Editorial vs advertorial: Which should you use, and when?

The oldest evidence of advertising goes back to 3,000 BC, on a piece of papyrus found near Thebes in Egypt. This tells us that even five thousand years ago, people needed a little creative presence to get their message out. 

Marketing your product or service via a media outlet is an effective way to reach the right audience, and there are three ways in which to do this: Advertising, advertorial copy, and editorial copy. 

What you choose depends on what your objective is and the type of message you want to communicate. Understanding the subtle differences between the formats will help you make the right decision.  

Briefly, these differences can be explained as follows: 

• Advertising: subjective design and copy placed anywhere 
• Editorial: objective copy published by the media platform 
• Advertorial: subjective copy published by the media platform 

The aim is that your brand, service, or product benefits from the media platform's reputation and influence with their audience. Whether you place an advert in a highly reputable news magazine or get a social media star to promote your brand in a post doesn’t matter. What does matter is knowing which option will give you the best return on your investment. 

 There are many different types of media platforms, for example: 

• Magazines 
• Newspapers 
• TV stations 
• Radio stations 
• Websites, landing pages, and blogs 
• Celebrities and social media influencers 
• Social media platforms (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, etc) 
• Web and social ads (GDN etc) 
• Instant messenger groups 

Advertising vs editorial vs advertorial 

Selecting the right option for your marketing generally depends on two factors: what are you willing to spend, and how much control/influence you require. Keep these in mind, while we unpack your three choices. 

Advertising 

An advertisement is entirely under your control (within reason - the media platform will have some limitations, such as prohibiting offensive content).  

• Cost: Advertising space and sponsorship are generally expensive, although the cost will vary on the placement and the size of the audience. More prominent, larger, or longer ads generally cost more. 
•  Risk: The chances of negative publicity are limited. It is only likely to happen if the ad is offensive, the media platform has a bad reputation, or the social media celebrity or influencer with whom you choose to work, becomes embroiled in a scandal. 
• Design: You'll pay extra for design, using either the media platform's in-house design services, sourcing designers from your business, or using an advertising agency. Good design takes time, so don't expect it to be either quick or cheap. Poor design can signal a lack of professionalism. 

• Presentation: Print advertising tends to be bold — typically, professional photos or illustrations with big lettering, often resembling a poster. Radio, TV, or video ads can range from 15 seconds to two minutes — it all depends on the budget. 

• Control: You maintain maximum control, while you accept that the media platform might have restrictions related to style, ethics, or audience.  

Editorial 

When you open a magazine, video site, or social media channel, you largely visit for the content. Providing the content is objective (meaning, a third party didn't pay for it, or unduly influence it), it qualifies as editorial. 

• Cost: By its nature, you can't pay for editorial. This distinction is a central ethical point for media platforms, and this is how they maintain their integrity with their audience. Even social media influencers must mark paid posts as #ad or #sponsored to minimise being perceived as dishonest or inauthentic.  

• Risk: Getting marketed through editorial is risky. You’re at the mercy of whoever creates and approves the editorial (for example, you could get a bad review).  

• Design: You have no control over the design. You can provide images or ask to see the piece beforehand, but the media platform is under no obligation to agree to either.  

• Presentation: As with design, you have no control over the presentation. But you can influence it by providing useful assets such as photos, captions, or infographics. Keep these visually objective: there should be no visible branding.  

• Control: Yes, you guessed it - you have no control over editorial. Or rather, whatever control you can exert, depends entirely on your (or your agency's) relationship with the media platform.  

Advertorial 

An advertorial is essentially a paid-for editorial. It looks like editorial content, but is written to show your company in a favourable light (and is usually clearly marked as advertorial or paid content). 

• Cost: You pay for an advertorial. The cost is usually lower than that of an advertisement, and the media platform often offers to handle the production (you can also opt to use your own creative resources). Your main expenses will be for placement and anything additional you spend on collateral, such as photos, video, images, or copywriting. 

• Risk: The risk is low. An advertorial can present more detailed information than an advertisement can and the most effective advertorials resemble an editorial article or column. Your biggest risks are poor writing, poor or boring messaging, or content that doesn't resonate with the tone of the media platform's editorial spirit.  

• Design: The media platform will design your advertorial according to its style principles, but you have the right to approve the final design. You could use a third party to design the advertorial, however, this could cost more and would require collaboration with the media platform to ensure consistency.  

• Presentation: As with design, the media platform's style will dictate the look of your advertorial, but you retain control and the right to give final approval. Providing collateral such as photos and images will also influence the look.  

• Control: An advertorial gives you as much control as an advertisement does. This said, you get the opportunity to deliver a more complex and rounded message. For example, you might use the space as an opinion piece for your brand. 

Which to choose? 

Ultimately, if you have a strong relationship with the media platform and you have a great product or service, editorial content matched with well-considered advertising can prove to be extremely valuable to you.  

Remember though that media platforms have bills to pay, so spending money with them is a way to build those relationships and establish a solid rapport. The best-performing brands leverage both paid and editorial marketing to great effect, and respect the difference.  

Use advertorial for in-depth marketing messages that mimic the media platform's style. Consider advertisements if you want to present simple, yet bold, marketing messages that take centre stage. A well-placed advertisement might be expensive, but it can enhance a media platform's presentation. 

For help writing ads, editorials, or advertorials, get in touch. 

Image source: Midjourney