VentureBeat strategic sales director stepped up with lots of useful detail on VB’s paid content programs. “We have a range of content offerings — featured video interviews, branded content and content with amplification,” Todd wrote in an email.
We’re proud to introduce the SWMS Paid Content Directory 2023. Modeled after our contributed content gatekeepers directory, the resource is designed to help point our subscribers in the right direction when they have budget to spend on “saying it the way you want to.”
Here are the latest paid content rates from Fast Company. The submission below is provided by FC account director Justine DeGaetano. Fast Company will write the post for you, at a premium.
Here are the latest paid content rates from The New Stack. The submission below is provided by Benjamin Ball, the publication’s director of sales and account management.
This SWMS cheat sheet is unlike any other we’ve done, combining insights on contributed posts and paid posts across 146 publications in B2B and B2C.
A while back — OK, a long while back — a subscriber asked us to look into sponsored content. What were the trends? What was more common, one-offs or comprehensive packages? Are agencies increasingly “owning” sponsored content for their clients?
Sponsored content can be a very daunting investment (at least it was to me when I first learned about its cost) but offering target audiences a controlled message with a massive credibility boost presents a significant opportunity.
Sponsored content is a tool in the toolbox. Considering the expense, it’s smart to know exactly what one hopes to accomplish with it, and that it’s the right tool for the job. To that end, our sponsored content deep-dive spotted five prominent themes/purposes in 2021.
Now and again we receive a valet request for a list of publications that profile C-title executives for a fee. We hereby present such a list. Web traffic is thin to these titles. Caveat emptor.
Is paid content worth it? It’s still expensive in the big shops. If you’re OK sponsoring newsletters and podcasts, your dollar goes further. The following are the most actionable takeways from research contributed by veteran tech edit veteran Keith Shaw.
YOUR ACCOUNT
FRIDGE NOTES
From today’s TC+ Newsletter: “No one I met said they were looking for ‘thought leadership’ or scorching hot takes,” wrote TC’s contributed content gatekeeper. “Almost everyone wanted actionable advice that would help them fundraise, build and scale.”
Good guidance indeed.
Somewhere along the line, Cambridge, Mass.-based Devo Technology rebranded as Devo. Warner Music Group apparently has no objection.
Here’s how Mike Isaac presents himself. A single perfunctory paragraph doesn’t cut it anymore in a world of disinformation and synthetic, AI-generated content where no one really knows the agenda. The NYT wants to get out in front of that, especially before the 2024 elections heat up. Read the background behind this in Vanity Fair.
Legendary journalist Louise Story reveals how the smartest edit shops are using AI. Here come the flexicles.
Sara Fischer of Axios nails another scoop: Time is merging its Time Ideas section into a new one, called Time100 Voices. It doesn’t promise big opportunity for tech PR — it aims so high that only the Benioffs and Nadellas stand a chance.
Recent research from Semrush, a data partner of ours, reveals the most searched societal issues based on average monthly Google searches between January 2019 and June 2023, and how they rank across 35 countries. Searches related to mental health are skyrocketing.
