An advertorial is basically an ad in the shape of editorial content. The word “advertorial” is a combination of the words “advert” and” editorial.” It is an arrangement in which a commercial writer provides content for newspapers, magazines, or other publications for a fee, instead of charging money for the advertising. This is often used as a reference point for the definition of an advertorial.
A person can write an advertorial, but it needs a few different components to be classified under the class. An advertorial can look like a normal article, it should be written around the theme, and it will contain information about the product, service, or even the person who will be offering the product or service. The reader will need to look at the advertorial to get the whole story, but he will need to learn something about the person offering the product or service as well. That is how we classify an advertorial, and what makes it an advertorial.
Now, we know what an advertorial is, but what sort of publications does it generally appear in? Most newspapers and magazines have their own advertising section, and usually an article that appears in this section will be called an “advertiser’s brochure,” or “reader’s advertisement.” They are often designed to appeal to the sensibilities of the regular reader, or to the advertisers that are selling the products advertised. For example, a recent New York Times article advertised a new line of watches called Seiko Watches, and the advertorial was written around the same general topic, but was presented in a different way.
Most newspapers also have a section of advertising called the classifieds, and the advertorials that appear in this section are referred to as “inserts” in the paper. These inserts are designed to attract a specific audience – potential customers. Therefore, an advertorial in the New York Times is not really an advertorial, but rather an insert. It has been noted, though, that the New York Times still uses the term advertorial to describe their classified ads section, and this remains so even today.
Online publications tend to have much less formal rules regarding the nature of the adverts that they display, but some of the online publications do have specific guidelines about what types of advertorials are acceptable. Some online publications, such as the New York Times, place a larger emphasis on light talk and other anecdotal information about the products that are being sold. Other online publications tend to be more explicitly promotional in nature. Still others place a greater emphasis on real-life advertisements, and so any information about the business that is provided, either through a quote or a photograph, is going to be classified as an advertorial if it attempts to promote the business in any way.
It is not unusual for an advertorial to contain both written and attributed material. In many cases, the author will provide a quote or a graphic and then the article will contain additional background information in a third part. If there are photographs included within the advertorial, they will often appear after the quoted material. The attribution section will usually include the names of the advertiser and the publisher, together with a brief description of the nature of the product for which the advertorial is being published. Where appropriate, the publisher’s contact details will also be listed.
A New York Times advertorial example is designed to attract a reader and to persuade him or her to make a purchase of the particular product that has been advertised. In this respect, the editorial board has issued standards specifying what should be presented within the advertorial. Generally speaking, the most important part of the editorial is the call to action, which is designed to compel the reader to take immediate action, either by contacting the editor directly or by passing on the information contained in the article. Other important components of the editorial are the introduction and the discussion of the various points of view expressed in the text, together with any supporting data or statistics.
In a New York Times advertorial, the publisher ensures that the text flows as smoothly as possible from one place to another, without confusing the reader. Each paragraph must provide some useful information to the reader and the order must be logical. Each sub-component of the advertorial must be presented as if it was necessary to supply additional content for the same purpose, with the possible exception of a reference to an agency that handles advertising on behalf of the publisher. In the case of an online publication, the rules governing the use of affiliate links in an ad remain the same as for print publications; i.e., the use of affiliate links must remain confined to two per ad.