CONDÉ NAST
Condé Nast ran ads in Instagram Stories to drive sales of Vogue’s iconic September issue and increase annual subscribers, which contributed to 20% of the total paid social subscription volume.
Condé Nast is a premier media company renowned for producing high quality content for global audiences. Attracting over 144 million consumers across its industry-leading print, digital and video brands, the company’s portfolio includes media titles such as Vogue, Vanity Fair, GQ and WIRED.
of paid social subscription volume attributed to ads in Instagram Stories
higher conversion rate versus campaign average
higher click-through rate versus ads in other placements
lower cost per acquisition versus ads in other placements
Condé Nast wanted to increase online magazine sales and boost annual subscriptions.
September is the most important issue of the year for fashion magazines: they kick off the fall season, unveil designers’ new campaigns and highlight coming trends. And for many fashionistas, the most highly anticipated September issue of all is Condé Nast’s Vogue.
To promote the September 2018 issue in advance of its newsstand release—and reveal its cover model—the Vogue marketing team decided to capitalize on the brand’s large following on Instagram. The team launched a campaign featuring a variety of ad formats, including video ads in Instagram Stories and a 3-panel carousel of video ads in Stories. The advantage of these vertical full-screen formats is that they provide a more immersive and intense visual experience.
Then, the team took the top-performing video ad creative that had run in Instagram feed, and redesigned it for the Stories format. This showstopping ad creative featured global superstar Beyoncé—who sparkled in a series of dazzling bejeweled gowns—as well as a sneak-peek shot of the September issue cover with her photo on it.
Each ad had a Subscribe call-to-action button that could be swiped through to a special offer on the Vogue order page, where people could pay $10 for the annual subscription and early access to the September issue. Facebook Marketing Partner CitizenNet helped execute the campaign.
Condé Nast showed the ads to US adults aged 16–65 with an interest in Beyoncé and high fashion, and to a lookalike audience based on the characteristics of its previous customers, Vogue.com website visitors, people who like the Vogue Facebook Page and Vogue Instagram engagers.
Results of the August 8–September 8, 2018 campaign were based on reporting data from Facebook Ads Manager, which revealed:
20% of total subscription volume was attributed to ads in Instagram Stories
40% higher conversion rate with ads in Stories versus campaign average
77% higher click-through rate with ads in Stories versus ads in other placements
20% lower cost per acquisition with ads in Stories versus ads in other placements
