How to Be a Lifestyle Enabler

RedBulleton-ChrisPrattWhen a brand can think outside its own product box and imagine the lifestyle those products help to support, amazing things start to happen. Such is the case with mattress company Casper, which recently launched a digital magazine call Van Winkle’s.

“After weeks of industry buzz, Casper launched Van Winkle’s on June 9 with the goal of covering the culture of sleep,” writes Tessa Wegert in Contently. “The digital magazine features stories on everything from sleep deprivation to what it’s like spending a night at Florida’s new Legoland Hotel. Science, Health, Travel, Culture—all are covered by the largely unbranded magazine.”

Brands are increasingly becoming publishers of lifestyle journalism, from Airbnb’s Pineapple to the new King Arthur magazine Sift.

“While branded magazines aren’t a new phenomenon, the trend is proving increasingly popular among companies eager to connect with their customers and differentiate themselves from competitors. For decades, brands have relied on third-party publishers to supply a platform through which to engage with consumers,” Wegert explains. “Now, brands are flipping this model on its head.”

It makes sense. Consumers are increasingly able to self-select their media of choice, in what Samir “Mr. Magazine” Husni refers to as the transcended infinite media age. And thanks to an abundance of quality journalists and creative folks, brands are able to afford to create quality publications that rival or surpass those produced by the mass market publishers of yore.

Congrats to the good people at Casper on making it this far with your brand publishing. Now finish the job. With the recent news that digital screens can disrupt healthy sleep, it’s time to take Van Winkle’s to print. You’re welcome.