via TheSnug.com
The Snug will aggregate content, aid in Time Inc. digital efforts
With the launch of The Snug, a mobile-first aggregator site aimed at Millennials, Time Inc. digital continues its scramble to reestablish itself as a dominant publisher since it split with Time Warner in mid-2014.
According to a press release from Time Inc. the site will bring together content from brand properties including InStyle, People, Real Simple, Southern Living, and This Old House, as well as from dozens of The Snug partners, including Apartment Therapy, CasaSugar, and HomeTalk.
The Snug’s content includes: “10 Unexpected Paint Upgrades,” “7 Home Office Looks to Help You Be All About That Biz,” “DIY Welcome Mats (and DIY Unwelcome Mats),” and a “$10 Gift Guide Full of Stuff That Doesn’t Suck.”
Scott Omelianuk and Tabitha Sukhai are leading the effort, which launched on January 12. The publishing platform, which includes a built-in native advertising component, was designed by RebelMouse. Time Inc. digital says it aims to reach upward of 30 million people through social efforts.
“Time Inc. is re-imagining the way we curate and deliver content for this highly coveted audience. The Snug is the first of the new social web sites that we plan to introduce in 2015,” Executive Vice President Evelyn Webster said in a statement.
“Market research has shown that the Millennials, known as the ‘Maker Generation,’ have spent billions on crafts and DIY projects in the last decade and are fueling the growth in this burgeoning sector. We are looking to speak to them through compelling new content and a new socially-engaging platform.”
The Snug will start with largely syndicated content but will produce original content, including video, reports MediaPost. Last year, Time Inc. digital unveiled another portal, The Daily Cut, to publish video from its titles.
In an interview with The Guardian in July of 2014, M. Scott Havens, senior VP of digital, made it clear that Time Inc. would not be conservative in its multiplatform publishing approach.
“We have to rethink the old ‘church and state’ rules of journalism. That doesn’t mean we violate journalistic integrity or the trust we have with our readership. But [these rules] were for a different medium and a different age,” Havens said at the time.
“We want to build the next LinkedIn, the next Gilt, the next Facebook. We have got really smart people and we need to let them use their brains. If they are not up for that, then we need to bring in some new people.
I see many digital examples of customers paying for digital content that give me hope – The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Daily Dish, Netflix – even when the consumer can possibly find it, or a replacement, elsewhere. You can be gloomy if you want to operate your business the same way as you have for the last 10 years. If we rethink what we are, how we serve customers and markets, then I feel optimistic we can rebuild the brand.”
The Snug is just another part of that rebuilding effort, albeit a significant investment. Who’s helping to foot the bill? IKEA has signed on as the site’s sponsor, and will run ads throughout the content.
Can a legacy publisher connect with Millennials? Will The Snug help Time Inc. digital rebuild the brand? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!
To read more about The Snug, visit MediaPost.
