“Drafting” the VOX MEDIA Business Model Canvas
Vox Media is an American multinational digital media start up company founded on July 14, 2005 as SportsBlogs Inc. by Jerome Armstrong, Tyler Bleszinski, and Markos Moulitsas and based in Washington, D.C. and New York City. Vox Media is a prestigious modern media company that believes in the power of going deeper to connect with global, passionate, curious audiences.
Through its authoritative house of brands, commitment to developing standout technology, and high-fidelity advertising, vox media is shaping the future of journalism and entertainment. Vox Media is working with its own platform, “Chorus”, through which is has created unparalleled products that make everything easier, more beautiful, and give the strongest voices the tools they need to cover the topics they know and love. Its brand partners are able to leverage these same proprietary tools to create incredible custom solutions via its ad platform, “Concert”, and content studio, “Vox Creative”.
Vox Media is made up of eight media brands: The Verge (technology and culture), Vox (general interest news), SB Nation (sports), Polygon (gaming), Eater (Food and Nightlife), Racked (shopping, beauty and fashion), Curbed (real estate and home), and Recode (technology business). Vox’s brands are built on “Concert”, the publisher-led market place for advertising, and “Chorus”, the proprietary content management system, as said before. Now, let’ s analyze the business model of this interesting start up media company. The network now features over 300 sites with over 400 paid writers.
As far as Vox Media’s consumer segments concerns, Vox Media’s brands attract approximately 170 million unique monthly visitors, targeted to audience between 25 and 49 years old, especially college educated and English speaking, with its variety of interest sites. Also, Vox Media orientates to advertisers, through its advertising tools, which provides native advertising and traditional advertising solutions.
Moreover, Vox Media gives value propositions to its audience with the original content it’s providing through reporting a wide range of subjects, for example news, sports, food, culture technology, as said. Its value, also, can be seen at their advertising campaigns at specific audiences and all the provisions of its own platform, “Chorus”.
Concerning Vox Media’s relationship with its costumers, the company provides its content for free to its costumers, it interacts with them through many social media accounts (on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube). It also provides email and online contact with its customers. Finally, with their commercial customers there is a close communication in order to provide them with the best advertising solutions and satisfy them, creating strong relationships with them.
The basic channel, through which Vox Media communicates with its audience, is firstly the website www.voxmedia.com. Secondly, the websites of each media brand (Vox.com, theverge.com, sbnation.com etc.) and their mobile applications, too. Finally yet importantly, Vox Media’s sales team communicates directly with the customers that wish to be advertised.
As said before, regarding to the key activities of the company, Vox Media is a digital media company which aims to create and distribute original content through its eight brands, via online websites or mobile applications. Also, Vox Media aims to provide the best native or traditional advertising solutions through its own platforms (“Concert”, “Chorus”, “Vox Creative”).
Furthermore, concerning to Vox Media’s key partners, the company cooperates with a wide variety of suppliers of services and technology in order to develop its content and many platform partners so to distribute this content. It also collaborates with advertising partners in order to create an effective advertising content. Moreover, Vox Media works with many strategic partners on various projects. The company has officially announced the partnership with MediaMath and OpenX as far as the adverting concerns.
The key resources that are required for Vox Media business model are at first the original and imaginative brands and its own publishing platform, “Chorus”. Its partnerships and its personnel are also significant. Finally, the IT and the communication department are also important in order to provide the advertising solutions.
All the above mentioned should be estimated at the cost structure of the company, to wit the costs of the development and the maintenance of the “Chorus” platform, the production of the original content, the marketing plans, the suppliers, the service partnerships and the salaries of the personnel.
Last but not least, regarding to the revenue streams of the company, Vox Media’s costumers are willing to pay specifically for the digital advertising solutions, which includes, as said, native branded advertising solutions and traditional advertising solutions.
