Advertising Standards and Guidelines

BlogHer guarantees premium placement on all member blogs, requiring all ads to be run, or at least partially run “above the fold” and to be the only graphic ads represented on the blog.

Bloggers are given the option of refusing pre-defined advertisers on their blogs, at the time of their registration on the BlogHer Ad Network. BlogHer will inform advertisers when this occurs.

All members in BlogHer’s Ad Network must abide by the same editorial standards as we require on BlogHer.org:

Editorial Guidelines:

Everything published on the BlogHer Network is content: Posts, comments, forum messages, poll responses, audio, video, text, images, you name it. BlogHer embraces diversity of opinions and values, but we insist that content may not include anything unacceptable.

We define unacceptable content as anything included or linked that is:

• Being used to abuse, harass, stalk or threaten a person or persons
• Libelous, defamatory, knowingly false or misrepresents another person
• Infringes upon any copyright, trademark, trade secret or patent of any third party. (If a blogger quotes or excerpts someone's content, it is her responsibility to provide proper attribution to the original author. For a clear definition of proper attribution and fair use, please see The Electronic Frontier Foundation's Legal Guide for Bloggers at this URL: http://www.eff.org/bloggers/lg/.)
• Violates any obligation of confidentiality
• Violates the privacy, publicity, moral or any other right of any third party
• Contains only paid advertising links and/or SPAM or or "Stupid Pointless Annoying Messages." For BlogHer's purposes, we define SPAM as anything that qualifies as nonsense unrelated to the discussion, either in comments on a blog or in our forums. This nonsense may take classic forms (e.g., simple links to unrelated content that are often advertising or e-commerce), or more insidious forms.

2006 RATES:

• All rates are quoted in net dollars.
• BlogHer typically has a minimum buy of $1,000 on BlogHer.org, $2,000 on any segment of the BlogHer Ad Network, and $10,000 for any campaigns requiring landing page design, original content, or production beyond administration of a banner campaign.
• All Insertion Orders are subject to the terms and provisions of BlogHer’s then current rate card. Rates and terms are subject to change without notice. BlogHer reserves the right to refuse or cancel any Insertion Order, without cause, at any time. All Insertion Orders are subject to acceptance by BlogHer. Campaign rates reflect the rate card at the time of signing.
• HTML Email sponsorships are available and can only be done in conjunction with an ad buy on Advertising Network Sites.
• Sponsored surveys consist of up to 10 questions (3 written by sponsor), promotion throughout www.blogher.org for one month, and promotion in two community newsletters.
• Minisites, Sponsored blogs: Please consult with BlogHer for production pricing.

SPECIAL RATES:

• Exclusive Sponsorships: Custom-designed sponsorships are available on the network. Rates will be determined on a case by case basis.
• Availability is subject to change and left to the discretion of BlogHer.

SPECIAL RATES:

• Filters: BlogHer can provide filters by Browser, Platform, Time of Day, Day of Week and Frequency Caps. Each filter that is applied to an order will result in an increase in the cpm of $5-$10.
• Exclusive Sponsorships: Custom-designed sponsorships are available on all sites. Rates will be determined on a case by case basis.
• Availability is subject to change and left to the discretion of BlogHer.

VOLUME DISCOUNTS:

• In order to qualify for a volume discount, an Advertiser must submit a signed insertion order or letter of intent that commits to a level of spending for at least six months, with the understanding that short-rates will be applied if the commitment is not fulfilled.

PRODUCTION FEES:

• All production fees are non-refundable upon signing of the insertion order. All fees for production work will be billed either prior to the launch of the advertising campaign or concurrent with the first month’s billing.

ADVERTISING STANDARDS:

• All BlogHer properties are IAB Compliant
• BlogHer’s third-party ad server is 24/7 Real Media, which is IAB compliant

UNIT SIZES:

• Leaderboards are 728x90 (footer only); available on BlogHer.org
• Side Units are 125x125, 120x240, 120x480; available on BlogHer.org and the ad network
• Text newsletter ads are 50-75 words

CANCELLATION POLICY:

• Orders for advertising shall be cancelable with 30 days (10 business days) prior notice. If the Advertiser cancels the order, in whole or in part, additional short rate charges may be due and payable. For example, if the order was placed at a volume rate discount and the order is cancelled prior to completion, short rates will be applied.
• Short rates will also be applied when ad formats originally scheduled pursuant to the insertion order are not supplied to BlogHer (for example, Advertiser has committed to a Banner/Tile buy per the insertion order, but only supplies creative in banner format).
• Exclusive and non-exclusive sponsorships are non-cancelable.

MAKEGOODS:

• Makegoods will be provided by extending the order beyond the contracted flight period until all guaranteed impressions are delivered. Advertiser will be given the option to determine when the makegood will run in the contract year, subject to availability.

THIRD PARTY AD-SERVING AND REPORTING:

• BlogHer does not accept advertising served by third parties. Guarantee fulfillment will be governed by BlogHer’s ad server and not those of the Third Party ad server or reporting software.

BlogHer blog readers: Loyal, vocal, highly educated...and shopping online

BlogHer's Spring 2006 demographic survey results illustrate why wired women are the hottest demographic for online advertisers.

BlogHer Inc. launched of the BlogHer Advertising Network in Spring 2006, going to market with an initial group of more than two dozen parenting bloggers that has since grown to more than 1,200 bloggers. BlogHer conducted a demographic survey in Spring 2006 on many of these participating blogs by women and compiled the following results from nearly 3,000 blog readers who responded:

BlogHer Parenting Network readers are loyal

77% of the Network's readers visit the blogs at least weekly, and two thirds of those visit daily.

93% of the Network's readers are "certain to return" to the sites

BlogHer Parenting Network readers are the optimal audience for advertisers, when it comes to age, income and education

94% are female.

94% have a greater-than-high school education.

64% are between the ages of 28 and 40.

64% make more than $50K per year.

70% are married, and 50% have children still living at home.

BlogHer Parenting Network readers spend money online

49% have spent over $100 online on plane tickets in the last 6 months.

39% have spent over $100 online on clothes in the last 6 months.

33% have spent over $100 online on books in the last 6 months.

22% have spent over $100 online on consumer electronics in the last 6 months.

19% have spent over $100 online on computers in the last 6 months.

16% have spent over $100 online on toys in the last 6 months.

16% have spent over $100 online on home and garden supplies in the last 6 months.

Perhaps most significantly:

53% of BlogHer Parenting Network readers have their own blogs with which to publish and amplify their recommendations and referrals.

Results as of May 5, 2006 with 2,931 survey responses.

Interested? BlogHer's Founders can help.

For more information about BlogHer's demographic surveys, please email Elisa Camahort at elisa (at) blogher (dot) org.

Photo: Elisa Camahort, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer

Previous BlogHer Campaigns

1. Company type: Consumer product company

Campaign Objective: To raise word-of-mouth awareness if a new product in a targeted environment of influentials

Solution: A sponsored survey, featuring a hot health and wellness topic among the BlogHer community, integrating editorial questions with three questions by the advertiser. Survey was built to capture open-ended answers and allow sharing of results with all respondents. Advertiser included links at the end of the survey providing opt-in for product samples. Survey promoted on BlogHer.org and on parenting network. Tie-in with sponsorship of BlogHer conference included samples of the product in all attendee tote bags and onsite.

Results: Half of the readers who clicked through completed the survey. And 16 percent of those who completed surveys ordered product samples.

2. Company type: Media company

Campaign Objective: To raise word-of-mouth buzz behind a new release by inviting influentials in a target market to a special event

Solution: A banner campaign with landing page capturing data for users who wanted to reference events in their area

3. Company type: Consumer product company

Campaign Objective: To build a media platform where women could talk about personal issues related to relationships and sexuality, then build awareness of this platform

Solution: BlogHer galvanized blog marketing consultants in the BlogHer community to work with Company’s marketing team on a concept and build the blog. BlogHer searched and recruited qualified writers to blog for the site. When the site launched, BlogHer drove traffic to the site from BlogHer.org and its ad network, raising awareness of the blog and the new brand. Tie-in with sponsorship of BlogHer conference included samples of the product in all attendee tote bags and onsite.