cosmopolitan - woman starts with w.o.m. | newhouse advertising graduate program

COSMO’SCATWALK

FOR A CAUSE

WHAT DOES “WORK IT”

MEAN?

JUNE 2013

“I STOP AT NOTHING TO BE...”

BE FEARLESS FABULOUSWith Miss J!

&

WORK IT

GIRL TALK

THWARTTAXI CABTEDIUM

4 NEW WAYS TO

LIKE A COSMO GIRL!

You are invited

THE EASIEST ANSWER TO “WHAT AM I

GONNA WEAR TODAY?”

Table“Girl Talk” Video Program

Communication to Advertisers

“Work it Like a Cosmo Girl!” Campaign

ofContents

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11

15

“Girl Talk”Video Program

3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

4 EMPOWERMENT I stop at nothing to be...

5 BEAUTY Be fearless and fabulous at...

6 THE STEPPS

9 ADVERTISING OFFERINGS

10 RATIONALE

15 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

15 SWOT

16 THE COSMO WOMAN

17 PERSONAS

19 COMPETITION

20 INSIGHT

20 BRAND POSITION

20 CREATIVE BRIEF

21 CREATIVE EXECUTIONS21 Cosmo’s Catwalk for a Cause22 Cosmopolitan.com/WorkIt23 Taxi Makeup Mirror24 Cosmos App25 Ad for the app

26 RESEARCH

28 APPENDICES

11 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

11 SWOT

12 POTENTIAL ADVERTISERS

13 BRAND POSITION

13 CREATIVE BRIEF

14 EVALUATION

“Work it Like a Cosmo Girl”Campaign

Communicationto Advertisers

Dear Overwhelmed Reader,

Allow us to engage you conversationally for the moment and send you all of the positive energy we can. You’re staring down a pile of reading when this document lands on your desk. It’s not fair to ask you to dive in without telling you what to expect and conveying some of our expectations for what you’ll gain from this report.

You live and breathe the Cosmopolitan brand. Our team lives and breathes advertising, particularly on the Web.

This report attempts to combine the timely with the timeless. In addition to actionable solutions you can implement to make Cosmopolitan a leading video content provider for women, we also share timeless strategies for increasing engagement

Whyand virality. We analyze what it will require for Cosmopolitan to strongly enter the branded entertainment space, and we detail a framework for thinking about branded entertainment that will remain true so long as the Internet as we know it remains relevant.

In the advertising world, everyone has an opinion, but the eventual advantage goes to the brand that knows something that other brands don’t. We know what drives content to go viral, and we know the following recommendations will provide Cosmopolitan with a proprietary, defensible advantage over other publications. That’s why this is required reading for Cosmopolitan’s Web content team.

Sincerely,

Candy Lee, Research & Data Organization Derrell Smith, Strategy & Production Samuel Smith, Team Lead & WritingShruti Sundararaman, Research & StrategyLi Tang, Graphic Design & PublishingNancy Weickhardt, Art Direction

THIS IS REQUIRED READING FOR COSMO’S WEB CONTENT TEAM

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Executive Summary

For clarity, throughout this report we’ll sometimes make reference to “Girl Talk” as the “hub,” each vertical as a “module,” and each video series inside a module as a “playlist.” The hub is made up of a half-dozen or so modules, each module contains a number of playlists, and each playlist contains a series of related videos.

Our agency was assigned the task of brainstorming Web content for the beauty and empowerment modules, but we see these two categories as part of the whole: two slices of a pie or two spokes on a wheel. With Girl Talk, Cosmopolitan can find a home for content in multiple verticals. Existing editorial content from Cosmopolitan.com could easily be repurposed as additional videos within Girl Talk once the viewer exhausts all sponsored content.

Our secondary goal is to convey what we’ve learned about successfully publishing content on the Web, including the latest research into what makes content viral and how you can apply this to videos posted on Cosmopolitan.com. These timeless solutions are organized into a framework for ideation that you can use to make good decisions going forward.

My mother was a Cosmo Girl when the conversation was “how to please a man,” rather than the more modern, “how to teach your man to please you.” Then, the simple fact that sexual exploits were discussed in public was taboo in a world where traditional morals were used to shame, judge, and repress. As a result, any conversation about sex had to be framed palatably to men, the gatekeepers to media and advertising revenue. But, as the conversation changes, so must Cosmopolitan.

Today’s Cosmo Girl craves content (Barkley, 2011). She’s more plugged-in than her peers and cohorts or any generation before her (Stoddard, 2012). For Cosmopolitan to stay relevant in today’s world, it must be the go-to resource for both the common questions, like “how do I do a smokey eye?” and the one-offs, like “what choices did my female role models make when facing a similar situation?” In other words, this is not my mother’s Cosmopolitan, nor should it be.


To continue Cosmopolitan’s transformation, The A-Team proposes “Girl Talk,” an online hub of sponsored video content that is modular and extensible, plays well with advertisers, and seamlessly delivers content in all of Cosmopolitan’s verticals: from beauty and fashion to careers and empowerment. Girl Talk serves as a hub for all of Cosmopolitan’s non-editorial branded content.

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THE HEALTHIEST PERSON I KNOW

Sponsored by Luna, Curves, or Weight Watchers

Featuring women like Jennifer Hudson, Kim Lyons and Jillian

Michaels

A WORLD CHANGING

WOMANSponsored by Burt’s Bees or PETA

Featuring women like Jillian Mourning, a model/human

trafficking activist

THE WOMAN OF THE HOUSESponsored by Target, or

Bed Bath & Beyond

Featuring women like Jenny McCarthy, actress and

former Playboy model who has an autistic son

I stop at nothing to be...

EMPOWERMENT

Our Web content series focused on empowering women is entitled “I Stop At Nothing To Be...” (Hereafter, ISNB). This series features stories from women who have stopped at nothing to get the man, the manicure, or the MBA. We’ll feature women who have stopped at nothing to be a great Mom, have a career, be a trendsetter, be socially responsible and environmentally friendly, be healthy, and/or be adventurous.

We’ve identified a number of content sponsors as well as ideas for the sorts of women who the magazine should feature in the videos.

Unlike the videos in the beauty section, the empowerment videos will have a serious tone and

inspirational message. ISNB allows viewers to see their role models humanized and

relatable. When viewers and interviewees share a similar obstacle, the visitor

can look to our videos for advice.

A STANDOUT IN A CROWD

Sponsored by Maybelline, Gap, or JC Penney

Featuring women like Tory Burch, fashion designer, socialite, and

philanthropist

AN EXPLORER OF THE UNEXPLORED

Sponsored by Red Bull, Columbia, or North Face

Featuring women who stare danger in the face and refuse to back down, like Gretchen Bleiler, a

professional snowboarder

ONE STEP AHEAD IN MY CAREER

Sponsored by Ann Taylor, L’Oreal, or Gilette Venus

Featuring women who have been successful at their

careers, like Sheryl Sandberg, COO Facebook

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Our Web content idea for the Beauty category features J. Alexander (“Miss Jay”), a modeling coach, stylist, and former judge on America’s Next Top Model. “Miss Jay” earned his nickname from his choice of clothing styles, often dressing in drag and wearing high heels. His sardonic wit and ability to play the “girl’s best friend” role makes him an ideal host for our first beauty series, entitled “Be Fearless and Fabulous At...” (Hereafter, BFFA)

BFFA is a joint venture video series and content partnership with a makeup manufacturer, such as M.A.C., that teaches women different makeup styles, using the brand’s cosmetics, that they can wear at different times and places. For example, BFFA “My Workstation” shows makeup styles suitable for a professional environment, and BFFA “Beach” helps bikini-clad and beach-bound babes to be beautiful while still looking natural. Our team identified five episodes to launch the BFFA series: Work, Beach, Mall, Bar, and Weddings.

Be Fearless Fabulous

BEAUTY

&

MY WORKSTATION

MY BEST FRIEND’S WEDDING

GIRLS’ NIGHT OUT

Be Fearless & Fabulous

at... THE BEACH

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69% of brands have confirmed they will increase spending for branded content next year.

83% of brands are using branded content on their websites or via email.

77% of agencies had used branded content in at least one medium.

70% of brands had used branded content in at least one medium.

57% of brands plan to test branded content marketing in the next year.

According to Jonah Berger, a Wharton marketing professor, there are six characteristics that viral

content shares: these are the STEPPS.

Note going forward that a piece of content doesn’t need all six of these tactics in order to become viral. Some viral hits only have one of these charactistics,

but combining two or three is even more powerful.

The STEPPSWhat Makes Content Viral?

Video will account for 90% of web traffic by 2017.

BRANDED CONTENT?

WHY

70% of brands said they increased their spending on branded content in the past year.

84% of agencies plan to test branded content marketing in the next year.

Source: MailOnline, 2012; Cisco, 2013

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S ocial Currency

T riggers

E motion

P ublic

P ractical Value

S tories

An individual’s social status is tied to the information he or she controls. Information that increases a person’s uniqueness in conversation is highly sought after and readily transmitted. Cosmopolitan already has a natural place as a social currency provider.

Triggers are words, phrases, or images that are connected with a message.We can manufacture triggers by keeping our message and trigger on top of mind and tip of tongue for an extended period of time. Cosmopolitan can create triggers with effective selection of playlist titles. The name “Girl Talk” was selected specifically as a trigger. It’s a phrase used in everyday life that Cosmopolitan can own with this new hub of branded content, increasing recall of the Cosmopolitan brand.

•••

••

•

People share things they care about. Awe is the most shared emotion. Our content should make viewers say, “That is awesome!” High arousal emotions encourage sharing and include awe, alert, excitement, and elatedness.Low arousal emotions discourage sharing and include sadness, calmness, and relaxation. Cosmopolitan should err on the side of high-arousal video content.

•••••

Content that’s “built to show” is “built to grow.” Movements that are naturally public, like Movember and the yellow Livestrong bracelet, tend to spread faster. Online, the discipline known as “growth hacking” is a marketing strategy that aims to make as many parts of the platform as public as possible.

•••

People share “news you can use,” like useful, practical advice. People enjoy helping others; letting someone know that we care creates a stronger social bond between us Packaging is important: Content should be tidbits, two minutes at most.

•••

Information travels under the guise of idle chatter. Create stories in which the brand lives; stories that can’t be told without mentioning the brand. Without proper integration of the brand, Cosmopolitan readers will share all of the information presented and leave out the brand (Berger, 2013).

•••

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This content implements three of the six STEPPS: stories, practical value, and social currency.We propose the following implementation guidelines.

EMPOWERMENTThe ISNB Web content utilizes two of the six STEPPS: stories and emotion. We recommend the following implementation guidelines for the content.

BEAUTY Tell compelling stories that can be retold. Short videos with a clear message are best in this format. A good way to communicate our vision for the ISBN series is “Aesop’s Fables for women,” a simple story with a compelling moral and no fluff.

1Emotion plays an important role in this content series. It’s important to remember the time-tested techniques advertisers use to tug on the viewer’s emotional heartstrings, producing videos that a woman can’t help but share with her friends, videos that resonate strongly with high-arousal emotions. Sharing the video should help the viewer share a bit of herself.

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2

Ensure that the videos leverage the brand’s unique selling proposition, so that the story cannot be told without the brand. For example, M.A.C. is known for bold, rockstar colors. It must be clear in the content that the viewer can’t get the colors of makeup needed to do the styles recommended unless they shop M.A.C.

Practical value and social currency are sometimes on opposing ends of the spectrum. Content which is highly practical has been published before and brings no unique message to the viewer. On the other hand, content that is highly specialized is too niche for daily, or even weekly, use. When content is too unique to come up in conversation, it’s easily forgotten. The advertising team needs to walk the fine line between practical advice and social currency to make content that is shared via word of mouth.

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE STEPPS

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In the print world, research shows that ads adjacent to editorial get an 11% lift in readership compared to ads adjacent to other ads. The Table of Contents page also has a strong impact on readership. Ads placed next to a TOC had increased readership of 28%. Surprisingly, the research suggests that the relevance of the article and the advertisement does not significantly impact readership, even though media planners often pay a premium to be placed next to relevant articles (Gfk MRI, 2010).

Our proposed hub was engineeredto offer similar benefits to advertisers so that Cosmopolitan can communicatethe value of this new offering in language that media planners understand. Purchasing a wrap is similar to buying an advertisement adjacent to editorial. Integrations are most similar to advertorials. A partial takeover, where the brand’s message is displayed alongside the video index, is much like an advertisement next to the Table of Contents. Finally, a full takeover of a module is similar to a homepage takeover.

WRAPPEDCosmopolitan takes existing editorial content, either created solely by the editorial department, in conjunction with the advertising department, or commissioned from third-party sources, and wraps the brand’s advertising message around the video content with a ten-second pre-roll advertising message and a fifteen-second post-roll message. This is the weakest advertising tactic and should be used to meet a media planner’s frequency objectives. Pricing somewhere around $30-$45 CPM seems reasonable.

Cosmopolitan becomes the advertiser’s production house. The Cosmopolitan advertising team will produce videos for the brand that integrates the brand’s message with creative insights. Branded content works best when the viewer is more focused on the entertainment than on the promotional message, and it’s imperative that the brand lives within the story such that the story can’t exist without the brand. This is a great strategy for maximizing a reach objective. Pricing is difficult, as there are non-negligible costs that are associated with producing a video. Should Cosmopolitan’s content be consistently driving

INTEGRATED

The brand integrates with an existing video playlist, like the beauty category, with several promoted videos being featured in the section and skins surrounding the video player. This allows the advertiser to command the category and achieve both reach and frequency objectives since we’re pairing integration (reach) with video player skins for the entire category (frequency). Typical industry benchmarks for this type of integration is about $35 CPM for skin views and an additional $35 CPM for video views.

100,000 views, pricing at $60-$80 CPM would gross Cosmopolitan $7,000 per video, or $50,000-$80,000 per video series, which more than covers production costs. Simply benchmarking against video content on competitor’s websites and compensating for the increased traffic Cosmopolitan has would be closer to $700 per video, which is why increasing the viral nature of the content is a strong recommendation throughout this report.

PARTIAL TAKEOVER

FULL TAKEOVERCosmopolitan’s Girl Talk section will offer four main ways to integrate a brand’s message with content.

Your brand controls a complete video module within Girl Talk alongside the beauty, empowerment, and fashion modules. Like a homepage takeover, price should be billed per week at a minimum rate of $10,000.

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RationaleBecause Cosmopolitan is providing a hub of content in a number of verticals, women who land on the Girl Talk page will organically filter themselves into the videos that are most relevant and interesting to them. This provides organic targeting of eyeballs and better efficiency for the advertiser.

GIRL TALK IS APPEALING TO ADVERTISERS

GIRL TALK IS APPEALING TO READERSReaders get access to never-before-seen content specifically designed with the Cosmo Woman in mind. Since the content closely mirrors the editorial found in the magazine and on Cosmopolitan.com, readers get video content that resonates with them.

EDITORS WILL LOVE YOU FOR THIS

Editorial’s goal is to make Cosmopolitan a slightly more sophisticated magazine, and Girl Talk empowers women by introducing them to women who make a difference in the world. The hub also provides a unique place on the Web where sponsored content and editorial can coexist; after the viewer reaches the end of the sponsored content in a particular playlist, similar editorial videos or recommended articles can be suggested to the user.

The current problem with sponsored video content is that people seeking videos seek them on YouTube, not on Cosmopolitan-owned media. This significantly impacts the direction of editorial, who have little motivation to produce video content that isn’t watched. Girl Talk can be easily featured in blurbs in both the print edition or in its long-form as video in the digital edition of Cosmopolitan. This integration will drive viewers to think of Cosmopolitan first when seeking answers to questions women have about beauty, fashion, empowerment, and weight loss. Since advertisers are paying for the production of the videos, it takes a strain off editorial’s production budget while providing valuable content to readers.

Production costs of one-on-one interviews are very low. Talent costs may be high for some individuals, but since we’re targeting people who are public figures but not well-known talent, it’s possible that talent would be inexpensive or, in some cases, free.

COST-EFFECTIVE PRODUCTION

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This section of the report answers the question of how we can reach out to advertisers to encourage their purchase of branded content on Cosmopolitan.com. We conducted primary qualitative research among media planners and other advertising professionals and secondary research via sources like Mintel, Simmons, MRI+, IBIS, WARC, Alexa, Nielsen, ComScore, newspaper articles, blogs and blog comments, and research papers. Our results included a clear brand position for Cosmopolitan.com that incorporates the new editorial direction of the magazine and clearly defines the advertisers that we feel would be interested in branded content in the Girl Talk section of the site, which is a more niche advertising buy than Cosmopolitan.com display advertisements.

Executive Summary


SWOT

Strong ability to drive word of mouthHigh traf�cAbility to reach target on multiple platformsStrategies to drive both reach and frequency objectivesCaptive, loyal audienceHigh ROI compared to competitorsAbility to reach trendsettersCost-effective CPMs

Potential to expand into mobile spaceBuzzfeed/Mashable-worthy content potentialIncreased content consumption

YouTube owns video searchesWomen's content is a very competitive nicheMedia use fragmentation

Laggers in branded contentExpensive compared to other mediaExpensive in terms of total dollar outlay


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MAGAZINEADVERTISING SPENDING

INDEX

L’Oreal$89M191

CrestBurt’s Bees

Oral-B

M.A.CAnn Taylor

DoveOlay

P&G Secret

TargetJC Penney

Neutrogena$3.8M203

Gillette

ListerineVenus

$7.5MINDEX 115

Primary Target AdvertisersBrands with a Simmons index above 115 and magazine spends above $7.5 million are not so big that niche content partnerships won’t add value, but they are large enough spenders to have room in their budget for great, inexpensive ideas.

Secondary Target AdvertisersBrands with a Simmons index above 115 and magazine spends above $1.5 million are valuable because niche content partnerships with Cosmopolitan might be their first opportunity to advertise with Cosmo, given that the price of a single print advertisement is up to 15% of their budget.

POTENTIALADVERTISERSWe chose potential advertisers for their appeal to Cosmopolitan’s target audience. Of these potential advertisers, we segmented the list into two groups with different advertising needs.

Source: Experian Simmons, Fall 2010 NHCS Adult 12 Month; Kantar AdSpender

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COSMOPOLITANindex/%Cosmo readers

Potential Advertisersindex/%advertiser’s target audience

18-34 years old 208/57% 150+/50–60%

Attended college 128/39% 120-170/15–30%

Current full time college student 251/15% 200+/10–30%

Not married 127/61% 115-140/40–70%

No kids 122/50% 115+/35–45%

Employed full time 114/47% 115+/40–50%

Individual income $25,000+ 113/38% 115+/30–40%

TGI Socio Economic Level 3 133/44% 120+/35–45%

Source: Experian Simmons, Fall 2010 NHCS Adult 12 Month

Q What’s the single minded proposition?

A Cosmopolitan’s Girl Talk strategies are more effective than our competitors’ strategies.

Q What do they currently believe?

A Cosmopolitan reaches an important subset of females and is a cost-effective advertising platform, but it’s branded entertainment offerings are no better than its competitors.

BRANDpositionTo advertisers spending at least $1.5 million on magazine advertisements annually, with a target audience including 18-34 year old women and an index of 115 or higher cross-tabulated with Cosmopolitan readers on Simmons,

the value of reaching a Cosmo Girl is higher than the value of reaching the average girl, because Cosmopolitan drives strong word-of-mouth among young, empowered trendsetters.

Q What do we want them to believe?

A Cosmopolitan’s new branded entertainment strategy fits well with a brand’s strategic goals and is more effective than the competition’s.

Q Why should they believe this?

A Cosmopolitan’s advertising team knows things that other publishers don’t, including how to effectively drive word-of-mouth traffic, and the size of the publication and it’s competitive advantage in traffic means that developing a hit viral video is more likely than other publications.

CREATIVEbrief


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There’s a clear discrepancy between the number of views for content hosted on YouTube and content hosted on a publisher’s website. While videos by Glamour and Vogue have hundreds of thousands of views for their YouTube hosted content, interestingly, the content hosted on their own site has fewer than a few thousand views. While they don’t show the view counts explicitly on the videos, a number of their videos have under 100 likes on Facebook and few, if any, shares on Twitter. If we expect a ~1% conversion rate for social sharing, this would

EvaluationThe Time Spent Watching metric, hereafter TSW, can help Cosmopolitan analyze the factors in videos that drive user interest. TSW will be an important factor in the decision to determine which videos are worth continuing in a series and which should be ended. Paired with a “percentage watched to the end” metric, TSW can tell advertisers who purchase wraps what percentage of viewers see the advertising message on both sides of the video and which only see the advertising message on the front-end.

TIME SPENT WATCHINGindicate that the videos hosted on a publisher’s site has between 3,500 and 10,000 views. If monetized with advertising sponsorship, this might earn a publisher $500 over the lifetime of a video—a pittance.

Since Cosmopolitan is a larger magazine than its competitors, we can expect Girl Talk to reach a larger audience: we’d expect individual videos to benchmark around 30,000 views on average. It’s not ideal, but it’s realistic: there’s no shortage of content on the Internet, and Cosmopolitan has a lot of competition for viewers’ eyeballs.

VIEWS

CLICK THROUGHSIt’s worth tracking click-throughs on advertiser-sponsored messages to determine the drive-to-site value of various categories and integration types. This will help Cosmopolitan price advertising fairly while upselling advertisers to more integrated (and more expensive) advertising placements, which will drive a higher percent of click-throughs.

SOURCE OF VISIT

We think it’s important to benchmark the percentage of traffic that is sourced internally, either via browsing to the hub from Cosmopolitan.com, as a referral from an internal article, or via an internal search engine. Since Girl Talk will be a new section, adoption will be low, but we expect a successful implementation, including powerful content, to see double digit compounded annual growth in internal traffic.

Normally, source of visit is used as a descriptive metric, but since Cosmopolitan is such a powerhouse brand, we believe the metric can be used to show an adoption of the Girl Talk video content by avid readers. Since a majority of Cosmopolitan.com’s Web traffic comes from organic search engine queries, many of which will trigger hits to the video section, it’s worth understanding the relationship that one-off hits have with advertisers: typically, they’re valued less online (Google AdWords CPMs vs. CPMs for direct sales ads) (Google AdWords, 2013), likely due to the fact that the user’s level

of engagement with these one-off advertisements is fleeting. It’s likely the effect of this advertising is limited by user interest and attention as well as a low frequency of views. On the other hand, internal traffic shows engaged users who are likely to see more than one message from an advertiser, indicating a higher frequency of view and thereby higher recall.

StrengthAccessible to all360 degree at modern womenMulti-platformsStrong brand recognitioneasy readattractive cover girlsbrand & content integration

WeaknessLow cultureLow web presence

OpportunityDigitalizationPost feministRise of branded contents

ThreatDying industryMedia use fragmentationInfo-splosion

SWOT

A 360 degree view of a modern women's lifeAccessible content, easy to readStrong brand recognitionAttractive, inspirational covers

Highly mobile consumers seeking mobile contentPost-feminist movement makes Cosmopolitan relevant

Readers don't "need" a new content providerNew editorial direction could alienate readers

Low cultureContent seen as repetitiveVery few Cosmo readers consume its web content

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This section answers the question of how we can let Cosmopolitan readers know about new branded content on Cosmopolitan.com as it is produced and released. We will detail the findings of our primary qualitative research with Cosmopolitan readers and the findings from our secondary research using databases and online articles.

Executive Summary

StrengthAccessible to all360 degree at modern womenMulti-platformsStrong brand recognitioneasy readattractive cover girlsbrand & content integration

WeaknessLow cultureLow web presence

OpportunityDigitalizationPost feministRise of branded contents

ThreatDying industryMedia use fragmentationInfo-splosion

SWOT

A 360 degree view of a modern women's lifeAccessible content, easy to readStrong brand recognitionAttractive, inspirational covers

Highly mobile consumers seeking mobile contentPost-feminist movement makes Cosmopolitan relevant

Readers don't "need" a new content providerNew editorial direction could alienate readers

Low cultureContent seen as repetitiveVery few Cosmo readers consume its web content

Finally, we look deeply into how a Cosmopolitan reader consumes content and interacts with others on social media to create virality. Our research led us to an insight, brand positioning, creative executions, and a mobile app, all engineered to make Cosmopolitan the top-of-mind resource for questions women ask.



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In addition to reaching the fun, fearless, female, we are specifically speaking to the young, ambitious, sophisticated woman who is mature enough to wake up early and responsible enough to stay up late. The Cosmo Woman is curious, confident and adventurous, always seeking fun new things to do, while managing her work and social life. This open-minded woman is willing to try new things and take risks, but she never puts herself in a situation that would be detrimental to her reputation. Furthermore, the Cosmo Woman is ever aware of new trends and always stands out in a crowd, while staying within her financial means. To the Cosmo Woman, Cosmopolitan is the magazine that helps transform all of the drama that consumes a modern woman's life into entertainment.

COSMOwomanThe

I like to have control over people and resources. 171

I love the idea of traveling abroad. 164

WORK Play

In this day and age it is important to juggle various tasks at the same time. 108

I prefer to work as part of a team than work alone. 126

It is important to keep learning new things in life. 111

I would like to get to the very top in my career. 161

I would like to setup my own business one day. 138

I am interested in other cultures. 141

I am regular movie theater goer. 139

I enjoy eating foreign foods. 126

I like to do things that are unconventional. 141

The internet has become a new way for me to socialize or meet people. 222

Magazines are my main source of entertainment. 221

I cannot resist buying magazines. 288

I like to try out new things no one else has. 173

I am adventurous. 151

I love scrapbooking. 278

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As a working woman, I find it important to balance my work life and personal life. I am ambitious in nature and sometimes I find it difficult to get away from certain work situations. At the same time I am aware that if I don’t balance my work life with some fun, my work will consume me and I don’t want that to happen. Cosmopolitan helps me get out of “work mode” and into “fun mode.”

Alexis

GOALSGetting a break from the monotony of working long hours.

Picking up pop culture tidbits to use as conversation starters with clients.

ATTITUDES & PERCEPTIONSI never hesitate to express my thoughts.

I am very willing to try new things, especially things that make me different from my colleagues.

I have strong opinions about things I care about, and that’s okay.

Reading Cosmopolitan helps me be a more interesting person, an important quality that is often overlooked.

MOTIVATIONS & BARRIERSI will never stop growing as a person or as a career-woman.

Sometimes work can be redundant.

NEEDS & WANTSI need to stay relevant and constantly in touch with current trends.

I want to stand out in a crowd.

33, Regional Sales DirectorSan Francisco, CaliforniaEngaged

PERSONA #1


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I’m outgoing. I’m open-minded. I’m determined. I’m driven. I love to have a good time. I love trying new things: whether it’s a new class at the gym or a new food I can’t pronounce.

I’m pretty simple. Give me a good book and a good glass of wine and I’m satisfied.

AngelaGOALSFinding a place she and her girlfriends can unwind after work with good eye-candy and drink specials.

Finding a guy who lives up to her expectations: she’s picky and her hometown is small.

ATTITUDES & PERCEPTIONSBalance is crucial in my life. I’m big on me-time.

I need to be with my girlfriends every so often.

I like to eat healthy, work out and take care of my body.

I refuse to let drama interfere with my happiness.

I love to shop around before buying something to find discounts.

MOTIVATIONS & BARRIERSI will explore the world and experience new things.

Finding a job in this economy is hard.

NEEDS & WANTSI want role models that ignite something inside of me that make me radiate confidence, strength, and beauty.

23, NannyRome, NYSingle

PERSONA #2

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In the women’s magazine category, Cosmopolitan dominates the competition in terms of minutes spent reading amd total paid circulation.

COMPETITION

In our primary research, we found that many of the women who regularly read Cosmopolitan sit down with the magazine for as long as 90 minutes. Many interviewees brag about painting their nails while indulging in the experience of reading Cosmopolitan. From this data, we have concluded that Cosmopolitan readers are the most loyal and involved readers of any women’s publication.

Competition for the target audience’s eyeballs Glamour.comELLE.comInStyle.comGoodHouseKeeping.comSeventeen.comBAZAAR.comMarieClaire.comVogue.comNylonmag.comSelf.com

Even though none of the brands have the circulation numbers of Cosmopolitan, the fact that there are so many of them, not to mention smaller, independent publishers and bloggers, means the competition for the kind of content that Cosmopolitan promotes is among the most competitive content anywhere on the Internet.

Online, the lay of the land is different. Because the medium is different, online content is consumed in brief chunks. This type of readership hurts Cosmopolitan loyalists but can be leveraged in a different way: by offering content that can be consumed piecemeal.

Other brands have made the transition into video content and branded entertainment ahead of Cosmopolitan. Cosmopolitan’s competitors have successfully made the jump into branded online entertainment with video series like Vogue’s behind-the-scenes videos and photo shoots, Glamour’s “Gift of the Week” series, Glamour’s “Elevator Makeover” series.


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CREATIVEBRIEF

Q What’s the single minded proposition?

A “Work it like a Cosmo girl!”

Q What’s the target audience?

A 18-34 year-old fun and fearless females who believe they can aspire to have it all.

Q What do they currently believe?

A Cosmopolitan’s content is the lowest-common-denominator in women’s magazines and it can’t be taken seriously. Cosmopolitan has stretched its content (especially the sex tips and relationship advice) to such an extreme that it has gone from being relevant to being just another trivial magazine that is lost in the pile of other magazines that do not make any real difference. The content can be repetitive and trivial to readers, particularly older readers who are more experienced.

Q What do we want them to believe?

A Girl Talk should be the first go-to resource for trusted answers to women’s questions.

Q Why should they believe this?

A Our rapidly growing, Cosmopolitan-approved content library provides a 360-degree view of a modern woman’s life.

Cosmo Women are mature enough to wake up early but young enough to stay up late.

This duality means that a Cosmo Woman is equally comfortable with consuming information that is entertaining or serious.

To 18-34 year old women who are fun, fearless trendsetters, who are mature enough to wake up early but young enough to stay up late,

INSIGHT

BRANDpositioning

Cosmopolitan’s “Girl Talk” should be the first place you look for answers to questions women have, because you already trust Cosmopolitan to help you stay cultured and informed.

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CREATIVE

Our first creative execution is an annual event promoting women’s health and wellness. By partnering with advertisers who already have charitable giving programs, this event can help bring awareness to issues like breast cancer while introducing women to the content on Girl Talk.

Like a Cosmo Woman, the event starts early with a quarter-mile-long walk in stiletto heels and the latest fashions. The Girl Talk hub benefits from earned media from news coverage. The rest of the day, women can tour the event location, interact with sponsors, participate in collaborative art, have

CREATIVE EXECUTION #1

brunch with friends, listen to keynote speakers, or participate in making a Girl Talk video. At night, the Cosmo Woman stays up late having drinks with friends at the Pinnacle Bar.

The annual event would initially be held in three metropolitan areas: Los Angeles, New York City, and the Mall of America in Minnesota. The event would provide content for dozens of new advertiser-sponsored videos on Girl Talk, encourage word of mouth, and position Cosmopolitan as the go-to resource for the work-hard, play-hard crowd.

Cosmo’s Catwalk for a Cause


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“Working It” means something to every Cosmo Woman, and at Cosmopolitan.com/WorkIt, we’re going to let her work it her way. This is a gamified platform encouraging the Cosmo Woman to make positive changes in her life by getting virtual recognition. For example, the user would be rewarded for hitting the gym, losing weight, finishing a book, graduating from college, or getting out of a bad relationship. Getting that next level in a game can give a girl the motivation to

Cosmopolitan.com/WorkIt

make positive changes in her life.To inspire and educate,

relevant content from Girl Talk can be placed throughout the site.

The real benefit to developing this platform is the amount of data that could be harvested about readers. While the site would be open to all women, a question on registration, “Do you regularly read Cosmopolitan?” could help Cosmo’s ad team deliver more detailed statistics to advertisers about Cosmopolitan’s readership profile.


Additionally, while the technology’s not quite there yet, in two or three years it will be relatively easy to develop a Cosmopolitan bracelet, a la the Nike FuelBand, that passively tracks the Cosmo Woman’s day to day activities. It’s important to move now to gain the user base as this will soon become a very valuable opportunity.

Social media tie-ins are inevitable in this platform. We encourage users to share both the Girl Talk videos and the achievements they receive on the platform on Facebook and Twitter by providing share buttons or links when the user has made significant progress or achievements on the site.

While this could be positioned as a rewards program, offering gift cards or prizes for achievements at certain point values, a cheaper option is simply to use coupons sponsored by and paid for by advertisers in combination with virtual recognition: a leaderboard and shoutouts on Twitter for high achievers. Ongoing free Cosmopolitan subscriptions, print or digital, could be an inexpensive prize for achieving goals month after month.

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TAXIMAKEUP MIRROR

Putting on makeup in a taxi is a convenience, but why use a tiny makeup mirror when you can use a larger, folding mirror inside the cab? This branded mirror allows commuters to quickly touch up before going out for a night on the town.


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Cosmos is a replacement weather app for iOS and Android specifically for Cosmo girls. Our app brings in the local weather and recommends clothing choices: for windy days, a hat and scarf, for cold days, a jacket, and for rain, a trenchcoat. It also recommends a list of things to do, weather permitting: sunny days could include a walk along the beach, but rainy days may be more appropriately spent inside a museum or at a movie premiere. Finally, the app would allow the user to access the day’s recommended makeup and hairstyle tips that are generated based on the local weather: a rainy day calls for an up-do to prevent frizz.

This app is game-changing because it takes something mundane, like a weather app, and adding the flair that Cosmopolitan brings to its readers, making checking the daily weather fun and informative.

AppCOSMOSCREATIVE EXECUTION #4

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on Cosmopolitan.com


AD FOR THE APP


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DATABASE We researched information available on databases such as Mintel, IBIS, WARC, and ProQuest, Simmons, MRI, Alexa, Nielsen and comScore.

RESEARCHmethodology

PRIMARY RESEARCHOne-on-One Interviews with Cosmopolitan Readers: We conducted qualitative research by interviewing 20+ Cosmo readers one-on-one. The interviews focused on finding out about the specific preferences and habits of the target demographic.

SECONDARY RESEARCH

Q How do Cosmopolitan readers feel about the content of the magazine?A Most people believe that the women’s magazine industry idealizes a very narrow standard of beauty: young, thin, fit, and sexy. According to Saveria Capecchi, an Italian social scientist, “Media represent women on the one hand as ‘modern’, emancipated, professionally active and sexually daring, on the other hand as passive objects of male desire whose bodies must be slender, young and eroticized (Capecchi, 2011).” Our primary research suggests that women seek out these unattainably-beautiful female role models as inspirational and are not offended by them.

On the other hand, “stories and images of successful career women and support for women’s advancement in working life have become hallmarks of contemporary postfeminist media culture, and especially of women’s magazines such as Cosmopolitan,” according to Finnish researcher Kati Kauppinen (Kauppinen, 2013).

According to our research, Cosmopolitan is a “fun” magazine that gives a 360 degree view of a woman’s life. While Cosmopolitan is associated with being primarily driven by sex content, women recognize that it also contains useful information about fashion, beauty, and being fearless.

It’s the combination of both these aspirational goals, to have a sexier body and to be a more well-rounded career professional, that makes Cosmopolitan appeal widely to women across America. Getting the Cosmo Woman interested in our branded entertainment content requires tact and balance: we must communicate that Girl Talk contains both informative content and entertainment.

GENERAL We examined how Cosmo is portrayed in current articles, blogs, social media and other media outlets. The research also examined how the brand’s competitors are viewed by media, popular culture and the general public. We looked at the magazine’s competition and how they have successfully or unsuccessfully engaged users on digital platforms.

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Q How does our target market define empowerment?A According to our primary research, the Cosmo Woman is confident, independent, and strong, an empowered woman that knows her goals and how to achieve them. She takes care of herself. Her mindset is positive and motivating. She’s sexually liberated.

Q How can we communicate to potential readers that Cosmopolitan focuses on more than sex?A We may not need to: the understanding that Cosmopolitan focuses on sex does not hinder its focus on empowerment. There is a cultural movement encouraging young women to feel confident and empowered by their choices about relationships and/or sex, regardless of whether or not these choices conform to traditional gender expectations. An article in The Dartmouth, researchers identified casual on-campus hookups as a delaying tactic, allowing women to gain a taste for real-world relationships while still prioritizing schoolwork and their friendships,

leading eventually to better careers. (Haynes, 2013)

In Donna Freitas’s book “The End of Sex,” which explores the hookup culture, she wants students to “feel empowered” by their sexual decisions and to recognize that “it is their right to define what they want out of sex.” (Freitas, 2013)

In essence, the Cosmo Woman does not see sex as the opposite of female empowerment; both types of content can co-exist in her mind.

Q What sort of women embody empowerment?A In our primary research, we heard names including: Beyonce Knowles-Carter, Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Lawrence, Hillary Clinton, Michelle Obama, and Kate Upton. We had hoped that this question would identify potential subjects for the empowerment video series, but these highly-recognizable talents would be too expensive. Instead, we recommend that Cosmopolitan pursue women who influence and inspire these superstars: Mrs. Obama’s personal trainer, Kate Upton’s mother.

Q What Cosmopolitan content is entertaining instead of serious?A Our primary research indicated that women take Cosmopolitan’s beauty tips more seriously but read the sex tips just for fun. Readers are primarily seeking entertaining content to help pass the time, only secondarily as a source of information.

Q What type of web content is most likely to engage the target audience?A Our primary research findings have suggested that “funny” and “emotional” videos keep the target audience’s attention and inspire them to share with their peers. According to a survey by Yahoo! (Bentz, 2012),86% want advice, tips and practical information85% want product information that helps make purchase decisions80% want product benchmarks76% want exclusive content72% want information about the latest trends59% want information presented in a funny way

Alexa. (2013, May 23). Cosmopolitan.com site info, Retrieved from http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/cosmopolitan.comAlexa. (2013, May 23). Vogue.com site info, Retrieved from http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/vogue.comBarkley, J. (2011, Septermber 12). [Web log message]. Retrieved from

http://blog-barkleyus-com.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/BarkleyMillennial-ResearchExecSummary.pdfBentz, M. (2012, July 16). [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://blog.neolane.com/socialmedia/brand-content-consumersBerger, J. (2013). Contagious: Why things catch on (1st Simon & Schuster hardcover ed.). New York: Simon & Schuster.Branded content marketing becoming a higher priority, with budgets in tow. (2013). Marketing Charts, Retrieved from

http://www.marketingcharts.com/wp/interactive/branded-content-marketing-becoming-a-higher-priority-with-budgets-in-tow-29673/

Business Today. (2013). It’s about going from search to assist. Retrieved from http://businesstoday.intoday.in/story/google-nikesh-arora-on-future-of-search-revenue/1/195111.html

Cappechi, S. (2011, March). The eroticized female body in advertising and women’s fashion magazines. Polis Magazine, (1120-9488), 393-418. Retrieved from http://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.1424/35848

Cisco (2012) Cisco Visual Networking Index: Forecast and Methodology [white paper]. Retrieved from http://www.cisco.com/en/US/solutions/collateral/ns341/ns525/ns537/ns705/ns827/white_paper_c11-481360_ns827_Networking_Solutions_White_Paper.html

Cosmopolitan Magazine, The Hearst Corporation. (2013). Cosmopolitan Media Kit. Retrieved from http://www.cosmomediakit.com/r5/cob_page.asp?category_code=circ

Elliot, S. (2013, May 23). Robert murray of iprospect joins skyword as president. New york times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/24/business/media/robert-murray-of-iprospect-joins-skyword-as-president.html

Experian Simmons (2010). Fall 2010 NHCS Adult Survey 12 Month [Data File]. Retrieved from Simmons OneView Database.Freitas, D. (2013). The end of sex: How hookup culture is leaving a generation unhappy, sexually unfulfilled, and confused

about intimacy. (1st ed.). New York : Basic Books.Google Support. (2013). Adwords: Determining a bid option based on your goals. Retrieved from

https://support.google.com/adwords/answer/2472725Haynes, C. (2013, April 11). Haynes: Secrets of the ivy league. The Dartmouth , Retrieved from

http://thedartmouth.com/2013/04/11/opinion/haynesIBISWorld. (2013, May). Magazine & Periodical Publishing in the US. Retrieved May 22, 2013,

from IBIS Industry Market Research database. (2013). It’s about going from search to assist, Retrieved fromhttp://businesstoday.intoday.in/story/google-nikesh-arora-on-future-of-search-revenue/1/195111.html

Kauppinen, K. (2013). Full power despite stress: A discourse analytical examination of the interconnectedness of postfeminism and neoliberalism in the domain of work in an international women’s magazine. Discourse & Communication, 7(2), 133-151. Retrieved from http://dcm.sagepub.com/content/7/2/133

Mail online consumer survey (2012). Mail Online, Retrieved from http://globenewswire.com/news-release/2013/05/20/548425/10033419/en/Photo-Release-Two-Thirds-of-Brands-Agencies-Say-Branded-Content-Marketing-Now-Important-to-Their-Marketing-Mix.html

MPA — the Association of Magazine Media, Kantar Media. (2013). Media mix 2013. Retrieved May 21, 2013 from Ad$pender database.

GfK MRI (2013). GfK MRI’s Survey of the American Consumer 3. Retrieved May 22, 2013 from http://www.gfkmri.com Mintel. (2012). Social Networking- US. Retrieved May 22, 2013 from http://academic.mintel.com Stoddard, E. (2010, February 24). Millennials: Tattooed, plugged in, open minded . Reuters. Retrieved from

http://www.reuters.com/article/2010/02/24/us-usa-millennials-idUSTRE61N18B20100224

WORKS CITED

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Appendices

Al, S. (2013, May 24). Interview by L. Tang.Baxter, M. (2013, May 27). Interview by D.M. Smith.Carlone, V., Gomez, M. A., & Erin, M. (2013, May 27). Interview by N.E. Weickhardt.Davis, A. (2013, May 27). Interview by D.M. Smith.Davit’ashvili, N. (2013, May 22). Interview by C. Lee.Doe, J., & Doe, J. (2013, May 27). Interview by N.E. Weickhardt.Duncan, D. Z. (2013, May 22). Interview by N. Weickhardt.Duncan, D. Z., & Reed, E. (2013, May 27). Interview by N. Weickhardt.Greenman, J. (2013, May 23). Interview by N. Weickhardt.Grose, S. J. (2013, May 28). Interview by N. Weickhardt.Grullen, S. (2013, May 27). Interview by D.M. Smith.Johnson, M. (2013, May 21). Interview by N.E. Weickhardt.Jones, T. (2013, May 21). Interview by N.E. Weickhardt.Kamani, H. (2013, May 20). Interview by N.E. Weickhardt.Manzare, R. (2013, May 27). Interview by D.M. Smith.Marchon, J. (2013, May 22). Interview by N. Weickhardt.Robinson, A. (2013, May 27). Interview by D.M. Smith.Ver, I. R. (2013, May 20). Interview by S.J. Smith.Waters, E. (2013, May 28). Interview by N. Weickhardt.

Appendices

PRIMARY RESEARCH

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Why is Cosmo Pitching Branded Content?Industry trends indicate that content marketing, also known as branded content or branded entertainment, is the next big thing. According to a recent New York Times article, branded content is defined as any editorial, video, movie, television show, photo gallery and/or book that is created on behalf of marketers that serve as presenting sponsors. Source: MailOnline, 2012

Essentially, branded content presents engaging, informative, or entertaining material to the viewer while discreetly embedding an advertising message.

Brands are moving to branded entertainment quickly. The consensus is branded content is very important to brands and agencies’ marketing efforts. (MailOnline)Online is the new frontier of branded content. People are demanding content more than ever and consuming it wherever they go. A recent Cisco report says video will account for 90% of web traffic by 2017.

WHAT MAKES CONTENT VIRAL?According to Jonah Berger, a Wharton marketing professor, there are six important considerations that can help predict whether or not content is going to go viral: he calls these the STEPPS. A piece of content doesn’t need all six of these tactics to become more viral than average. Any one will do, and combining two or three is even more powerful.