Thanks for your comments.

Quality is often subjective, but there are certain yardsticks that are universally useful. In wine, for example, appellation, provenance, vintage, are excellent starting points, but inevitably nothing trumps taste.

For publications, creativity and originality are hallmarks. A blogger’s longevity and the trust that’s perceived to be placed by his/her readers in his/her publication matters too.

Finally, the most important, and possibly the easiest yardstick: will a brand want to associate themselves with his/her content? Would an advertiser want his product alongside the publication’s content?

I hope that doesn’t answer confusion with even more confusion.

Thanks,

Benito
Mad Crowd Media

Thank you for spending time to clarify things.

I do have faith on your business idea though proper execution is essential.

Thanks for blogging about us.

You’ve raised some very important questions here and I’d like to take this opportunity to answer them on behalf of Mad Crowd Media.

Who will advertise on these local sites? Plenty are interested, as we’ve known beforehand, and have recently proven. Blogs and independent publications are published by influencers, can deliver highly-targeted advertising results, can effectively build communities, bring positive brand rub-off, and create effective (and much sought after) word-of-mouth. These sound like buzzwords, but they are nuggets of gold to any marketer. Every agency and advertiser that’s invited us to present don’t merely say “thank you”, they say instead “Give me your rates for this and that. I needed you yesterday.”

We’re on a CPM rate for banner advertising, but more importantly, we are looking for long term editorial and content relationships with marketers. Yes, CPC works best for advertisers, but CPM rates are for now more familiar to their universe of ratings and circulations.

On the matter of effectivity: we know that there’s only one way to prove that. Build the network and allow advertisers to use it. Measure the returns. I believe it will prove our work is all worthwhile.

Finally, we’ve put quality ahead of everything else. Choosing publications that adhere to a strong ethic and publishing standard helps ensure advertisers that their brand is in good company. This puts us in a position to demand better rates for the network, and creates an environment conducive to a lasting relationship.

Thanks,

Benito

Mad Crowd Media