Are Media’s shift from a pure publisher of print and digital titles to an omnichannel content commerce company has resulted in the introduction of digital marketplaces for some of its legacy brands.
Are Media’s GM of homes, Lisa Hudson, said that the Home Beautiful brand has been recommending products for decades – with the publication turning 100 next year – so it made sense that the title would directly connect consumers to the products they want to buy.
“We know from a survey of our Home Beautiful audience that 77% were interested in shopping from a marketplace, 86% were interested in purchasing homewares and décor and six in seven would spend up to $150” she said.
“We’re delighted that sales have steadily increased since launch, and the average price per item is even higher than expected at $160, so we know that our audience has an intent to shop.”
All the homeware products in the marketplace – more than 5,000 of them in total - are chosen and curated by the Home Beautiful editorial team, which Hudson said helps to deliver the complete content lifecycle to customers: from print, digital, social to marketplace.
“Every story we create now, we’re thinking how we can help the consumer by adding shopping links and recommendations. Our audience is responding and we can see this revenue stream growing every month,” she told AdNews.
“Our ambition is to transform Are Media from a print company to an omnichannel media company with strong content commerce capability, and that is top of mind with everything we do, with everything from homewares and appliances to fashion and beauty.”
Are Media’s Homes brands reach 3.2 million people per month across all platforms, with almost all print titles achieving year on year individual increases in readership, with Home Beautiful up 22%, Country Style up 21%, Inside Out up 13% and House & Garden up 7%.
Hudson said part of her focus since she joined Are Media back in October of 2023 has been to champion those “remarkable brands”.
“I want to remind everyone that these are some of the biggest media brands in the country: Better Homes and Gardens reaches 2.2 million people every month and is the most-read paid title in Australia,” she said.
“Our market share in the Home & Garden pillar was stable year on year and it's currently at 93%.
“Right now in Australia, we play a particularly important role because in times of economic downturn, when people are worried about the cost of living and feeling a bit insecure, they turn to the home for safety and sanctuary.”
Other key focuses for the second half of 2024 revolve around Are Media changing ways of working to create an omnichannel workflow, where print and digital teams are working seamlessly together.
“That is partly process and a lot about a shift in mindset,” she told AdNews.
“We’re training people through our internal Digital Academy - where people are learning everything from social media posts to video editing to creating Pinterest boards - and that's also connected to this omnichannel evolution that we are encouraging.
“Diversifying the revenue is a big focus too – it’s no secret that the advertising market is challenging at the moment, so we are leveraging the power of our brands to grow our shoppable content.”
After beginning her career as a reporter at The Australian, Hudson went on to take up sub-editor roles at The Times in London and The Herald Sun, before embarking on an 18-year career with Fairfax.
Becoming CEO and publisher of Fairfax Magazines, she transitioned to a GM of food and wine role for metro media within the group, subsequently leaving Fairfax to become head of Qantas Wine and then a content specialist for Coles.
Hudson said one of the biggest changes she’s seen over her years in media is around digital transformation.
“When I started we were still slicing up bromides on what we used to call the stone, which was the last step prior to printing!” she told AdNews.
“We don’t talk about titles or newspapers or magazines so much anymore as we do brands across multiple platforms. We can now give our audiences the content they want, where and when they want it.
“It’s that change in technology that allows us to deliver content in so many innovative ways, and has also changed the media landscape from a few big powerful players to true diversification where anyone can be a publisher with podcasts, bloggers and brands creating their own content.”
Hudson said that's an opportunity for a publisher like Are Media, because in an environment where people can become overwhelmed by the sheer volume of content coming at them, they turn to “trusted, respected brands that have stood the test of time”.
“Data is of course the other big game-changer: we used to work on instinct, now we can get specific insights that inform our content choices, and we get immediate feedback from our digital channels. It’s much easier for our audience to tell us what they want, for us to respond quickly,” she said.
“Social media has become huge and is a great way to connect with your audience, and then there is AI, which we’re still learning about but is sure to change our industry further.
“I am also thrilled to see more women in media executive and board roles, which is one of the reasons I love Are Media because we are shamelessly a content company for women, led by our CEO Jane Huxley.”
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