Vocast: Content is a currency

As print media decline, Scandinavia’s digital shift shows how essential high-quality content has become for driving brand engagement and sales

In the era of print magazines, brands would invest in magazine ads to reach their audience, often featuring six hero images to capture consumer attention. However, printed publications have been steadily declining for the past 20 years in most Western countries. This decline has led to reduced resources within magazines, resulting in smaller teams and a need to cut corners to maintain page output.

In this sense, Scandinavia provides a unique look into the future because of two key factors: the region's strong digital presence and its small population. In larger countries like Germany, with 80 million people speaking the same language, traditional media can still reach a significant audience despite the digital shift. However, in smaller countries such as Denmark, the impact of digitalization is more evident. While traditional print publications might still thrive in less digitalized, smaller regions, Scandinavia’s combination of a small, tech-savvy population makes the transition to digital media especially evident. This shift has made high-quality content increasingly valuable for magazines, akin to a form of currency. If you review a Scandinavian magazine, you’ll notice that much of the content comes from the same brands that once served primarily as advertisers.

Alongside the decline of magazines, social media channels have changed how brands reach consumers. Brands now manage their own channels and work with partners across various platforms, including paid channels. This omnichannel approach means navigating a fragmented media landscape. To effectively build and maintain these channels, you need a lot of content. Posting three times a day is common, which adds up to thousands of images each year. Content has become a key asset for growing your channels, almost like a currency.

Retail partners also need content for their own channels - like Instagram, Facebook, newsletters, and e-commerce sites. By providing high-quality content, you help them engage their audience and drive traffic to their stores, both online and offline. When your content is used, it often includes tags that direct consumers to your brand specifically, rather than just browsing for generic items. This targeted demand can boost your sales and create a positive cycle where your products are prioritized. In today’s digital world, exchanging quality content for sales is much like trading in a valuable currency

When the transaction is digital, content is your only voice. To align your brand, you need to make the most of the content others create about your products and use their tags to build your channels.