a community bank") and why they've sponsored this podcast. Basically, it's to "have a different kind of conversation about our relationship to money" because "talking about money is essential to having a healthier relationship with it and, ultimately, with one another..."
SuChin is a media personality, not a finance pro. So she brings a relaxed, conversational approach to a topic that many find difficult to discuss. There's none of the sort of advice or wonky terms one might expect from content sponsored by a bank. It's just real people -- from notable (actors, athletes, this guy) to normal (couples and kids) -- talking about the real stuff of money and its affects on life and love and happiness. Full disclosure: I love Open Account. It's the kind of content I want to hear about finances.
This is actually one of several co-branded Panoply shows. Other brand partners include Sports Illustrated, Real Simple, Slate, Vox, and the Wall Street Journal. Original content like Malcolm Gladwell's Revisionist History is produced by the Panoply network the same way as Umpqua Bank's Open Account, just without a different sponsorship model.
Open for Business is a partnership between ebay and Gimlet Creative, and hosted by entrepreneur John Henry.
Heavy podcast listeners will remember the passionate debate the Gimlet folks aired on StartUp podcast about the idea of sponsored or branded content. Open for Business host John Henry (no, Boston, not that John Henry) is the real deal, speaking from experience about the highs and lows of entrepreneurship. The difference here? Every episode features extended stories about..wait for it...ebay. Especially entrepreneurs who've built successful businesses on the ebay platform. I have to admit I was taken aback at first. This sort of direct sell or prominent product placement isn't something I'm used to in podcasts. I'm used to short bits that are clearly ads, like the viral Mailchimp ad.
It'll be interesting to see what happens with both approaches. Whether one is better than the other depends on the subjective (do listeners like it) and the objective (does it bring in the funds the business requires). Beyond those two, though, is how the content impacts the brand. Gimlet Media was very smart to create a sister company, Gimlet Creative, to produce this overtly sponsored content. They've reduced the risk of minimizing their growing brand halo.
What do you think? Do you want to start seeing more content like Open Account or Open For Business in your stream?