Why Use Branded Content?
Branded content allows local newsrooms to generate revenue through paid partnerships. Utilizing Branded Content on Facebook and Instagram allows you to monetize, while staying authentic to your publication and reaching people at scale.
The Local Media Association provides a look at how local newsrooms are using Facebook's Branded Content tool here.
Getting Set Up with Branded Content in CrowdTangle
1. Put together a competitor list and toggle on the Branded Content filter to see who others in your market are working with. Branded Content is a filter in both Lists and Saved Searches found under the "More" drop down menu in Facebook and Instagram Dashboards.
2. Filter the list you created by the CrowdTangle metric you prefer (overperforming, total interactions or interaction rate) to see what's the most engaged Branded Content in the last week/month for your competitors.
3. Click on any publisher on your list and select the Branded Content tab to look at their Branded Content leaderboard (filter to “as publisher”) to see the full list of brands they’ve worked with.
4. Set up two types of Branded Content Notifications and schedule them to go out weekly – Digests and Leaderboards. These can initially go to your digital teams so they are aware of what kind of Branded Content is being published by competitors.
Type One – Digests: will deliver an email of posts that were published and marked as Branded Content.
Type Two – Branded Content Leaderboards: will rank any list by who has the most engaging Branded Content. This can be useful for a list of competitors.
5. Send these emails to sales teams as an introduction to Branded Content via CrowdTangle. NOTE: Often times sales teams have tons of tools they use for prospecting, tracking, retention, and they have a workflow. The emails tend to not inhibit the current workflow, and add value from partners we've worked with from their feedback.
6. Once the sales team members like what they see in the notifications, set up a client list for them in the dashboard! Or a prospect list! Or give them their own dashboard. Here’s how Townsquare Media integrated their sales team into CrowdTangle.
7. Filter your Branded Content videos by length to determine how successful campaigns were with short vs long videos. You can also separate out Facebook Live video vs. Non-live video so you can better understand how length has an impact on interactions and post engagement.
8. All of our Branded Content features are also available on Instagram. Find influencers and and brands you may want to work with on the IG platform as well.
Using CrowdTangle’s Branded Content Tools To Help Educate Advertisers
Find the advertiser’s page in CrowdTangle and add it to a list to help determine any themes and types of content that performed well organically for their page in the past. This can help inform a Branded Content campaign for the client. Pro Tip: If the advertiser has done Branded Content in the past, you can view that and also see what publishers they’ve previously worked with.
2. Create an Intelligence report for a client or prospect’s social page. Select the Branded Content filters (“as publisher”, “as marketer”) to look up engagement metrics over time for the advertiser. Intelligence provides an easy visual representation of their own content and helps determine action items for them and their Branded Content strategy.
3. Add the advertiser's competitors to an Intelligence report to see how their competitors are doing Branded Content. Export the report as a PDF to give to the client during meetings. Pro Tip: Look at the advertiser and competitor’s organic content too. Content that’s doing well may help inspire a new Branded Content campaign.
4. Remember, not all advertisers have access to CrowdTangle. Our metrics and data will provide valuable insight to advertisers that they may not find anywhere else!
Just In Case Someone Asks You “What is Branded Content?”
Branded Content is a type of Facebook or Instagram post that features a third-party product, brand, or business partner ("marketer"). CrowdTangle only surfaces Branded Content that is both non-targeted and public. Additionally, Branded Content by age-gated pages (e.g. alcohol or tobacco brands) will not be tagged in CrowdTangle. Learn more about Branded Content for Facebook here and Instagram here.