• by Ross Fadner , October 17, 2005

One of the hottest marketing trends currently blurring lines--both online and offline--between marketing and journalism is the concept of branded content, or content generated by a company primarily for marketing purposes. A new study conducted by Roper Public Affairs, a GfK Group market research firm, says that most consumers prefer receiving information from companies through editorial content rather than ads.

The study measures consumer response to custom publications, a marketing vehicle whereby consumers receive free magazines from companies they have bought something from in the past. Some of the most common examples are in-flight magazines provided by airline companies or company brochures sent to purchasers from automobile makers.

While many consumers are not immediately familiar with the term, 93 percent of respondents were able to identify a custom pub after being given an example.

In fact, 85 percent said they prefer custom publications to ads, and 75 percent felt better informed after reading them. More than six in ten said custom pubs made them feel closer to the sponsoring company, and 75 percent said they believe the effort shows an interest in building good relationships with customers. Eighty percent said they find the information in these magazines interesting.

Lori Rosen, executive director of the Custom Publishing Council, said custom pubs provide a great return on investment because "people either ignore them at worst, or at best find them relevant and useful." She added that custom pubs don't feel like propaganda if they are executed well.

Custom publications also give marketers the opportunity to sell ads--and consumers don't seem to mind if they do: according to the survey, 80 percent said they don't mind if sponsors sell ads, as long as the information is interesting.

Other data shows that nearly half of respondents (44 percent) receive custom publications related to their work. Two-thirds said they had forwarded related articles from custom pubs on to colleagues, and more than 70 percent said they have told friends or colleagues about something they read in a custom publication.

Mike Winkleman--vice president of marketing for the Custom Publishing Council and president of Dobbs Ferry, NY-based custom publishing firm Leverage Media, which directed the study--said the results show that "custom publishing is already better-established, better used, and more valued than we'd realized, or even imagined."

The phone survey queried 1001 Americans over age 18.