Emanuele Madeddu, Reverence To Relevance

Thank you Susan. Good morning everyone. I'm keeping you one step away from your break, so I'll be short. I really want to do exactly what Susan was saying, tell you a little bit more of the National Geographic brand that is 130 years old and has built over time a tone of admiration and relevance and reverence because everyone loves us and everyone connects with us and everyone remembers the magazines in their families' basement or in the living room and the books and the movies. But I think the goal for us, and this is actually true for a brand that is 130 years old render is 130 hours old is how to stay relevant in any single given day, in any single given moment. So what I'm going to do today is really to share some of the strategies and the tactics that my team puts in place at National Geographic every day to achieve this job. In order to do this, I just want to go back to 1888. This was the time where, this is actually a true story, the US government stopped giving funding to scientific exploration. I don't know if this rings any bell, this is actually what's happening very similarly at the moment now in the United States. So a group of people decided to fund exploration and created National Geographic Society in Washington, D.C. This group of explorers were going out and were trying to find every single nugget of geographic knowledge so that they could share it with the world. This is where the National Geographic magazine was born. And it was a journal. It was that one. That was, I think, number one. That magazine didn't have one picture. It was just a written recount of what the explorers were doing. Of course, the filmmakers and the photographers were taking notes of, but again, there were no pictures. The second president of National Geographic Society was a guy named Alexander Graham Bell. And he took a look at those pictures and one day in the board of directors meeting said, hey, we have those amazing pictures from the field. We need to share them with the world. This is how we can stay relevant. So, yeah. And two members of the board of directors left in disgust because there was an outrage. And this would have ruined the future of National Geographic. Would have changed the magazine forever. They were actually right. It did change the magazine forever, but for good. And in 1906, these were the first night photography images that were shared by any magazine at the time. No one had seen them before. And this was because of the National Geographic Society. This was a morning party and they just seemed to be tired. Pretty large media powerhouse that has magazines around the world, that definitely has TV channels, has a massive presence on social media and digital, has books, has VR, has AR, has travel. You can track your travel with National Geographic. And we continue. I've never seen myself so big. It's actually weird. Okay. I should not point at that. And this allows us to constantly connect with audiences around the world. It really doesn't matter the age. It doesn't matter their education. It doesn't matter their culture. It doesn't matter the language. It matters what they care about and the attributes that they share with us. Today, National Geographic reaches almost 500 million homes around the world, distributes magazines and channels in 163, 72 countries around the world. And I don't know if you are aware of this. We are the number one social media brand and the number one brand on Instagram. Granted, ahead of us, there are a bunch of celebrities. I think three or four Kardashians, for sure. Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande. But then when you look at brands, that's us. That's National Geographic. And why we are successful, I'll actually show you. I'll tell you later. What is the recipe for success for us in that environment. Really, the real reason is because we want to spark curiosity in everyone. And we really believe that everyone has the spirit of exploration in themselves. We just want to remind them with everything that we are doing. We truly believe that when people understand the world better, they can take care more deeply for it. And they want to have a role in it. And if you look at the way we deliver content and the way we approach it, this is allowing us to actually deliver on this concept. We have done a few research around the world. And I want to share with you a piece of content that shows how we're trying to broaden the concept of exploration. When National Geographic was started, it was purely physical exploration. It was going to the top of a mountain. It was going to the bottom of an ocean. Today, exploration is social exploration. It is digital exploration. It is trying to meet new cultures. It is trying to taste new food. It really is about opening up, pushing your boundaries, and trying to go further. So, I'll... I want to share with you some of the answers we heard from people out there. So, when you look at what people are craving for today and what does exploration mean for them, this allows us to then define what is the best way to approach them and how we can stay true to ourselves and at the same time be constantly new for audiences out there and be constantly in the short list of brands they want to connect with. So much great content happening out there right now. There's so many good things that you can do. How can you be visible? I'll share with you, for me, the three macro areas that are resonating with us and I hope that can help you as well in your daily job. One, I think it's a given. It's really stay true to who you are. And really, it doesn't matter what is the industry you work on and you work for. Just remind yourself every single day you go to the office, okay, this is exactly... who I am and this is exactly how I want to show up. People call bullshit out there and they see you if you're trying to be someone else that is not yourself. I think Alain put the Pepsi spot earlier there, which showed how much the brand was trying so hard to become something that was not credible for their fan base and actually backlashed on them to a certain extent. Today, you have seen... You're very familiar with this. There is a different relationship between brands and people. We're moving away from an era where everyone had a big sweatshirt with a logo on it. It's not a matter of just owning the brand and owning physically, collecting things. We have moved away. We have gone to a place where we are collecting experiences. I think Airbnb, over the past few years, have done fantastic. They have done a great job in allowing people not just to go to a place, but actually live in a place as a citizen. This sense of belonging that has been core to their brand. I think lately we're actually moving a step further where people actually want to use the brand to have something back. It's not just an experience, it's personal growth. And being associated to a brand allows that person to also be autodefined and allows them to show up differently. To their communities, to their chain. So, if you look at how we are communicating in Instagram, I showed you earlier, we are the number one brand there. We want to be super authentic there. The best way for us to do it was simply to give the keys of our Instagram to our photographers. They actually post. We don't post for them. They go there and they do it. They could do anything. But... With all the training, with all the alignment that we have with them, there's so much trust that is happening. That when they post, everything is right for the brand. And it's not just the quality of the video or the photo. The quality of the captions are amazing as well. And I want to show you one example of being authentic and being in the field. This is Charlie Hamilton James that created a series of Instagram stories for us. Hello, my name is Charlie Hamilton James. And today I'm on assignment for National Geographic. There's no better way. You are in the field with him while he is working. And the reaction of everyone. If you're not following us, please do. We need more fans and followers. You can really see the quality that is there. But I would say what you can see the most... Actually, it's not data. We have 91 million now. But you can see the most. Again, it's not just the quality of the pictures. It's the quality of the story. And when a photo gets posted, just refresh and take a look at how fast people start commenting back. And not just liking and sharing. There is a sense of belonging. There is a sense of interaction. People want to know more. They ask questions. The photographers respond. And this creates even more engagement and more desire for people to come back. One of the reasons also... I think it allows us to stand out. It's this idea of creating communities. All the people that are part of the Instagram community, they also want to be part of smaller communities. We have launched in the past few months on Facebook a women of impact community. Where really those amazing female explorers and female scientists that work at National Geographic share their ideas. But everyone can join. And everyone can share their thoughts as well. It really doesn't matter whether you are a famous explorer, a famous photographer, or someone that just shares the same attributes. They all feel part of one community. And we have one called Your Shot that is on the National Geographic website. Where wannabe photographers can share their pictures. From this month on, on the last page of the National Geographic magazine, we will actually have a place for women. A place for one of these photos to be pictured there. And you can only imagine how proud that person will be when their photo will be next to a professional photographer's. I wanted to show you some of these pictures. These are wannabe photographers. None of them is a pro. This quality is incredible. And there are so many people out there that share the same passion and want to deliver on it. The last part is probably the most obvious for National Geographic. But I would say it has to be critical for every single brand that wants to stand out today. It's how to deliver impact. How to make sure that you have a tone of voice that is clear, is loud, and has an opinion. You probably have seen a million charts nowadays that are talking about how much purpose is key and core to be successful today. It doesn't really matter whether you are a millennial or a centennial. I want to talk to Kantar. I hate the fact that I'm aging. I need to figure out a way for them to change these terms. But it really doesn't matter. People want to be connected with brands that have a point of view and stands for something. Because again, I'm going back to the beginning. People want to feel they are part of the solution. And they can be perceived that they are actually having an impact. One of the latest examples for us on how to deliver impact is an initiative that we kicked off six months ago. This is a multi-year initiative. It's called Planet or Plastic. I'll show you a video and then I'll tell you more about it. Planet or Plastic When we started this initiative, we wanted to start creating awareness for a problem that is well known in some parts of the world. It's absolutely unknown in many other parts of the world. There is so much single-use plastic that goes into the oceans every single day. It is because of landfills and the spillover. It is because of rivers that are now becoming the conveyor belts of single-use plastic in the oceans. It's also because of corporations and institutions that can do better. It's also because of all of us. It's also because of the way we consume single-use plastic. Because it is such a commodity. It's so easy to use a plastic bottle or a plastic bag. But the impact, the long, long-lasting impact it has on the environment and ultimately on us, it is undeniable. Different from climate change, there are no plastic deniers, thank God. So everyone is actually kind of open to rally around this issue. National Geographic magazine kicked it off in May with a cover and an issue that was dedicated to marine debris. And this Planet of Plastic initiative is now going to be taken by the non-profit arm of National Geographic, National Geographic Society. And our scientists are about to launch a scientific endeavor to actually gather data. To stop bringing plastic into the oceans. The solution is more than just cleaning up the oceans. And I really applaud all the talent, individuals and corporations that are cleaning up the oceans. But we need to solve the problem at the source. Otherwise it will truly not be solved. When we launched the initiative, we actually partnered with influencers that really had an opinion. And had already a history about being... involved in single-use plastic. Going back to this concept of being authentic. Pick your influencers very carefully because it can backlash on you. We're just starting a contest for wannabe riders to really tell us what is their connection and history with single-use plastic every single day. And at the same time, we wanted to be part of the solution as well. National Geographic is not completely innocent. We use single-use plastic every day. And we are just actually undergoing an audit inside the company to reduce the amount of single-use plastic we use. As a first step in the United States, we stopped wrapping the National Geographic magazine in plastic. We started with a paper wrap. We still have to implement it in many other countries around the world. This is the first step. We need to start and we need to start as soon as possible. Again, this is more a marathon than an under-the-middle dash. And we need more and more people involved. Good news so far is that people want to be involved. And people want to connect with a cause that can drive impact. We went up 90% of organic search between National Geographic and single-use plastic since the beginning of the campaign. A lot of people are giving us their email because they want to know more about tips and solutions, innovative ideas to stop using single-use plastic. So this gives me a lot of hope that we can really drive change. One thing that I mentioned before and I think allows us to express why impact is so important for National Geographic is that National Geographic is a combination of a for-profit arm and a non-profit arm. So every time people are watching, reading, spending time, or traveling with National Geographic, a portion of the proceeds goes back to fund the scientific endeavors and the impact that National Geographic Society wants to make to keep a planet in balance. And so it creates this virtuous cycle. The more explorers we have out there that can create impact, the more stories we can tell. The more stories we can tell. And the more people at the end will spend money and time with us and will continue to feed the machine. At the end of the day, it goes back to one single thing. Telling good stories. It doesn't matter if it's the first underwater photography or night photography or the first time that the Titanic was discovered because of a National Geographic photographer. Or Jane Goodall's. It has to be a good story. It doesn't mean it has to be a story about something good. It has to be a good story. And this is what resonates with people. And more and more, you need to stand out. You need to make sure that your story becomes memorable. It becomes relevant. I wanted to share with you one movie we're launching. We're just launching in the United States. We're going to launch around the world in the next three, four months. It's the story of the climber, Alex Thomas. Alex Arnold who climbed El Capitan in Yosemite solo, meaning with no ropes, with no safety. And speaking of authenticity, speaking of pushing boundaries, speaking of sparking curiosity, that is probably one of the best stories I wanted to share the trailer with you. Free Solo, rated PG-13. This is an insane story. I've watched this movie. A few times now. And every time I see those visuals, I get dizzy, to be honest. There is a VR experience where you actually are with him on the wall. I had to sit down for a second. If you have a chance to try it, it is truly insane. This is, for me, it's storytelling, photography at its best, cinematography. And, again, this idea of going further, of pushing your boundaries. Of representing what is your limit. And this guy is just insane. I have really no words. Speaking of pushing boundaries and telling stories of science and technology, this past spring, we wanted to do something different. We partnered with Nike in something that we found amazing when we heard from them about what they wanted to do, which was this idea of breaking the two-hour record in the marathon. We helped them telling that story. They put so much effort and science and technology in the development of every single aspect of it. So, for us, it was kind of natural. We needed to do something with them. And it was mutual interaction, mutual respect. And this is what we ended up creating. When you look across sports, the one obvious barrier is the two-hour marathon. It's this journey of taking three guys, all of whom are really talented, and telling them, do something that's impossible. We're taking the latest advances in training, latest advances in technology, algorithms, and mathematics, and we're going to tell these guys, you're going to go for it from the gun. And that was the recipe for greatness. It's about human endeavor. Why would you try to climb Everest? Why would you try to go to the moon? It's about learning what our capabilities are. These guys are going to pull out something extraordinary. I have chills. I feel very lucky and very fortunate to be here to witness this today. The runners are actually coming up behind me right now. It has to do with changing the way people think, the way we work. What can we do to get creative? How do we get to that next level? This race really isn't about the three guys that are going to run it. It's about all of us. What is the human body capable of? Where can we push a limit here, push a limit there? Exploring human potential and pushing the limits of what that can mean. So, to recap, you're two minutes away from your break. To recap, the best way to synthesize what I was saying for us as National Geographic and maybe for you in your experiences, to stay relevant every single day is really don't be afraid of being yourself. Always trust the path that you are following and stick to that. Because the more you stick to it, the more people will connect and will understand who you are and will feel the shared values that you have. Allow them to be part of a community. Don't just push content out, push a campaign out. Allow a conversation, allow interaction. Hear from them. And when you can, respond back immediately. With a meaningful response. And then make sure that what you're doing actually can drive change, can drive an impact, can have an opinion. And this can be polarizing. We talked about Colin Kaepernick and Nike now a couple of times already this morning. Because when you stick to your credo, and Susan was mentioning, this is the 30th anniversary of their tagline. You know what you're doing. And I don't think, and I slightly disagree with you. I slightly disagree with what you were saying earlier, Susan. I don't think that the brand team was afraid. They really knew what they were doing. Because they know their audiences and they know what they were going after. They knew that they would have probably got a couple of people that were burning shoes. That was the best campaign for me. Not even Colin. That image of the burning Nike is perfect. It's exactly the reaction they needed. In a polarized world, you cannot win everyone. You have to make sure you win the people you want to win. So having said that, I want to leave you with one video that recaps everything. I could have just played that video and not talk, but I'd like to talk with you. So I'm doing this just at the end. Please come see me if you have any questions. And I look forward to talking with you. And it doesn't bind us or limit us. This is a portal. An entrance to the whole world. And a means to make it better. Every place, story and passion lies there here. And for more than 130 years, this is where we explorers and innovators have gone.