Sponsored Editorial
Part of Native advertising for product education
Structuring an educational advertorial around a buying question
Structure a sponsored product article around one buying question, with an early answer, useful criteria, supported detail and a next step.
Centre an educational advertorial on one buyer question. Answer it early, explain the criteria behind the answer, then show where the sponsor’s product fits. Readers should leave able to assess the choice, including when the product may not suit them.
Set a question the article can answer
“What should a small business check before choosing a staff rostering tool?” invites useful criteria. “Which tool should every business buy?” implies a universal recommendation that one sponsored product explanation is unlikely to establish.
Write a one-sentence answer before outlining. In the rostering example, it might name the information staff must enter, the changes managers need to make and the records they need afterwards. These are possible comparison criteria, not claims about a particular tool. If the sponsor cannot explain its product against the chosen criteria, narrow or change the question.
Give each section a job
- Answer:Name the main checks and the reader the answer serves.
- Criteria:Explain why each check matters and what a buyer should ask.
- Product:Show which criteria the sponsor’s product addresses with supported facts.
- Limits:State conditions that change suitability and when another approach may be needed.
- Next step:Offer details, a demonstration or an enquiry that helps the reader continue.
Explain the criteria before praising a feature. The product section can then link each relevant feature to a buyer need. Do not present this sequence as a vendor comparison unless the article actually assesses vendors against stated criteria.
Check sponsorship and claims
Identify the commercial arrangement where readers encounter the article. The Australian Press Council recommends labelling commercially arranged newspaper and magazine content that looks editorial, so readers do not mistake it for independent editorial material. Its guideline says such advertorials should be identified with terms such as “advertisement” or “sponsored feature”, so readers are not led to believe the content is free of commercial influences.
Review the headline, opening and product section for implied as well as explicit claims. “Saves managers hours each week” needs support for the amount, period and users described. If the evidence covers only a particular setting, state that limit with the claim. The ACCC says it can require businesses to back up claims about their products or services.
Key claims and evidence requirements for advertorials
- Label requirementMust be clearly identified as 'sponsored feature' or 'advertisement' per Australian Press Council guidelines.
- Compliance bodyACCC can require substantiation of claims; failure may lead to enforcement action.
Read the draft as a buyer would
Read the question, opening and criteria without the product section. Is there a usable answer? Then read the product section: does it explain a relevant option with facts, or only repeat praise? Finally, compare the promotional card with the destination; both should promise the answer the article gives.
If the useful answer depends on an unsupported claim, change the angle or remove the claim. Structure can make a product explanation clearer; it cannot supply missing evidence.
