Are Sneaky Advertorials
Still Super Profitable Today?
Let’s start with
that last question first:
An advertorial is an advertisement in the form of editorial content. The
term "advertorial" is a blend of the words, "advertisement"
and "editorial."
It’s also called a “native ad,” “sponsored content” and even an
“infomercial” if it’s broadcast.
An advertorial is an ad that walks, talks and acts like an editorial.
And because this sponsored content takes the same qualities as original
publisher content, everybody wins.
The reader is happy because they’re benefiting from the copy, the
sponsor wins because the reader has gained a positive perception of the brand,
and the publisher is happy because his readers and sponsors are happy.
The term advertorial was first coined in 1946, when there were plenty of
magazines and newspapers and of course no internet.
You might remember seeing advertorials: They look very much like a story
or article, but once you start reading you realize you’re being very sweetly
led down the path towards making a purchase.
The writer might start out talking about the problem the product solves
or extolling the virtues of this new product they just discovered. They might
go on with examples and testimonials, let you know the manufacturer is offering
an ironclad guarantee, and then directing you on what to do to get your hands
on this amazing product.
The advertorial is ‘sneaky’ precisely because it flies under a reader’s
radar. If a reader KNOWS they are looking at an advertisement, their defenses
are up from the start. But if they think they’re simply reading an article,
their defenses are down and it’s much easier to sway their open mind into
considering your product.
Advertorials, also known as sponsored content, do in fact work online.
And they can take different forms.
For example, you can begin by discussing the problem and the various
solutions, coming to the conclusion that the only real solution is the product
you are promoting.
Or you might begin
with ‘news’ of an innovation or discovery that leads directly into the product.
If you’re using
advertorials on your website, then you can do any of the following:
1. Sell sponsorship, so that a company or brand is paying you to have
the advertorial on your site. Essentially, they are buying advertising from you
in the form of an advertorial.
2. Sell affiliate products using your advertorials.
3. If you have your own products or services, sell those using an
advertorial.
The best places to
publish advertorials?
Most likely as
posts on your blog, articles on your website and in email spotlights.
If you have a
large following on your site or a large email list in the right niche, you’ll
find that selling sponsorship advertorials can be quite lucrative.
To have the
greatest impact (and make the most sales) you’ll want to write the advertorials
in your own voice, just as you might write a blogpost.
Do you remember
how you sound when you’re enthusiastically telling a friend about a movie you
just saw? That’s the tone to take when writing an advertorial.
You’re
recommending, not selling. You’re speaking as a friend to your readers, a
friend who stumbled on something awesome you want to tell them about.
If you prefer to
not take a personal tone in advertorials and you don’t want your advertiser to
write it for you, then the alternative is to write it as though it really is a
news story.
This is how advertorials
are classically done, and it can be as effective as writing it in your own
voice.
Just look at how
newspaper articles are structured, and you’ll get the idea of how it’s done.
Don’t get
discouraged – most of these techniques take some practice to perfect.
Hang in there and
you’ll get it right.
Contest Advertorials
One of the easiest
ways to create an advertorial that people will read is to GIVE AWAY the
product.
Have
the product sponsor agree to giving away one or more of their products.
They
pay you to place the contest on your site. You (or they) write up a short
advertorial for the product and giveaway, along with instructions on how to
enter the contest.
You and the sponsor might couple the
product with an ebook, too, as we’ll talk about in a moment. For example, if
the product is a blender, then everyone who enters would get the ebook full of
blender recipes, and one lucky person would get the actual blender.
This is so simple, and a great way for
bloggers and list owners to make extra money or even promote their own
products.
Sponsored
Ebook Advertorials
One more thing: Sponsored
eBooks can be the ultimate advertorials.
This is something a little
different from your regular advertorial, but completely doable because these
books don’t have to be fancy, long or complicated.
For example, the American
Egg Farmers sponsored, “Mr. Food Easter Celebration: 35 Excellent Easter
Recipes Free eCookbook.”
Yes, the title was lousy
and there were only 35 recipes, but it didn’t matter. The ebook was promoted on
their website, in newsletters, as well by bloggers and through social media and
even paid marketing.
Each recipe used – you
guessed it – eggs. There were full page ads inside the book promoting eggs. And
they also made accompanying videos in their test kitchens.
The book was distributed
via Amazon (Kindle) and Apple (iPad) and in the first week alone they had
127,000 downloads.
Sure, you can create your
own ebooks for yourself and your business.
But you can also create
ebooks for other businesses as well and charge them a hefty fee.
A single ebook for Lion
Brand Yarn cost approximately $9,000, but it was worth it to the brand. They
had over 100,000 downloads on their own website, as well as 75,000 via Apple
and Amazon.
Whatever you call it –
advertorials, sponsored content or native ads – it works as well now as it did
some 75 years ago when the first advertorial was published.
To Your Online Success
Steven Morton
Founder-Marketing Mastermind Tips
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