Edelman Cloverleaf™ Forecast

EDELMAN CLOVERLEAF FORECASTJanuary 2016 Ecosystem Update and Storytelling Implications

©2016 Daniel J. Edelman, Inc. All rights reserved.

‣ This forecast reflects Edelman’s latest thinking on the

digital information ecosystem and the convergence of

content publishers and technology platforms

‣ The research is based on dozens of interviews

conducted across six parts of the Edelman Cloverleaf™

‣ It is a “weather report” that provides guidance on key

developments that can impact the lifecycle of a story

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This POV is divided into three sections:

‣ Ecosystem Disruptions - changes to information flows

‣ Cloverleaf Considerations - what’s now, new and next

‣ Storytelling Implications - ways to extend a narrative

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ECOSYSTEM DISRUPTIONS

4 ©2016 Daniel J. Edelman, Inc. All rights reserved.®

ECOSYSTEM DISRUPTIONS

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‣ There are at least three significant macro trends that are

influencing how content is discovered, consumed and monetized

‣ These play a significant role in what kinds of stories actually will

reach their intended audience

‣ These ecosystem disruptions don’t just impact publishers, but

arguably any content creator that hopes to deliver a narrative

©2016 Daniel J. Edelman, Inc. All rights reserved.®

MOBILE PERSONALIZATION

First, 2015 data from comScore shows

dramatic shifts in content discovery:

‣ Over 60% of all US time spent with

digital media is now via mobile devices

‣ Most user time is spent in just five

apps. Facebook and Google dominate

‣ News, therefore, is highly filtered

through the lens of one’s friends


MEDIA FRAGMENTATION

There are also significant changes in

how information is now consumed:

‣ Content is incredibly infinite

‣ Attention is mostly finite

‣ Intake is largely in sound bites


ADVERTISER FRUSTRATION

Last but not least, advertisers are facing

major challenges and these disrupt how

news content is predominantly monetized:

‣ Ad blocking has moved from curiosity to

mainstream, particularly on mobile

‣ Marketers and media are divided how to

define and measure video ad impressions

‣ Inflated traffic data has created distrust

in the display advertising supply chain


CLOVERLEAF CONSIDERATIONS


EDELMAN CLOVERLEAF

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‣ The Edelman Cloverleaf reflects the firm’s holistic view of the

evolving media / content ecosystem. It first debuted in 2011

‣ It’s a birds-eye view that informs the development of

multichannel communications marketing strategies

‣ The framework, while seemingly organized, is nuanced. The

various classifications for many channels are blurry - e.g.

YouTube could sit in different sections. It’s meant as a guide


EDELMAN CLOVERLEAF 2016

‣ The Cloverleaf in 2016 is now comprised of two spheres of

influence: technology platforms and content publishers.

Platforms, by far, dominate both in time spent and ad dollars

‣ The updated framework also takes into account that there are

now three pathways to digital content: direct, search and social

‣ The schematic highlights the need for building integrated

programs that mix both tried-and-true and emerging strategies


SOCIAL

What’s now…

‣ Social media includes all major

networks and messaging apps

‣ Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat

and more dominate the day

‣ Many are experimenting in

news: Twitter Moments,

Snapchat Discover, etc.



SOCIALWhat’s new and next…

‣ The relationship between

publishers and platforms is

growing cozier as the latter now

offers both a viable means of

distribution and monetization

‣ Facebook Instant Articles is

rolling out on Android and iOS

with more than 300 publishers

SEARCHWhat’s now…

‣ Search engines include Google,

Bing, Yahoo and Wikipedia

‣ Google continues to dominate

‣ Mobile queries have surpassed

desktop-based keyword

searches, creating a big shift in

the search engine result pages



SEARCH

What’s new and next…

‣ Google Accelerated Mobile Pages is

launching in early 2016

‣ The open source effort will speed

up and improve the news discovery

experience on the mobile web

‣ The program may make content

from participating publishers

potentially more visible than others

What’s now…

‣ Curators are platforms that

deliver personalized news

‣ Apple News, a newcomer,

already has 40M users.

Others include Flipboard,

Medium (an op-ed hub), and

email newsletters like REDEF

CURATORS




‣ Mobile has reinvigorated

podcasting. Media companies

like CBS, Slate and others

are making serious bets on it

‣ Curators like Pandora are

syndicating popular programs

CURATORS

What’s now…

‣ Influencers are digitally

savvy creators that hand

craft content for platforms -

particularly visual narratives

‣ Many video influencers are

federated into networks that

require a paid budget

INFLUENCERS



‣ There remain earned-centric

ways to work with some

influencers – especially

hungry newcomers

‣ LinkedIn is fast becoming a

hub for business influencers,

including employee voices

INFLUENCERS


What’s now…

‣ Media includes traditional

and digital-native brands

‣ Facebook is now their

primary source of traffic,

followed by Google. Direct

visits have dwindled

MEDIA



‣ Some publishers are building

their brands via so-called

enterprise journalism

‣ They are betting that if a

body of work is high value,

scarce and high quality it

will find an audience

MEDIA


What’s now…

‣ Brands continue go direct to

audiences with content

‣ Scale can be a challenge,

unless the topic is high

interest or content is

amplified via paid media

BRANDS



‣ Branded content will need to

be built with earned-centric,

social-by-design approach in

order to scale

‣ Content can ignite a virtuous

cycle of earned media and

social conversations

BRANDS


STORYTELLING IMPLICATIONS


DEVELOP SOCIAL STORYLINES

‣ Social media is now the primary means of means of news discovery

‣ News you read is often different than news you say you read.

Journalism is now social currency for billions of consumers

‣ This is encouraging the majority journalists to create more sharable /

social-friendly storylines (76% - 2015 Edelman/Muck Rack survey)

‣ Communications marketing programs need to do the same in embracing

both a social-by-design as well as a linear and logical style


SCALE SURFACE AREA

‣ Somewhere there’s usually someone or something that has more

distribution power than you do. Partner with them

‣ Embrace distribution-centric thinking to help programs scale

‣ Paid programs like sponsored content and video influencer

programs can increase a program’s digital surface area

‣ Consider emphasizing publishers that are “all in” on Facebook

Instant Articles, Snapchat Discover and Apple News

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THINK OWNED TO EARNED

‣ Content for content sake isn’t enough. “If you build it, they will

come.” doesn't work as well in a mobile-centric age

‣ However, original content is increasingly the “lead domino” that

knocks over others and begins a virtuous cycle of earned media

‣ Content assets should be crafted with an earned media mindset,

holistic systems thinking and, when possible, have paid

amplification support behind it for this to work


HAND CRAFT NARRATIVES

‣ When in Rome, do as the Romans do

‣ A singular narrative should be hand-crafted to fit in the spaces

where it will be discovered, shared and consumed

‣ Digital influencers are a good model to follow. They take the

same story and often tell it in three different ways for three

different visual platforms - YouTube, Snapchat and Instagram


CREATE CANONICAL CONTENT

‣ High-interest / useful, high-quality content that’s unavailable

anywhere else can often find an audience

‣ Much like reporters are embracing “enterprise journalism,”

brands should look at investing in similar canonical assets

‣ Original research / intellectual property follows this formula.

When done well it earns attention on merit and can become a

repeatable content franchise


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Platforms:

Three types of

technology hubs where

most content discovery

now starts. These

dominate the digital day

and include social

networks, messaging

services, search engines

and personalized news

curators.

Publishers:

Three overlapping

groups of content

creators. These include

traditional and digital-

native news

organizations, platform-

savvy influencers plus

content and digital

experiences built by

brands.


For more information contact:

Steve Rubel

Chief Content Strategist

[email protected]

All sources interviewed appeared as guests on Steve Rubel’s

CBS Local Content Convergence podcast

(http://play.it/convergence)


Edelman Cloverleaf™ Forecast

Technology

Transcript of Edelman Cloverleaf™ Forecast