The future of media publishing is user experience, according to Seedtag

The Drum talks to Sergio Tallón de la Torre, vice president of business development EMEA, from Spanish company Seedtag, an ‘in-image’ ad platform, about this changing platform and the era of hyper-visualisation where visual experience is the future of content.

What are the new content models going to look like?

Users are becoming more aware of and less tolerant of “fake news”, which means that premium sites will become more valuable and not all impressions will be equal. High quality content will prevail, alongside paid subscriptions where, for a reasonable price tag, audiences will be able to access a range of titles that could actually compete among them. This subscription model, supported by better and more respectful advertising should bring a sustainable editorial ecosystem.

How can we make this leap into new advertising formats that are less intrusive but more engaging?

Highly viewable, brand safe, contextually relevant advertising is going to see high levels of demand, “clean advertising formats” are going to rise to the top of advertiser’s media plans and will generate higher yields for publishers. High quality programmatic video will also have an important economic impact, from brands that stress the importance of engaging with audiences in qualified and relevant environments.

What is the future of magazines? How do you think magazines will adapt in the future?

The future will be about the user experience and the integration of less but higher revenue driving solutions. Publishers need to find new advertising solutions to help fund the transmission of their content to a fast-moving world of media content and to choose only the partners that really help based on profitability and service.

Being quick, relevant and contextual is going to be imperative for publishers who respect their users and want to keep them, as users won’t tolerate intrusive, “shouty” advertising formats and quality and context are going to become increasingly important. If it’s easy to engage, people will and then others will follow. There is of course a value exchange between content and advertising which we believe is going to be shorter, relevant and less intrusive advertising.

Will there be room for print magazines in the future, or will digital channels take over?

If that means premium brands and quality content — absolutely there’ll always be room for that. But remember, consumers will consume that content in the most convenient way for them. Opportunities for print, broadcast and digital channels and print magazines will come as an added value for digital subscribers. The most premium audiences will be keen to pay more for subscriptions in order to have print issues, and this way editors should be able to adapt the circulation to their needs, optimizing production costs. However, we believe digital channels will be dominant and that the mobile will be the “hub” device.

How do you see the consumption of content changing?

Social networks have massively changed content consumption, offering audiences more bespoke options to their needs and preferences. The challenge is for publishers to keep users engaged within their sites once they’ve landed on them. The way users are identified when they land on their websites and are offered other content is key.

How can brands get more involved in publishing without creating a conflict of interest?

The traditional digital advertising model is not helping editors, audiences or brands. Brands have to aim for more integrated and respectful yet more impactful placements. If the brands’ products and customers are at the centre of their businesses, advertising and creative should be the same, ensuring every marketing action is carefully and creatively delivered.

What publisher work are you most proud of?

We have been working with RBA, a Spanish publisher group for several years now. RBA handles premium media brands as National Geographic or In Style. We have helped RBA get an extra income of 8% from their global revenues and our impact on user experience has been 0%. Throughout this collaboration, we have been able to create and test different formats on their sites. We dedicate special attention to taking care of their branded content and just last year, we developed a special integration to be able to work with their galleries.

Seedtag was one of the sponsors of The Drum’s Media Slap event, which looks at the media publishing business focusing on areas such as audience, content, new products, technology, advertising and other revenue models.

The event comprises of panel discussions and presentations from media publishers working in a constantly changing environment and this event aims to help them shape their strategy to cater for ever-changing audience needs.