Branded Entertainment is rapidly growing in the US and is emerging as a leading alternative media strategy. The difficulty of reaching increasingly elusive consumers, who have more ways to ignore and filter out brand messages than ever before, has made it more important for brands in the US to invest in the power of emotional connections – ie. entertainment.

In 2010, advertisers in the US spent over $25bn on branded entertainment. That number is expected to reach over $38bn by 2014, a 9.2% compound annual growth rate. However, despite its rapid growth, in many ways branded content is still in its infancy. It is often misunderstood and misused by the very advertisers footing the bill for it.

The biggest barriers to success for US advertisers are not regulatory, they are:1.Finding the right balance between the interests of their brands and the entertainment of their audiences2.Achieving scale in one of the most fragmented media markets in the worldWe believe that our entry successfully overcomes both of these barriers.

We directed people to our 60-minute documentary through:-A dedicated in programme integration on The View – the nation’s highest rating daytime TV program -On-air tune-ins -Advertorials in parenting magazines -The Johnson’s baby Facebook community

With just under $4MM, we established a meaningful connection with moms:-8 out of 10 moms exposed to the content said it was an important message-75,000 people tuned into the documentary on WeTV-25,000 people downloaded the documentary from iTunes-We got amazing reviews on iTunes – for example: “Very impressive. This documentary takes an interesting look at the typical modern family's day. Just for the concept, I would give it 5 stars. However, some of the stories are particularly touching, and thus I give it 6 stars”.-7 out of 10 moms exposed to the content said they were more likely to purchase Johnson’s productsEven better, shipments of Johnson’s icon products were up 9.7% year-on-year for the campaign period.

However, most rewarding - we had a real impact on the lives of parents across the country.

“We will forever be grateful for this project for making us slow down & enjoy your sweet babies. We've been guilty of rushing through things, but I can honestly say that we no longer do... thank you for making us realise that…” ―Tori Billings, South Carolina