the blog monetization landscape: don’t leave money on the table

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The Blog Monetization Landscape: Don’t Leave Money on the Table


Moderator: Jenny Lauck // BlogHer; @mizzjenny Speakers:

Alicia Navarro // Skimlinks // @AliciaNavarroLauren Drell // Mashable // @drelly

Patricia Haddock // The Successful Professional // @pathaddock

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Jenny Lauck // BlogHer; @mizzjenny

LEVEL UP

http://www.blogher.com/marketplace/opportunities

• Digital advertising• Blog-based sponsored

content programs• Social Media-based

sponsored programs• Video-based sponsored

programs• Syndicated content

opportunities

The Big Picture• The hottest trends in digital advertising formats and

advertising placement: Viewability, Mobile, Programmatic and Video.

• Our panel of experts will talk about:– how bloggers can add new revenue streams through

affiliate links – how to partner with brands to create sponsored content

your readers will embrace.– how you can identify, repackage and market your content in

new ways.

Viewability - Overview• A Viewable digital ad must have at least 50% of the ad

graphics visible on the user’s screen for at least 1 second, without the user actively scrolling.

• How is Viewability measured?• Why do advertisers care?• Do not panic, but do not ignore this trend.

Viewability Recommendations• Make the most of your “above the fold” real estate. • Simplify site design• Align your ad units at or near the start of “slow” content (like a

paragraph of text.)• Adopt “fixed” ad positions or sidebars that do not scroll• Consider a Mobile Optimized template. • Be aware of how mobile responsive templates present your

sidebar content. • Use mobile-specific ad sizes.

Mobile Overview

• The BlogHer Network reaches an audience of over 100MM each month… and in the last year, we’ve seen tremendous growth, with over 50% of our traffic coming from mobile devices.

• You know a good mobile site experience from a poor one. What does YOUR blog deliver?

Mobile Recommendations• Invest in the mobile experience for your readers – mobile

users, especially on sites with instructional posts (like recipes or crafts) don’t want to have to squint and struggle to rearrange and resize your site to get to your posts.

• Use mobile-friendly ad positions, and be open to new advertising concepts.

Programmatic Overview

• The Rise of the Machines (sort of) • Programmatic exchanges work like trading desks on Wall

Street. • Advertisers no longer have to rely on marketing agencies to

find the right audiences for their campaigns. • They can go directly to an exchange and place an order for ad

inventory to be targeted to very specific audiences. • This takes the pressure off of bloggers to create perfect

content that attracts only a narrow demographic, and instead allows relevant advertising to be served to the right readers.

Programmatic Best Practices

• Size is the name of the game. Brands want to buy millions of ad impressions at a time, so if your site is part of a network that works with programmatic exchanges, your audience profile is combined with all the other sites in the network.

• Your network has more negotiation power on your behalf than you have for an individual site. This gives you the opportunity to receive more ad inventory and at better prices.

Additional Programmatic Information:• Because the ads are targeted based on the reader, and not the

content on the site, some readers may receive ads that do not align with the content of the blog.

• In addition to regular ad placements, programmatic exchanges are also being used for video ads, mobile ads and native ad placements.

• Like Viewability, Programmatic gives advertisers the power to reach the audiences they want to reach, at competitive prices and potentially improves the performance of their campaigns.

Video Overview

• Advertisers are spending millions of dollars creating video advertising, and are eager to get this video in front of high-quality audiences. We’re inundated with requests to help advertisers get their video ads watched.

• At the same time, we know that readers don’t come to your blogs to watch video… unless the video features YOU.

• Video is an increasingly important part of online storytelling, and a valuable type of content for advertisers.

Video Recommendations• Start small… and stay small. 15 to 60 seconds is all you need.• Put those smart phones to use!• Make it a regular part of your content:

– Quick tips on frosting a cake – A reaction or review of a television show or movie– Your kids jumping on a trampoline – A photo slideshow from a recent vacation – Video of your evening walk on your favorite trail

• Practice makes perfect… don’t stress about trying to have professional quality video. Treat video as another visual element in your content, and just have fun with it.

Thanks!