$1 million investment will support boot camps, branded badge certificate programs and sales products for local media outlets

The Meta Branded Content Project, which helps facilitate growth, engagement and success for local media publishers, announced $1 million in funding to help continue the project’s initiatives for an additional two years. This round of funding will be the third from the Facebook Journalism Project, which contributed $1 million for 2019-2020 and $850,000 for 2021.

Launched in March 2019 as the Branded Content Project and recently rebranded under the Meta name, the Meta Branded Content Project provides local media organizations the opportunity to define, develop and grow branded content revenue strategies. Over the past three years, the initiative helped publishers generate more than $50 million with their branded content programs. In 2021, the Project began supporting media outlets by establishing no cost and low cost custom content series and sales support, directly generating an additional $3.75 million in revenue and impacting more than 5,500 industry leaders, executives, sales reps, content creators and marketers. These resources were particularly impactful for publishers who are independently owned, publishers of color and those serving small markets.

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“Through our participation in the Branded Content Project, we have been able to expand our branded content portfolio,” said Martin Alfaro of Al Día News. “Within the last year, we have doubled our partners and doubled revenue. This program has also made us more confident about offering this product to a range of advertisers across diverse industries.”

The new investment will help enhance and expand branded content programs for local media outlets over the next two years including the continuation and expansion of training programs, branded badge certifications, content creation and distribution and sales support like collateral and boot camps for sales reps. It will also allow the Meta Branded Content Project to develop white papers, webinars, workshops and other resources for the local media industry.

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“The Facebook Journalism Project’s support has been essential in enabling us to grow the Meta Branded Content Project, which has helped publishers of all sizes build a sustainable and profitable branded content strategy,” said Julia Campbell, general manager, the Meta Branded Content Project. “With the global content marketing market expected to continue growing, local media companies have a real opportunity to drive revenue and attract new audiences with engaging branded content.”

A strategic partnership of Facebook Journalism Project, Local Media Association and Local Media Consortium, the Meta Branded Content Project is a full-service branded content product development, content creation, education, distribution and monetization resource for local publishers. Its 10 turnkey branded content lifestyle series – which include Active Aging, Women’s Wellness, Finances FYI and Cannabis Weekly – are designed for publisher partners and retailed to brand clients as exclusive sponsor opportunities.

“The Meta Branded Content Project has been doing amazing work through its content lifestyle series, certificate training programs, consulting and market research,” said Dorrine Mendoza, of the Facebook Journalism Project’s Local News Partnerships. “We are pleased to continue our support for local media companies who can use these tools and resources to boost and diversify their digital revenue.”