Crenk

The other day I wrote an article about the new Forbes Blog / Advertising Network and how it is taking shape. In the article I also wrote about possible rumours that the networks content might be visible on the Forbes.com sites. I received a tip that the content is already integrated with parts of the site, for example certain keywords are highlighted on the story pages, which opens a box with related content and network content. This box is powered by Lingospot and is quite similar to the technology that is offered by Sphere.

Additionally, after looking at the Forbes site in a bit more depth, I came across the Blog page which has a network integration in the middle column. The integration shows headlines from selected sources within the network. Forbes, why isnt Crenk.com integrated into this section? We obviously have some of the best content around!

Here at Crenk we have been a part of the Forbes Business and Finance Blog Network from the very beginning. Crenk has reported about this blog network a couple of time when announcing the addition of Nick Ricci and also the initial launch of the network.

At the very beginning some journalists were discussing the possibilities of Forbes paying CPM rates of anywhere between $10 - $20. Initially I thought these CPM rates were very optimistic and now I can report that this hasnt been the case here on Crenk. CPM rates has been a bit lower, but overall I think the network is definitely moving in the right direction. The advertisers that are currently involved are of a very high standard and im sure this will only grow.

I would also like to hear confirmation about whether the network blogs will have any of their content syndicated across the Forbes network of sites. There has been a lot of rumours about this and it would be great for some smaller blogs to actually get their voices heard for a change.

Today Forbes.com have officially announced the creation of a Business and Finance Blog Network, comprising of a community of pre-screened, influential business and financial blogs.

The network will allow advertisers to target a highly engaged, exclusive niche audience of senior business decision makers and affluent investors easily and effectively. Four hundred-plus blogs have already joined the network, with many more expected to sign on before the official launch in the next few weeks.

Nick Ricci has been appointed General Manager, Sales. He will be responsible for overseeing the sales, marketing and promotion for the Blog Network as well as the Forbes Audience Network (FAN), which launched in November 2007.  Nick joins Forbes.com from About.com, where he served as Senior Vice President, Sales and Ad Operations. He has also held senior sales management and marketing positions at Times Mirror Magazines, Cox Interactive Sales, and Hachette Filipacchi Media US. Nick is already in the process of hiring and building a dedicated network sales team.

“I’m thrilled that Nick has joined Forbes.com to oversee the sales efforts for the Blog Network,” added Spanfeller. “He is a seasoned executive with several years of sales and marketing experience who will play a key role in driving the network’s success.”

Crenk is one of the four hundred blogs that has already signed up to the Forbes.com network. Im not too sure how the network will perform, but the expectations are high and from all reports so is the CPM rates that we can expect. Overall, this initiative seems to be a step forward for Forbes, who are trying to cash in on selling advertising across their network and then potentially grabbing millions more impressions from these blog partners.

Towards the end of December I received an email from the nice people at Forbes.com asking me to join their blog network. The blog network is focused around the Business and Finance sector and there are some nice benefits that come with this partnership.

First, some of your posts / articles can be published on Forbes page which lead for higher readership. Second, you will be involved in Forbes advertising program.

Requirements for participation are:

- to have business or finance related blog
- to run two banners ads on your blog (728×90 Leaderboard and 160×600 Skyscraper or 300×250 Rectangle)

All ads management is done via online account at Adify. Pricing is based on eCPM (effective CPM). Blogger receives 40% of all net revenues collected by Forbes. It has also been rumoured that the eCPM rate that you can expects is between $10-20. Thus, working out to be $4 CPM for the publishers, which is a lot higher than most other networks.

However, this all being said and done, the blog network was supposed to be launched at the end of January and now we are just about to be at the end of March and still no news! I think this network is a great idea by Forbes to capitalise on a growing section of the internet, but they are quite poor at keeping the members informed about their network.

Here is a list of other discussions about the Forbes.com network:

• Stock Web
• LexBlog
• MixedMarketArts
• ConnectedInternet
• BlogStorm