Politico’s branded content studio’s revenue grows as it rolls out quick-turnaround products

Politico Focus has created sponsored content via its Advocacy products for organizations like the American Society of Travel Advisors, the Internet and Television Association, StriveTogether and the National Corn Growers Association. Financial agreements of those deals were not disclosed.

The Advocacy product suite, as well as other rapid-response solutions Politico Focus launched last year at the onset of the pandemic, were created in response to marketers’ demands for more tools to “reach policymakers and their staff with their policy agendas” amid the pandemic and the need to “increasingly react to a more volatile news cycle,” Wojcik said. The Advocacy products can address pending legislation, a breaking news crisis or a call-to-action around COVID relief funding, as examples.

The templated products also help the team respond to advertisers’ changing timelines and shortened RFP cycles. The Politico Focus team doesn’t have to keep going “back to the well” for every campaign, and the audience can become more familiar with the look of these formats on the website and recognize them as sponsored content, Wojcik said.

“Timelines have essentially been cut in half and clients’ timeline expectations have become a lot shorter,” said Michelle Chong, group planning director at agency Fitzco. Templated product offerings would need to be “very specific for it to be really good… but it definitely fulfills a need, with more off the shelf options,” Chong said.

Politico Focus, which launched in 2015, creates sponsored digital content for brands that primarily lives on Politico’s website. The content is usually promoted for four to six weeks on the homepage through native ad units. Politico Focus’ content ranges from interactive visual packages, multimedia Q&As with audio, video and graphics, animated videos, documentaries, listicles, explainers, 3D data illustrations and branded podcasts. Past clients have included Ericsson, American Investment Council, Amazon, JPMorgan Chase & Co, Delta Air Lines and Genentech. 

The studio is made up of about a dozen content strategists and client managers, according to Wojcik. Focus also works with a group of contributors of writers, developers and designers. The Politico Focus team has a total of three branded content producers, after hiring an additional one in early 2021, the most it’s had in-house.

While branded content has not necessarily been a focus area for the clients Chong works with, it “makes sense” that some advertisers are seeking this out, and that Politico Focus is experiencing that shift. “Political context and the placement of our ads has become an area of concern for some of our clients — and us as an agency — due to the election cycle and new administration,” Chong said.