What Is Brand Journalism and Why Does It Matter for Your Brand? -

It might go by many names – brand journalism, corporate journalism, corporate media, etc – but the premise remains the same. Journalistic content about a brand, created by the brand itself.

Gone are the days when companies had to wait for full-fledged journalists to take notice of them for publicity. Now, they create their own publicity. Some hire actual journalists. Others build studios, hire camera crews and launch dedicated news sites to cover themselves and their industries.

Content is king, and it must be worshipped at any cost.

Key Takeaways

Brand journalism is a form of marketing in which a business produces news media to grow trust and brand recognition.
It is simply another kind of journalism, just as political journalism is journalism, sports journalism is journalism, and blogs on local issues are journalism.
However, it differs from content marketing mainly through the buying process and the generation of leads.
It started as a tactic of McDonalds that aimed to record “what happens to a brand in the world” and create ad communications that, over time, can tell a whole story of a brand.
The tactical goal is to get loyal readers who include the company’s journalism in their regular media diet.
While it includes some features of traditional marketing and writing for media platforms, brand journalism isn’t exactly like either.

Overview of Brand Journalism

Brand journalism is a form of marketing in which a business produces news media to grow trust and brand recognition. This could take the form of a newspaper, magazine, digital publication, documentary series or podcast, and the content typically focuses on relevant topics that add value and relate to the brand’s mission.

For example, an organization in the banking industry might publish a monthly magazine about personal finance, including articles about investing for beginners, saving for retirement and optimizing your credit card rewards. A retail company that makes casual clothes from recycled materials might create a podcast about sustainability.

There are two strains of brand journalism:

Corporate journalism or corporate media tells the brand’s stories. The brand could explicitly be the story’s focus: behind-the-scenes stories, employee or customer profiles, or any story type that could also qualify as a media feature. The brand might be further in the background when telling stories that reinforce its commitment to the brand values. Corporate journalism is about providing transparency into the company and its brand.
Brand journalism, in contrast, isn’t about the brand, company, products, or its people. Its focus is on its industry and closely-related topics of interest to the people in it. Brand journalism is a content channel for news, analysis, and features as a service to its audience. (Yes, I know this subset of brand journalism should not also be called “brand journalism,” but it is. Assume that when I use “brand journalism” below, I’m talking about both forms unless I say otherwise.)

Both strains of brand journalism share the strategic goals of attracting and keeping attention. The tactical goal is to get loyal readers who include the company’s journalism in their regular media diet.

History of Brand Journalism

Brand Journalism actually has its roots in the franchise industry. In 2004, McDonald’s Chief Marketing Officer Larry Light said mass marketing no longer worked and that “no single ad tells the whole story.” McDonald’s, he said, had adopted a new marketing technique: “brand journalism.”

Light defined brand journalism as a way to record “what happens to a brand in the world” and create ad communications that, over time, can tell a whole story of a brand. He was rejecting traditional marketing and advertising approaches that focused on brand positioning, in favor of a content stream approach involving multiple channels and journalism-style writing. His model was the way an editor approaches the creation of a magazine, with its array of very different content aimed at a wide variety of interests — hence, brand journalism.

Franchise systems adopted the practice early, and today it is one of the most productive ways to generate leads and engage customers.

Ten years ago, search was the big marketing trend. Five years ago, it was social media. Today, it is brand journalism. We are in the content marketing era, and the quality of your brand stories can have an enormous impact on how effective your marketing is. As a result, companies are rushing to hire journalists, many of whom are out of work as newspapers fold.

Brand Journalism Statistics

If you’re still on the fence, here are some stats that prove the power of brand journalism:

• 80% of business decision-makers prefer to get company information in a series of articles versus an advertisement

• 70% say content marketing makes them feel closer to the sponsoring company

• 82% of consumers feel more positive about a company after reading custom content

• 90% of consumers find custom content useful, and 78 percent believe that organizations providing custom content are interested in building good relationships with them

• Content marketing costs less than traditional outbound marketing. Statistics show that content marketing costs 62 percent less per lead than outbound marketing

Brand Journalism vs Content Marketing

How is brand journalism different than content marketing? Regardless of all “non-believers”, both content marketing and brand journalism are now recognized in the industry and academic terms and have been around in various forms for years.

Brand journalism has come out of the boom of branded magazines aimed at consumers. The continuously expanding list of (online) communication tools at the brand’s disposal to directly reach and interact with their customers didn’t hurt either, as it enabled picking the right content for what the customers are seeking at different stages in the business cycle.

What about content marketing? Michael Brenner (Senior Director, Global Marketing, SAP) defines it as:

Content marketing means delivering the content your audience is seeking in all the places they are searching for it. It is the effective combination of created, curated, and syndicated content.

Joe Pulizzi (The Content Marketing Institute) adds that content marketing is a marketing and business process for creating and distributing valuable and compelling content to attract, acquire, and engage a clearly defined and understood target audience – with the objective of driving profitable customer action.

In his opinion, that is the difference between content marketing and the other informational garbage you get from companies trying to sell you “stuff”. The buying process and the generating of leads are often the main arguments why you should not use these two terms interchangeably.

How Does Brand Journalism Work?

While it includes some features of traditional marketing and writing for media platforms, brand journalism isn’t exactly like either. So if you’ve only created SEO content, brand journalism can feel like wading into intimidating uncharted territory.

I’ve broken it into actionable steps for you in the checklist below:

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How brand journalism works

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Benefits of Brand Journalism

Here are some of the benefits of using brand journalism as a marketing strategy:

#1. Increase visibility

Brand journalism can help organizations grow name recognition. By creating publications and media associated with your name, you could expand your reach and increase brand awareness. Publishing interesting, newsworthy media increases the chances of viral content and word-of-mouth growth.

This might create more interest in your products and help you remain competitive.

#2. Build awareness

One of the main reasons marketers try using brand journalism is to increase awareness. So, the point here is to make more people aware of who you are and what you do for a living. By publishing unique stories very often, you can get there.

If users find value in what they’re reading, they will stay connected to your brand. After all, they will know that your blog is an excellent channel for them.

#3. Be a thought leader

Brand journalism is also fundamental to establishing your brand as a thought leader. That is, you start to guide your readers’ reflections and inspire their thoughts and considerations.

When you choose to talk about a topic, you create demand and generate attention to it. So the subject becomes relevant to everyone.

It’s like being a well-known source of authority in your business. If you start focusing on personal stories about your brand, you will get there. When you’re at this level, you’re the one who creates discussions about subjects that matter to your business. This way, it’s easier to educate people about what you want them to learn.

#4. Address industry news

Brand journalism can also be used to inform industry news. The company will let readers know what’s trending, what’s new, and what needs their attention.

Again, you can educate people by addressing those topics that are most valuable for your business.

Since traditional journalism is all about informing news, using its tactics for your brand-oriented content is as good as it gets. By putting journalists to work on that, you get their expertise to do it the right way.

#5. Grow credibility

Many businesses choose to experiment with brand journalism in hopes of establishing themselves as an authority within their industry. Brands who show an interest in researching new developments in their field and create reliable, informative content about their industry might become thought leaders earn consumers’ trust.

If you’re demonstrating your expertise with a team of informed professionals reporting on the latest developments, it could impress consumers who want to buy from a reputable organization.

#6. Foster brand likability

Many consumers can smell content marketing a mile away—and they don’t like it. Brand journalism is a smart way to stand out in a sea of preachy, overtly salesy SEO content.

According to Stackla, 88% of consumers say that authenticity plays a role in deciding which brands to support. Sharing stories of your employees, how your company stands by its values, or what’s hot in your industry without the classic marketing calls-to-action can be refreshingly authentic for your audience. This, in turn, will make your brand more likable, and you’ll be top of mind whenever consumers have problems your products can solve.

8 Exceptional Brand Journalism Examples To Inspire You

It is easy to wax on and on about the greatness of brand journalism; however, nothing beats hard, tangible proof. Below are examples of brands that connect with their audience by telling stories about their brands.

#1. Paid (Banknotes)

#Paid’s Banknotes blog is excellent at tying industry news and trends into helpful articles for social media content creators. The site obviously knows its audience well and stays away from boring formulaic SEO content. This article on the viral Sing 2 TikTok campaign features quotes from industry experts and ends with valuable takeaways for the audience.

#2. SparkToro Office Hours

The audience research tool SparkToro is designed to help users figure out their audience’s interests. SparkToro uses its bi-monthly live video sessions, accurately termed SparkToro Office Hours, to help its audience improve their marketing skills.

Hosts Rand Fishkin and Amanda Natividad bring on industry experts to make the sessions more informative. It’s a wonderful way to connect with potential and future customers while creating brand awareness and potentially lead generation.

#3. Paystack’s Artwork

African Fintech giant Paystack runs a YouTube interview series called Artwork featuring creative entrepreneurs. In each short (under 15-minutes long) episode, viewers learn something about managing a small business—whether it’s maintaining professional communication with clients, crafting winning pitches, or scaling a freelance business.

Small business owners make up a large percentage of Paystack’s customer base, so this is a genius way to drive brand awareness without being salesy.

#4. CMO by Adobe

Adobe’s CMO blog is almost entirely unrelated to the products they’re known for and has garnered a reputation as a site for digital leaders. The blog is a prime example of brand journalism, sharing everything from trends and research to customer stories.

#5. Hotjar’s Blog

The Hotjar blog features articles showcasing the company’s culture, mission, and values. Each article is written by a company employee and tackles a wide range of topics from supporting employee side projects to running a sustainable business.

Telling brand stories is a fantastic way to stand out from other companies within the analytics space, where other companies may focus on SEO blog content.

#6. Fellow app Supermanagers Podcast

Fellow is a software that helps companies have more productive meetings. It may be surprising to hear then that the company runs the Supermanagers podcast about being a great manager.

The podcast is on its 100th episode and has featured leaders from Mastercard, Coursera, Stripe, and other leading companies. Because it appeals to podcast-loving managers or leaders, it’s a clever way to draw company leadership’s attention to the Fellow’s meeting app (and score buy-in with credibility already locked-in).

#7. Buffer’s Open Blog

Although Buffer shares SEO blog content, its Open Blog is focused on sharing transparent company updates about culture, salaries, work-life balance, and other relevant issues. Buffer has also been vocal about its support for remote work and four-day workweeks and has won the admiration of many customers (and non-customers) for its stand.

#8. The Red Bulletin by Red Bull

Red Bull’s The Red Bulletin magazine is one of the quintessential brand journalism examples. Since 2005, the fitness lifestyle magazine, powered by energy drink Red Bull, has been sharing stories about athletes, culture, music, entrepreneurship, and lifestyle. The magazine is available digitally and in print in several countries and languages, including German and English.

Is Brand Journalism The Same As Journalism?

Absolutely.

Brand journalism is simply another kind of journalism, just as political journalism is journalism, sports journalism is journalism, and blogs on local issues are journalism. Even Facebook posts on neighborhood happenings are journalism.

“Journalism” as we’ve come to define it has traditionally been the domain of newsrooms. Reporters, schooled in the craft, consider the term to apply to a very narrow definition of someone working for a news organization. Ideally, reporters are neutral, bound to be as objective as possible and have a self-imposed responsibility for telling both the positive and negative sides of a story.

Ultimately, though, journalism is all about telling stories aimed at specific audiences. That’s it. Objectivity is a fantasy; a news reporter can’t help but bring his or her biases to a story, no matter how hard he or she tries to be impartial. The practice of journalism, at its core, is about earning and keeping a reader’s interest. Journalism is about finding the essence of a story and deciding how to retell what you find so it is interesting and helpful for a reader.

Brand journalists, writers who practice journalism-style storytelling on behalf of a company, have to accomplish the same goal: earn and keep an audience’s attention. They have to collect and edit stories about a company and present them to the company’s audience through a variety of media.

What Is Brand Journalism and Why Does It Matter for Your Brand?

Key Takeaways

Overview of Brand Journalism

History of Brand Journalism

Brand Journalism Statistics

Brand Journalism vs Content Marketing