Last week we shared an overview of how we think about thought leadership as an overarching topic.
One of the pillars of an effective program is commentary and op-ed.
A concept that’s really resonated with us is the modern-day definition of op-eds, thinking about them more holistically, as any kind of opinion piece.
Like most other media, opinion pieces fall into three categories: Earned, paid and owned…
Each with own merits:
A more traditional op-ed, whether in a mainstream or trade publication, arguably “earns” some element of legitimacy.
More advertorial-type opportunities have popped up recently, such as certain columns in Forbes,
Entrepreneur, Fast Company and Newsweek. While these are paid placements, they do still have a massive reach and can help boost your message.
And then of course, there are so many ways to self-publish owned media nowadays – anything from books to blogs and social media posts, like this one. This type of content allows for full editorial control on your own time.
The bottom line is that there’s more than one way to think about op-eds nowadays.
Our questions for the T2B community this week are:
Where does commentary like this have a place in a broader comms strategy?
What are the considerations to determine which type of op-ed is appropriate and when?
We’ll be back next week.