How can financial services brands make the most of their pay-to-play dollars?
Sponsored content can be one of the most effective ways to build awareness, generate qualified leads, and position your company as a trusted voice in the industry. Whether it’s a sponsored article, podcast, webinar, or gated report, it gives you control over the message while reaching the right audience in a credible setting.
But strong results don’t come from simply paying and placing content. Behind every successful campaign lies a strategy built on smart planning, thoughtful execution, and attention to the details that are often overlooked.
Here are six practical tips to help you make the most of your pay-to-play investment—and avoid the common missteps that can derail even the best strategies.
1. Ask the right questions to choose the right media partner
First and foremost, you need the right media partner to put your content in front of high-value audiences. That starts with carefully vetting the audience to ensure a fit. Does the outlet’s readership align with your Ideal Customer Profiles (ICP)? While audience size and reach do matter, it’s equally important to understand who their content attracts, by industry, role, seniority, or other key filters that are relevant to your brand.
It’s also important to assess the outlet’s credibility and editorial style. Do they understand the nuances of your space? Ensure they can speak to your audience with the depth and sophistication your buyers expect, especially if they will be leading the content creation.
Finally, consider how well the outlet supports your campaign goals. Some are better suited for brand building, while others offer stronger demand-gen programs. Ask about distribution channels, engagement and average performance benchmarks for the type of content you’re planning to sponsor.
2. Negotiate like a pro
Sponsored content pricing and packages aren’t one-size-fits-all and it’s always worth negotiating. For example, you can inquire about first-time advertiser discounts, especially if you’re testing a pilot with plans to scale it up. Alternatively, if you’re a returning customer or running multiple campaigns with an outlet, you can ask about reduced pricing or complementary add-ons, like a free lead filter.
Remember to lock in rates early whenever possible. Many outlets raise their prices at the start of the year, and premium inventory—especially slots tied to high-interest topics, editorial themes, or seasonal campaigns—often sell out quickly. Planning ahead pays off.
Finally, compare proposals from multiple outlets. Even in niche sectors, pricing, performance, and promotion tactics can vary.
3. Clarify who owns content creation and prepare accordingly
Each sponsored content campaign works a little differently. In some cases, your team may own the content creation entirely. In others, the outlet will take the lead, or it may be a co-creation process. Before committing to anything, ensure you understand how it will work and what is expected from both parties. For example:
- If your team is producing the content, you’ll have more control over the message and tone. Just be realistic about internal bandwidth for writing, design, and approvals, and understand the review and approval process with the outlet.
- If the outlet is creating the piece, ask to see writing samples from the person assigned to your content. Do they understand your space? Can they speak to your audience’s challenges?
- Remember to clarify how many revision rounds are included—some outlets cap edits, which can limit flexibility.
As an agency that regularly works on sponsored content, we’ve found that even when outlets promise full-service creation, brands often need to be more involved than expected, especially in the financial services industry, where the subject matter is complex and every company is unique.
Co-creation can offer a good balance, but it only works if expectations are clearly defined from the start. Build in time for collaboration and feedback. And don’t overlook design. Confirm who is handling visuals, such as designing assets, banners, or graphics.
4. Set clear expectations around lead generation
If you are planning a lead generation campaign, you need to align on expectations in advance. Before you commit, dig into how the outlet generates leads. Start by asking:
- Are leads guaranteed? Many lead generation campaigns (such as email blasts to gated landing pages) charge for distribution, not results. Guaranteed lead packages are harder to come by, but often worth the investment. If leads are guaranteed, clarify how many and the cost per lead.
- Can lead filters be applied? Ask if you can target by industry, job title, company size, or geography. Ask if you can provide a suppression list to avoid paying for leads you already have or exclude irrelevant contacts such as competitors. In some cases, you can apply lead filters to ensure leads align with your ICPs, but this can drive up costs and impact lead volume. Determine the optimal balance.
- What’s a typical performance? If leads aren’t guaranteed, ask for average benchmarks based on format—whether it’s a webinar, gated report, or email campaign. This will help you forecast ROI more accurately.
- What happens if performance is low? Ask what the outlet can do for you if the results don’t fall within the expected benchmarks. Reputable media outlets want your content to be successful, and most are willing to extend promotions or modify materials to achieve solid results for your brand. Just be sure to ask about this before you sign.
Asking these questions is especially important in the financial services industry, where customer acquisition costs are high and buying decisions are complex. Acquiring the right leads is more important than having a high volume of them. Set clear expectations up front so you can measure success accurately and avoid surprises later.
5. Plan ahead to nail the execution
Once the contract is signed, execution becomes everything. Start by building a detailed workback schedule. Outline every step—from content development and stakeholder reviews to design handoffs and final approvals. Assign owners for each task, whether it’s your internal team, the outlet, or a third-party partner.
Remember to be realistic about reviews and identify potential bottlenecks. Also, confirm specs and requirements early. From headshots and bios to logos and banners, you don’t want to be chasing down assets at the last minute.
6. Maximize the impact once it’s live
The goal is to squeeze as much value from your content as possible. But to do that effectively, make sure you’ve obtained the necessary permissions to promote, republish, or reshare the content. Ideally, secure this agreement early in the process so you’re clear on how the content can be used across platforms.
Once that’s in place, you can share the content across your owned and social channels—such as company social feeds, your blog, newsletter, or through sales outreach.
Look for opportunities to repurpose the asset. Pull quotes or clips to use on social, adapt it into a byline, or gate an asset on your own site to capture additional downloads. The more mileage you get from a single piece, the better.
Most importantly, if your campaign is lead gen-focused, be prepared before leads start coming in. Have a nurture plan in place—whether that’s through your CRM or sales team outreach. The worst outcome is letting leads go stale. Follow up quickly while the content is still fresh in prospects’ minds and use it as a conversation starter.
Turning Strategy into Results
Sponsored content can deliver real results, but only if it’s planned and executed thoughtfully. Too often, teams underestimate the behind-the-scenes lift it takes to get this right.
Success comes down to planning ahead, setting clear expectations, and following through at every step. With the right strategy in place, you’ll get real results.
Want to learn more about how to execute a successfully sponsored content campaign? Read our Sponsored Content Playbook here.
