Vox Media Relaunches Group Nine Performance Marketing Tool

Vox Media announced Wednesday the launch of VM Connect, a rebranded and expanded version of the performance-marketing solution G9 Direct, which Vox Media inherited from Group Nine Media after it acquired the digital media company in February. As G9 Direct, the platform enabled brands to purchase direct-response ads on the Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube and TikTok channels of Group Nine properties, such as Thrillist, NowThis, PopSugar and The Dodo. Now, VM Connect will allow brands to extend this capability across the Facebook, Instagram and TikTok channels of Vox Media titles, such as The Strategist, The Cut and The Verge. When Vox Media acquired Group Nine Media, Vox Media chief revenue officer Ryan Pauley pointed to the social media commerce capabilities of Group Nine Media as one of its key points of appeal. Now, with the launch of VM Connect, Vox Media will be able to take advantage of those capabilities for the first time. Combined, the publishers command a social media audience of 350 million, creating an opportunity for both existing and new direct-to-consumer clients to reach untapped audiences, said Vox Media senior vice president of commerce Camilla Cho. Atlantic Ventures Is on Pace to Bring in 10% of Total Revenue “Our team can buy media on behalf of our brand clients to drive purchases, acquire subscribers, break through to targeted audience segments and find scale outside of their own channels,” Cho said. “Vox Media has a wide swath of audience segments across many reputable trustworthy brands, so we have found a lot of success for our clients with these lower-funnel campaigns.” The roll-out comes amidst an uncertain economic climate, which has stirred publishers’ fears that marketers might trim their advertising budgets. Direct-response campaigns, which offer a more measurable means of tracking return-on-ad spend, often prove more durable than brand marketing in the face of budget cuts. As a result, the new product could help insulate Vox Media if advertising spend does contract in the coming months. Unlocking new audiences for direct-to-consumer brands Group Nine Media launched G9 Direct in October 2020 and continued running campaigns using the platform even as Vox Media acquired it and began transforming the product into VM Connect. Since Vox Media began operating it in Q1, the direct-response platform has had a 70% client retention rate, according to Cho. Vox Media will pitch VM Connect to any client that expresses interest in it, but it has proven especially popular with brands that have preexisting affiliate relationships with the publisher. These clients know that the Vox Media audience is interested in their products, and VM Connect offers them another channel to reach those consumers. Vox Media also uses its first-party data platform, Forte, to inform the segments it can create for campaigns. For instance, Vox Media can create a cohort of users who have read an article about hair care products on The Cut within the last 30 days, then target those readers on Instagram for a direct-to-consumer company selling salon products. The product also makes it easier for social media users to make in-app purchases, a behavior growing among consumers. In May 2021, a report from eMarketer found that purchases made through social media posts are expected to more than double between 2021 and 2025. In 2021, 36% of all internet users in the U.S. bought something on a social media platform. This ability to cut out intermediary steps also allows Vox Media to track attribution more clearly. In the past, a reader inspired to make a purchase by an article in The Strategist might then search for and buy the product off Google, giving the search engine credit for the direct action. By allowing consumers to purchase the product where they first encounter it, publishers like Vox Media hope to demonstrate how valuable they are in spurring consumer behavior. Vox Media declined to share financial metrics or projections for the platform. But under Group Nine ownership, from October 2020 to June 2021 the direct-response product generated a seven-figure revenue and yielded a $5.06 return on ad-spend for brand partners, meaning that for each dollar advertisers spent, they generated $5.06 in revenue. Vox Media also plans to use VM Connect for internal promotions, including Eater Wine Club and New York Magazine subscriptions, as well as for upcoming events, including a recent campaign as part of The Strategist’s flagship Two-Day (Actually Good) Sale. “The wealth of our data and experience on the affiliate side, in combination with our understanding of what users have read or clicked on, creates some super valuable data points for our clients,” Cho said.

Publishing News

Vox Media Relaunches and Expands Group Nine’s Performance Marketing Solution

VM Connect will give brands access to a social media audience of 350 million

Mark Stenberg

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