On tumblr.

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or: how to solve the branded content problem

description

An outside-the-box proposal for tumblr, regarding the role they intend to play with brands and agencies. (Note: this was written before tumblr removed the highlight and pin functions. Sigh.)

Transcript of On tumblr.

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or: how to solve the branded content problem

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agenda

intro

landscape

problem

strategy

conclusion

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intro

talking about tumblr is talking about branded content, and the future of advertising.

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landscape

tumblr is a publishing platform, a creative community and a social discovery engine.

tumblr has more than 90 million blogs, who’ve made more than 40 billion blog posts, for an audience of about 170 million

monthly visitors.

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landscape

tumblr is gaining relevance with teens and 20somethings.

tumblr has developed a reputation for attracting a creative community, and keeping them engaged.

tumblr has shifted from advertising-hostile, to a self-proclaimed role as the saviour of creative advertising.

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monetization

tumblr has released a small set of paid products that all follow a simple rule: do not make users second class citizens.

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monetization"the products we're building work well for

storytelling, and we've tried to build them in such a way that they do scale from a big brand cutting a check for $100,000 to a person proud

of their post and wants to highlight it for five dollars."

- David Karp, May 2012, The Verge

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posting tools

pinned posts - keeps a piece of content at the top of each followers feed, until they click a button to remove it.

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posting tools

highlighted posts - allows you to put an arrow beside a post, drawing attention to it.

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promotional tools

radar - the place where popular content from the community gets featured. brands can pay to get

placement here, with a clear indication of what is sponsored.

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promotional tools

spotlight - tumblr allows brands to pay for space in the equivalent of a subject-based yellow pages. the spotlight section

also features popular or notable users.

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how tumblr makes money

all of these methods of generating revenue avoid putting brands above users.

a brand can BUY what users can EARN, but there’s no product (other than high-priced analytics from a third party) that is brand

only.

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how tumblr makes money

the tumblr community doesn’t like the idea of brands ruining the ambience with promotional messaging.

tumblr’s approach has been to put brands on equal footing.

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problem

tumblr made approximately $13 million in 2012.

they’ve stated they want to make $100 million in 2013.

they want to do this by convincing brands that tumblr is the place to build a community around creative content and brand

activations.

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problem

“We [...] are confident that the world’s greatest marketers and media companies will use these

products to set a new bar for creative advertising on the web”

-Tumblr Spokesperson, May 2012, VentureBeat

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problem

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problem

to increase access to top brands, tumblr has been partnering with agencies.

most agencies haven’t mastered branded content yet.

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strategy

tumblr’s problem isn’t just a matter of relevance or ability.

it’s a matter of understanding: brands and agencies are still learning how to fill that curatorial role.

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storyboard

tumblr has hired from the community, to ensure the people building the service know what the platform actually means.

this is where storyboard comes from.

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storyboard is a project by tumblr’s editorial team.

the focus is to create content to advertise the platform; to report on the creative community that uses tumblr.

storyboard

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strategy

tumblr’s editorial team should be tumblr’s product.

(more accurately, tumblr should continue recruiting expert content creation teams from specific verticals, and offer them to

brands and agencies as a consulting service.)

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the product

a tiered consulting service, teaching agencies, and more importantly brands, how to create great content that will

resonate with the tumblr community.

tumblr should essentially take the cottage industry that develops around major players in social media, and turn it into an

incubation center.

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the product

tier one: onboarding

a content creation team works with a brand to help them develop a strategy that’s true to the brand and platform.

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the product

tier two: consulting

a content creation team works with a brand to not only strategize, but also provide support and insight on an ongoing

basis.

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the product

tier three: content and community creation

a content creation team runs a branded tumblr account, in direct support of a client.

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the model

tumblr’s consulting division would have two main objectives: getting brand entrenched in the platform, and getting them to the

point of self-sufficiency.

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the model

this approach isn’t a long term business model - it’s an adoption accelerator that will increase spending on tumblr’s current and

future promotional tools, and improve the platform’s standing as an advertising destination.

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the solution

get brands on the platform

help them succeed in building a relevant, engaged audience

build competence, and begin supporting new clients

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conclusion

tumblr has a fairly unprecedented opportunity.

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conclusion

people watch tv to see tv. people use facebook to see friends. people use tumblr to see creativity.

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conclusion

they don’t seem to care much if it comes from a 12 year old, a magazine, or a fashion line.

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thank you

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image credits

1. tumblr logo, tumblr.com4. heart collage, inkcarts.com5. screen capture, tumblr.com7. dollar sign, latinolinkviews.com8. post it note, yellower.se9. screen capture, tumblr.com10. screen capture, tumblr.com11. screen capture, tumblr.com16. tumblr a-list banner, alistpartners.tumblr.com19. editorial team, editorial.tumblr.com20. screen capture, storyboard.tumblr.com21. department of editorial seal, editorial.tumblr.com