Volkswagen at Abbey Road, Sirius XM Grows, NPR Hires First CMO

The Content Strategist picks the day’s most relevant and interesting stories about the world of content from around the web. Here’s what you should be reading today:

VW’s Branded Music Campaign

Channel 4 in Europe and VW’s media agency, MediaCom, have created Abbey Road Studios: In Session with Volkswagen Beetle.

The eight part series begins on Nov. 14, and pre-rolls and short-form video content will be posted online, according to Campaign Live.

Sirius XM Gains Subscribers

The New York Times reports that in the third quarter, Sirius XM subscriptions jumped by 446,000.

For the whole year, the amount of subscribers is expected to grow by 1.8 million, at least. The announcement was made by Mel Karmazin, who has run the company for eight years and is stepping down on Feb. 1.

Marketing Chief to Join NPR

For the first time, according to the Wall Street Journal, NPR has hired a chief marketing officer “in a bid to better make a case for public radio amid political challenges to its public funding, a falloff in corporate sponsorship and growing competition for audiences.”

Emma Carrasco of ad agency Republica is taking over as CMO to help sell the NPR brand. Part of her job will be to bring corporate sponsor back up to par.

Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia in Trouble

And this time, it’s not for legal reasons. The New York Times’ Christine Haughney writes that on Nov. 1, the company announced that it would be “scaling back two of its four magazines and laying off about 70 employees, or 12 percent of the nearly 600-person company.”

The company is suffering not only in the publishing sector, but the broadcasting and merchandising industries as well. In terms of publishing,

Whole Living Magazine is either going to be sold or shut down, and Everyday Food is going to be reduced to five issues a year instead of 10 and appear “as a supplement to subscribers of Martha Stewart Living.”

Using Words, in Addition to Images, for Brand Storytelling

According to Content Marketing Institute’s Debbie Williams, strong words are essential to a strong branded storytelling campaign. Words help form emotional connections and “can actually paint an exciting and interesting picture of your business and products.”

Visuals and words together should create a comprehensive story says Williams:

“Your package design, website, blog theme, catalogue, or brochure might be drop-dead gorgeous, but if the words in it aren’t compelling, no one will keep reading. When the design is interesting, all of your words create a more powerful experience. On the flipside, if the design is bad, your brilliant words will go unread and your story untold.”

Newlywed Content Provided by Startup Carats and Cake

Startup Carats and Cake, which provides content geared towards newlyweds and couples planning weddings, is taking off because it “offers a dedicated space for personal wedding photos, vendor information and venue details,” according to Mashable.

On the site, newlyweds are able to produce “Wedding Pages to share moments from their dream weddings. Brides can upload pictures of the dress, the groom’s shoes, the perfect wedding hair, the engagement ring and anything else that stood out on that special day.”

Social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter can be incorporated into the personalized content as well.

Make a Sandy Contribution via Facebook

Mashable also reports that in the aftermath of Sandy, Facebook is allowing users to make charitable donations on the Gifts platform.

The American Red Cross, Livestrong, and Boys and Girls Club of America are all participating.