It’s the so-called iron triangle of the business world: good, fast or cheap — pick two. But as the saying goes, you can never have all three. Nonsense! With licensed content, you can have it all (and then some). Here’s why.
Great question! Licensed content is content that has been produced by a professional media company (like Dotdash Meredith) that you can legally license and run on your owned-and-operated properties (website, social feeds, YouTube channels). Licensing content is a flexible, quick-to-activate solution that can be a cornerstone of any content marketing strategy.
If you partner with a premium publisher, you’ll gain access to a deep reservoir of high-value content — articles, videos, infographics, recipes, meal plans and more — from trustworthy brands that already resonate with your audience. This content has been carefully researched, sourced and crafted to ensure maximum accuracy and engagement. For example, licensing recipes and meal plans from best-in-class food brands like Food & Wine and EatingWell gives you highly desirable content that’s been thoroughly tested and features professionally styled photography that attracts audiences (and makes the mouth water). On the health and wellness front, content from stalwart brands like Health and Verywell have passed rigorous medical and scientific reviews. Another big bonus: Licensed content from recognizable brands also confers authority and credibility to your organization, providing a “halo effect” that increases user engagement.
Licensed content already exists, so the timeline for populating your owned-and-operated channels with polished material from reputable brands can be blazing fast. All of the heavy lifting — researching, writing and designing, fact-checking and proofreading — has been done. Say you’re a financial services company with an upcoming product launch and need to be in market quickly without sacrificing the accuracy, breadth and depth of the content. Thoroughly vetted licensed materials from brands like Investopedia and The Balance on topics ranging from investing to borrowing to insurance can save you months of ramp-up and production time.
Let’s be honest: One of licensed content’s biggest draws is its budget-friendly price tag. Compared to custom content — which is 100 percent new and original, created specifically for your brand and owned wholly by you in perpetuity — licensed content is a bargain. That’s because you’re purchasing the rights to license the materials from trusted brands for a certain length of time (usually one or two years). For instance, let’s say you’re a toy company with lean resources that’s looking to boost customer engagement and loyalty with a highly targeted CRM program. One solution: License content from a media company that specializes in childhood development (like Parents). This gives you access to troves of vetted “ages and stages” content that you can seamlessly pair with your products and post across your owned-and-operated network. The best part? You save money and time without sacrificing quality.
Already own content? Many brands do, but it’s important to regularly update and supplement your content to maintain audience engagement. Capitalizing on news and trends is a surefire way to turbocharge existing materials — and you can do that quickly with licensed content. Its ability to align with any topic makes it ideal for complementing your own resources. That said, licensed content performs best when integrated with custom content, so you should continue developing new original content that speaks directly to your product and services.
For instance, a home goods retailer might want to enrich its existing content with frequent updates on viral decorating trends and new products. Enhancing those updates with licensed content on home design and product reviews from reputable brands like Better Homes & Gardens and Real Simple can help you immediately be part of the conversation without spending the time and money necessary for originating your own materials.
Of course, even “good, fast and cheap” isn’t helpful without the right strategy. We’ve got that covered too! Get in touch with our award-winning content marketing team to explore your options for licensed content that meets all of your content marketing needs.
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