The Verge or really Vox Media knows how to work with advertisers. Here is a new series called, “Verge Favorites” that looks at what the Verge Staff is into at the moment.
You’ll notice there is a Starbucks ad and “presented by Starbucks …” This ad doesn’t appear anywhere else on the site except for this post.
This isn’t the first time The Verge and Vox Media have done something like this. Usually when they release the newest episode of their ever-popular show called On The Verge they have a dedicated page with advertising meant for that episode at that time.
More media companies need to figure this relationship out because Vox Media might have something here. Here’s more what they’ve done with advertising: Example 1, Example 2.
Stumbled upon font style testing? Or this could be web-type, browser error (using Chrome).
What looks to be bold or regular turned into a regular or light style of the font. We like the new way as the old and current (as of now) way is the bold/regular style.
Which style do you prefer on The Verge?
Overheard: Peter Vidani, Tumblr's Lead Designer
Permalink
Ellis Hamburger:
Tumblr is quickly becoming not just a blogging platform, but a place where people build home pages. Is the future of "home pages" a chronological update of what you're doing? Or, more precisely, are you the sum of everything you share?
Peter Vidani:
That seems to be what it is right now — identifying yourself by the things you share. It's hard to say if that's the future of home pages, because who knows how long pages will be around. But are we the things we share? That's a big question. In real life, that could hold up. These are the clothes I'm wearing, these are the things I want to talk about, here's what I've done lately. It might be more chaotic than a chronological timeline on a page, but it's not far from what we're trying to do here. I don't think anyone can create a new de facto way to represent identity, but we can get closer and closer to how we're getting along in real life.
Ellis Hamburger:
What past technologies have inspired your work the most?
Peter Vidani:
Sci-fi movies, cars, magazines, fashion. Things that exist today that we take for granted, that were only budding in hobbyist circles before. Working on web interfaces and apps feels like a weird thing and sometimes it's hard to say who's doing it right because it's so new. But so was storytelling with film, and designing the gas pedal.
Ellis Hamburger:
When you start a product from scratch, how do you organize your thoughts and prioritize your goals?
Peter Vidani:
The very first thing is talking to someone about it, and to immediately start drawing it on paper. It's important for me to get it on paper first. One, it's a fast way to get all the bad ideas out; two, I'm away from the distraction of a computer; and three, by the time I'm doing the labor in Photoshop, I'm not as worried about what the end product will look like. I also rely a lot on showing the work to other people. We're all in chat rooms, so it's easy to show a few people at once. Then, I try my best to iterate.
Advertising doesn’t just have to be a static or interactive image on a webpage these days. In the age of the Internet there are opportunities for creativity to be brought to a new level. A new level where advertising can be designed in a way that is attractive other than in just visual form is happening.
The Verge is making this happening by working with the advertisers. Vox Media runs the advertising operations for The Verge and Jim Bankoff, Chairman and CEO of Vox Media, mentioned how they are doing things differently.
As you can see by the two images above Vox Media has worked with advertisers like Microsoft and Lenovo. Sure, sponsors for podcast shows on The Verge is a step forward in advertising becoming more “attractive” and integrated into the content. But, what Vox Media has worked out with Microsoft and Lenovo is a bigger step forward.
Internet Explorer ad is: “less browser. more verge.”
Lenovo ad is a dedicated page for their products. It’s like a full-page interactive page that blends in.
Advertising designed here is more product integration than product placement. What was once a static or stationary interactive infomercial is an “attractive” piece of content that paid the bills.
The challenge is more work being done in the relationship as well as ensuring people know the difference between the editorial content and the advertising content.
Advertising can be better designed and Vox Media is taking this step forward that others should pay attention to.
Much respect for Bankoff and what he is doing at Vox Media.
Vox Media, the fast-growing sports and tech blog network, is making a substantial investment around original video production and distribution, says CEO Jim Bankoff in this interview with Beet.TV.
Bankoff also had something to say in regards to “Digital story-telling and the rise of the new publishers”.
We’re not only creating a platform, we’re experimenting with new ways to collaborate with editorial and advertising, how to share ideas and jokes between distributed remote team members, and making ops good, not bad.
Big fans of The Verge, SB Nation, and can’t wait to see how they build Polygon.
If you’re not pleased with what is offered, make your own.
High-res
