Condé Nast continues Snapchat strategy with market-specific channels

August 2, 2017

British Vogue's Snapcode. Image credit: British Vogue

Condé Nast-owned British Vogue is the latest of the Vogue-branded magazines to launch on Snapchat Discover as publishers look to amplify their digital efforts.

Vogue is currently pushing a Snapchat Discover strategy across the markets where its publications are present to take its editorial voice from print pages to the mobile content space. Vogue’s publisher has invested heavily in digital recently to ensure its titles stay modern and are fluid in an evolving print landscape.

“There are millions of viewers everyday on Snapchat Discover that are actively looking at premium content, separate from the content made by friends,” said Nick Cicero, CEO and founder of Delmondo, New York.

“Something like Snapchat is premium real estate with 100 million plus users that have access immediately,” he said. “You can compare Snapchat to Comcast, or a cable provider, that creates its own channels.

“That’s what Snapchat Discover has become. Publishers can create premium content that cannot be made as an individual user to create a vertical experience.”

Mr. Cicero is not affiliated with Condé Nast, but agreed to comment as an industry expert.

Snap to it
During New York Fashion Week last September, American Vogue made its debut on Snapchat Discover with millennial-centric content to interest users of the application that may not subscribe to the magazine or its other digital channels.

The Snapchat channel aired for the first time on Sept. 6 with a would-you-rather interview featuring reality star Kim Kardashian West and tips from model Miranda Kerr to appeal to the app’s millennial fan base (see story).

In June, Vogue’s French edition launched on Snapchat Discover. Vogue Paris’ editor in chief Emmanuelle Alt in a statement regarding the collaboration said, “The essence of Vogue is to tell the stories of fashion in the strongest and most striking ways.

“We are excited at the new tools Snapchat Discover provides to express fashion through the eyes of Vogue Paris,” she said.

In France, Snapchat counts a daily user base of more than 8 million.

British Vogue’s debut on Snapchat Discover follows Vogue Paris’ successful launch.

The title’s first Snapchat Discover story included an exclusive interview with Edward Enninful. The newly appointed editor in chief took Snapchat followers along for his first official day in the role (see story).

Welcoming @britishvogue's new editor-in-chief Edward Enninful @edward_enninful to the Vogue family. On his first day at London's Vogue House, we followed Edward to work to find out a bit more about him and met his Boston terrier Ru @ruenninful. Today British Vogue also launched on Snapchat Discover, where you can watch the full interview.
A post shared by British Vogue (@britishvogue) on Jul 31, 2017 at 11:05pm PDT

Additional content shared via Snapchat Discover will include interactive features, styling tips, product roundups and Vogue photography that has been animated.

British Vogue’s content on Snapchat will be led by a dedicated Vogue International Discover team based in London. The Snapchat team will work closely with the Vogue digital editor in each market to create country-specific content to further appeal to app users.

The editorial team of producers and interactive designers will be headed by editor Sarah Schijen. Aside from exclusive Snapchat content, the team will also create video and long-form journalism for the local market.

Vogue will publish to Snapchat three times a week on Saturdays, Tuesdays and Thursdays.

“We see Snapchat Discover as an opportunity to bring British Vogue to the fashion influencers of the future,” Ms. Schijen said in a statement. “Our audience for the Snapchat Discover Stories will overwhelmingly be aged 13-24, and the content will reflect this; contemporary, vibrant and sharable.

“Vogue is the culture of fashion for every generation,” she said.

As media has evolved to include digital content, trusted connections have become all the more important with social media bolstering the reader-publication relationship.

According to a survey conducted by British Vogue and YouGov, 66 percent of all women, and 79 percent of millennials, follow their favorite magazines and editors on social media, figures that underscore how useful a tool social media has become for publishers. Also, the level of trust readers have in magazine platforms is essential to purchase desire and sales (see story).

“This is an important development in our global publishing strategy for Vogue,” said Tom Conway, head of platform relationships at Condé Nast International, London.

“Our dedicated Snapchat team will work intimately with the local markets to produce best-in-class interactive content, with a hub-and-spoke structure that allows us to scale globally,” he said.

Tech investments
Condé Nast and Vogue’s investment into digital also includes the launch of an artificial intelligence-powered chatbot.

In February, British Vogue launched its Messenger bot to personalize fashion news for fans.

Through the British Vogue official Facebook and Facebook Messenger account, users can interact with the bot to receive up-to-date information regarding fashion. The chatbot hopes to make a more impactful impression on readers, as publishing becomes excessively overcrowded and consumers’ attention spans get shorter (see story).

British Vogue's Facebook Messenger bot. Image credit: British Vogue

Vogue’s use of Snapchat Discover plays into the same ideology.

“For print in particular, and those that have wanted to tell really rich and engaging stories, I think Snapchat Discover has offered ways for a print-type publication to deliver really interesting, feature-driven content without overwhelming people,” Delmondo’s Mr. Cicero said.

“For Vogue, one amazing cover story can be the focus, but there is so much content elsewhere,” he said. “Strip down the extra and get to the core of the storytelling with the graphics to bring it to life, as published in print.

“Discover offers a really cool canvas that was not there before, or was, but, with a lot of time and effort.”

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