Sarah Green, Head of Media Sales Switzerland
Today, Bloomberg is a true multi-media constellation: Website, TV, print media, business services. Can you briefly retrace the history of your group and describe how it became what it is today? How do the different platforms interact with each other?
Bloomberg Media is part of Bloomberg L.P., the global business and financial information and news leader, gives influential decision makers a critical edge by connecting them to a dynamic network of information, people and ideas.
As the company’s consumer-facing media organization, Bloomberg Media provides timely news, analysis and intelligence on business, finance, technology, climate change, politics and more.
Powered by a newsroom of over 2,700 journalists and analysts in more than 120 bureaus around the world, it reaches influential audiences worldwide across every platform including digital, social, TV, radio, print and live events.
We leverage our entire Bloomberg Media ecosystem to inform our audiences and engage with them wherever they are.
Is there a definition of CNN’s « mission » in terms of its development axis?
At Bloomberg Media we take a seamless and consultative approach to client services as they look to make more informed decisions, develop creative solutions and effective marketing strategies.
We power this relationship – and our advice – through insights into global markets, brands and audience behavior. Through a suite of content, proprietary data, products and strategic marketing services, we connect audiences and partners around the world with the topics they care about most.
What are the next big innovations we can expect from your group in relation to this exciting history? For example, how can the emergence of Artificial Intelligence be integrated into the development of your services?
2020 has marked a new era for quality business news and explanatory journalism, as business leaders prepare for these massive transformations underway. And this is something we have been focused on.
In November we launched Bloomberg QuickTake streaming channel on OTT, our new 24/7 general business news network, on major streaming platforms including Apple TV, Roku, Android TV, Samsung Smart TV and Amazon Fire TV, through a newly designed Bloomberg App.
10.5 hours of programming at launch, we created Bloomberg QuickTakefor the new generation of leaders that is interested in a variety of news topics, from economy to politics, climate change, tech, culture, health and science – global stories that impact both their professional and personal lives. These topics will be covered in a variety of content formats, from documentary-style original series that cover news of the week, to anchor-led daily and weekly shows, all of which will lean heavily on data, graphics and research to give viewers a smarter, deeper context and insight into every news story. Now our viewers can choose between Bloomberg Quicktake’s coverage of global news stories or Bloomberg TV or Bloomberg TV+ for deeper market-moving finance news.
As our CEO said “Quicktake’s arrival on streaming disrupts the traditional broadcast TV news model — from the types of stories it covers to the modern look and feel of the network, and the distribution centered around social and streaming”.
In terms of AI we are already harnessing this to help inform our recommendations to our clients through BloombergAiQ®, a proprietary data and insights platform, powered by the Bloomberg audience that repeatedly engages with content from our newsroom. It includes a suite of intelligent tools that yield insights that are actionable in creating a tangible link between planning and implementation within the Bloomberg ecosystem and even more broadly. In Europe we are also providing a monthly service to our clients in the form of Briefs offering real time consumer behaviour and engagement.
How did you experience this completely atypical year 2020, on the one hand because of the pandemic, and on the other hand with the American elections? What is your assessment?
This year was a reminder for sales teams that you must be nimble and responsive in order to help clients stay relevant, authentic, and effective in-market. In Europe, the team put an immediate focus on adapting the operations model to ensure Bloomberg Media was an easy partner to do business with in a fully virtual environment – working hard to improve processes and systems that would speed up response times and deliver more value.
Bloomberg Media also continued to double down on areas of core strength, by putting data and insights at the forefront of our consultative approach to help clients understand how consumers are behaving – and how their brand is resonating – as a way to make more informed decisions in an uncertain environment.
In June for example, the company launched a European version of its proprietary Bloomberg Brand Health System, measuring perceptions of over 600 brands among elite audiences. The measurement of Future Potential Metrics (Vision, Relevance, Trust, Strength, Familiarity), is an excellent indicator of the brands that are poised for success and those that are in need of work – regardless of what is happening as a result of the pandemic.
The US Elections was a focal point for the year and a key subject of interest for the global business audience – our coverage provided opportunities for clients to leverage this environment.
Has the unfolding of the year 2020 forced you to review or redirect certain products or services?
The growth of digital has continued to be a huge focus and helped with our resilience and quick recovery from the initial impact of the pandemic. We are continuing to invest in new ways to deliver the trusted news and information our clients and audiences need with launches such as Bloomberg Green, CityLab and Wealth.
We are also continuing to invest into new innovative ad formats, and have expanded our Compass suite with new products such as the self-serve platform, Boost (which converts a brand’s social posts from their owned channels into mobile display ads), and Ad.Apt Shop, (which maximizes the opportunity around e-commerce campaigns).
Did the first wave of the pandemic force you to redefine your prices?
It has not impacted our prices. This past year reinforced the value of our unique position in the market as a trusted, strategic and effective partner for brands.
This relationship enables us to be flexible and pivot during unprecedented times. Whether it be a downturn, Covid-19 or a simple shift in priorities, we are easily able to switch different programs on/off to be as responsive as possible, ultimately helping clients stay relevant, authentic and effective in-market.
Have you seen the same trends in your digital and print media? In terms of business volume, and in a period where it is difficult to make any forecasts, what outlook can you already feel for 2021? Will they impact your pricing policy?
Print will always play a role – and our key print titles deliver against a very specific need for clients. Not only does this remain stable, we were one of the few publishers to launch a new print title in 2020, Bloomberg Green.
Digital however has been booming. In 2020, Bloomberg Media’s digital advertising revenue was up 15% YoY globally, and 44% in Q4 YoY.
We’ll continue to be agile as we move into 2021, and rather that pricing, focus on our core strengths: a consultative approach, access to data & insights, customisable solutions and trusted global platforms.
Your group has an international presence. Are some regions of the world more aggressive and creative in terms of marketing than others? Are new markets emerging? If so, what suggestions would you like to make to the major Swiss brands with an international presence?
Our Bloomberg Media platforms have incredible global reach.
Bloomberg Television is available in more than 433 million homes worldwide in over 70 countries; it also streams live on Bloomberg’s digital and mobile properties, along with Apple TV, Samsung TV and Roku. We have 83 million average unique visitors per month across Bloomberg’s digital properties.
While there are regional nuances (in Europe for example we are seeing a rise in the use of video, a growing demand for performance and audience driven campaigns and interest in social), we aim to be consistent with our solutions across all regions, apply our innovative approach no matter which part of the world our clients are, and indeed collaborate closely across regions in order to provide that consistency – being global is one of our key strengths. If any brands (including Swiss ones) want to engage with a global audience, they should be exploring opportunities with Bloomberg Media.
You have a very regular business relationship with Mediamix. Can you tell me, from your point of view, how you would characterize this relationship and what constitutes its added value?
Our approach with our partners is based on trust, transparency & collaboration. Together with Mediamix we develop multiplatform strategies for their Swiss based clients looking to communicate to a global audience of senior business decision makers.
