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The Future of Journalism Is Tiny, Targeted, and Timely
What news startups can learn from those targeted ads in your Instagram and Facebook feeds
A couple of years ago, I started to notice how well I was being targeted by advertisements on Instagram. The perfect travel pants, epic kitchen knives, glow-in-the-dark undies. “I would buy any of these things! How do they know me so well?!” I would exclaim. I became fascinated not only with the targeted ads, but with the advertisers themselves — many of them being what are now referred to as “microbrands.”
Microbrands are goods or services that typically are:
- Sold exclusively online (not in retail stores or on Amazon)
- Composed of just one item, or a very small range of similar items
- Targeted to a niche audience within a larger established market
- Independently owned (not part of a traditional retailer or conglomerate)
While the worst of these companies — the “dropshippers” — are well documented, few have explored what microbrands offer for industries outside of fashion, beauty, health, and gadgets.
As a media startup advisor, I search far and wide for promising strategies that will help build the future of journalism. As I saved dozens of these Instagram ads and researched the companies behind them, I began to wonder: What would these ads look like if they were for information products? What if a news startup used this same approach to deliver niche, highly targeted, low-overhead, just-in-time journalism?
The more I’ve investigated these ads and the brands behind them, the more I’ve come to believe they represent a growth opportunity for a new wave of journalism startups. You can…
