Summary. The TLDR: Earned media builds credibility. Paid editorial ensures reach at key moments and decision points. It is simply another stage for your narrative — just like creator partnerships (paid) or executive LinkedIn (organic) are.
“Consider sponsored content.” This is lifted directly from a new Wall Street Journal article on winning the AI search game.
That aligns with what we’re seeing, even if it feels counterintuitive coming from an agency built on earned media. However, the landscape has changed.
Why now?
Paid editorial is never a replacement for the earned credibility. But modern PR requires layers of visibility and distribution — and sponsored content is one of the options. Three big shifts that warrant its consideration:
- Editorial scarcity. Shrinking (traditional) publisher reach, revenue and staff has tightened coverage: more hard news, fewer trend story resources.
- AI search. Earned media still drives AI citations, but we do see paid editorial appear in our audits… or become apparent in subsequent pitching.
- Fragmentation. Big narratives need more channel distribution and amplification than they used to. Paid editorial does that and the opportunities are plentiful, ensuring amplification at key moments with more storytelling depth than straight ads. It can be a force multiplier for big PR initiatives.
Where paid editorial fits into PR programs
Sponsored content can be written about or by you; placed directly with publishers or distributed through a network. Different from syndication and amplification of an existing piece of press (also important and covered here), this is original editorial-style content and storytelling.
Here are four types and how they can fit into a broader campaign.
1. Earned distribution
- What it is: distribution platform for editorial-style brand content
- How it works: A brand writes a non-promotional story. It’s distributed to a network of publishers who choose whether to run it, resulting in scaled “earned” coverage. *it’s not billed as sponsored but usually has a “presented by [brand/distribution co.]” label.
- Best for: amplifying original data reports and industry research
- Provider: Stacker (who has had notable momentum, from customer logos/cases to a recent partnership with Notified)
2. Advertorial storytelling
- What it is: syndicated, sponsored content (that has been around for decades)
- How it works: Brands create content that blends useful information with subtle promotion. It gets distributed to a network or targeted subset of publishers and appears as sponsored content.
- Best for: efficiently targeting DMAs and promoting a brand/product amid timely trends or events
- Provider: Brandpoint MAT release (which we've used quite a bit in integrated campaigns including promoting herbal supplements during the high-purchase cold & flu season, supporting employer branding in local markets, and growing a pet food brand’s awareness at launch through culturally-relevant storytelling)
3. Paid councils
- What it is: Membership-based groups of subject experts with publishing/other privileges
- How it works: Executives apply or are invited to publishers’ professional groups. Once accepted, they pay a fee. They can then contribute bylines (with editorial review) and to panel-style content and network with fellow members.
- Best for: Consistent industry POV/thought leadership that is timely, but not newsworthy; helping with traditional search visibility (less so for AI — LLMs differentiate member vs. journalist content)
- Providers: Forbes Councils, CNBC Councils, Fast Company Executive Board, etc.
4. Sponsored articles
- What it is: A paid article exclusively featuring or mentioning your brand
- How it works: A brand partners directly with an outlet for a one-off or series of posts. Formats and topics are highly flexible, from Q&A, byline, video, article to corporate profiles, industry trends and category provider comparisons.
- Best for: Highly targeted objectives and placements
- Providers: National press like Fast Company, trade outlets, industry podcasts and newsletters, and niche category blogs. Notably, these are the formats we’ve seen slip into AI search citations (sometimes without clear labeling).
One important note: A recent academic paper found that advertorials now appear in 1 out of 3 news sites, including some of the most credible outlets worldwide. As the earned/paid boundary continues collapsing, there is a big implication for credibility and disclosure.
Final POV on paid editorial for visibility
In closing, we still deeply believe that your earned reputation is the most powerful one. Our programs continue to devote the majority of their time to creating, uncovering and orchestrating the coverage, content and storytelling that builds it.
But modern PR no longer revolves around traditional press coverage alone. Today, brand narratives need more than one channel. And like creator partnerships, executive LinkedIn and so on, paid editorial is another layer of distribution. When used thoughtfully and selectively, it helps ensure you show up to audiences — both human and AI — with key messages and when it matters most.
What’s a Rich Text element?
The rich text element allows you to create and format headings, paragraphs, blockquotes, images, and video all in one place instead of having to add and format them individually. Just double-click and easily create content.
The rich text element allows you to create and format headings, paragraphs, blockquotes, images, and video all in one place instead of having to add and format them individually. Just double-click and easily create content.
Static and dynamic content editing
A rich text element can be used with static or dynamic content. For static content, just drop it into any page and begin editing. For dynamic content, add a rich text field to any collection and then connect a rich text element to that field in the settings panel. Voila!
How to customize formatting for each rich text
Headings, paragraphs, blockquotes, figures, images, and figure captions can all be styled after a class is added to the rich text element using the "When inside of" nested selector system.
