Ninemsn’s Honey has only been around for two months and already it’s snagged the top spot as Australia’s number one website for fashion and beauty content, according to research company Nielsen.
The new site delivered a unique audience (UA) reach of 344,000 in April and 345,000 in May, topping key competitors such as Vogue (219k UA) and Elle (60K UA).
Ninemsn launched Honey in the beginning of April – along with two other new sites, viral news portal Pickle and fitness site Coach – as part of a big overhaul of ninemsn’s offerings.
Honey editor Naomi Smith (pictured right above), a former fashion director at Vogue, puts part of the fashion site’s coup down to the fact it wasn’t launched from an already-successful magazine, where the website often comes in second-best to its glossy print counterpart.
“As Honey’s primary platform, the website gets the best of everything,” she said.”The fashion industry is moving at a much faster pace now, with designers doing six shows a year, so almost everything is available to buy online, and digital is the best way to keep up with the pace and deliver what the audience wants.”
Smith added that her plans to introduce video editorials will also give Honey an edge over other online competitors: “We will be shooting our own fashion stories to really set us apart.”
Ninemsn’s managing editor Emma Chamberlain (pictured left above) points to Honey’s editorial policy as another factor in its surge of popularity.”I didn’t want to go down the typical celebrity route or skinny model route to engage mainstream Australia,” she said. “I wanted Honey to write about interesting stories in fashion and give women useful style advice in a beautiful environment.
“We obviously used the reach of ninemsn homepage to drive Honey, and that audience really engaged with the content.
“Our success proves Honey’s mix of sass, beautiful clothes and practical style advice is an appealing combination.”
