Membership Support – Exposures FAQ

You can always contact us if your answer is not below. We are happy to help you!

Depending on your membership level, you will have varying access to the exposures below:

Featured Listings
Enhanced map/directory listing
Products/services in roundups
Sponsored Stories
Dedicated Emails

FEATURED LISTINGS: YOUR ANNOUNCEMENTS

There are three ways to redeem your Featured Listing credits:

Featured Jobs – these are integrated into your login. When adding or editing your job listing, be sure to toggle the switch at the top (see example). This also will enable a Company Logo option below for you to upload a JPG, GIF or PNG.
Press Releases – these are currently handled manually. Email your announcement (don’t forget at least one image) to [email protected]. These are usually posted within two business days and are copy/pasted so there is no additional review/approval process for you. Often they are formatted more like marketing emails than formal press releases, although we do retain the right to edit or deny publishing of false, misleading, or unverifiable claims. Use a strong title – it is seen thousands of times. See below for more details about how these compare with Sponsored Stories.
Marketplace Listings – these are handled exactly like Press Releases. In fact, if your announcement fits, it may be be posted in both places.

CBJ retains the right to edit any Featured Listings for accuracy and conformity with our editorial standards.

ENHANCED MAP OR DIRECTORY LISTING

If your membership is for a facility, currently your enhancement is to display your logo alongside your location on our map.
If your membership is for a brand, currently your enhancement is to display your logo in our directory. Also, your brand is listed at the top, above the list of non-member brands.
Your brand will be listed as described above on all appropriate directory pages.

PRODUCTS / SERVICES IN GRIP REPORTS & BUYER GUIDES

We offer two recurring roundups of new products and services. Both rely on you to submit your products/services, and are limited to new releases or major upgrades. We send reminders prior to publish for each – contact us if you want to get these reminders.

Grip Reports are published early each month, and the submission deadline is the 25th of each month.
Buyers Guides are published at the start of each season, and the submission deadline is the last day of the month prior.

As a member, your products/services will be listed at the top, above the list of non-member brand products/services. You may also we allowed more than one new product/service to be listed, this is accomplished with an embedded slideshow instead of a single image.

SPONSORED STORY FAQ

Sponsored Stories are among our best methods of exposure – not only does your brand get visibility, but you have the opportunity to deliver and interesting story too. They are collaborations between your brand and CBJ that balance your story and pitch with our editorial standards.

What makes for a great sponsored story?

Tell our audience what makes you unique! If you need some inspiration, our Partner Resources archive of past sponsored stories at CBJ is a great place to start. Story directions can include:

Backstory – business origin, founders, values
Offerings – products, services, innovations
Customers – project success stories, case studies
Team – notable staff or athlete ambassador achievements
Tips & advice – tangible takeaways for potential clients
Events & campaigns – promote an upcoming initiative
Videos & photojournalism – a picture can say a thousand words

What is an ideal sponsored story format and length?

Sponsored stories can be long form or very brief, written in third person or first person. If you have a great new video, it may only need a few paragraphs to accompany the embed. Typically, sponsored stories are about 800-1600 words, and it’s best to break up longer stories with subtitles to make them more digestible for readers. Every sponsored story needs at least a title, the text, and one image that we’ll share on our website, newsletters and social media. Stories longer than 2000 words come with a small fee ($50 for each 500 words above 2000) since they require more processing for our editors, or we may require longer stories to be split into multiple stories. The same is true for stories with many images (more than 10).

We recommend balancing the number of images included with the story length, and you must have permission to use them. Images should be at least 1000px wide, and we recommend sending us the highest resolution you have available so we can crop and optimize for the best result. We add captions to all images, and you are encouraged to include those in your submission.

Sponsored stories are always formally “authored” by the your – this is the credit seen at the very top and bottom of every CBJ article. However the individual writer can be recognized in the body of the story if you desire.

Can I say anything I want in my sponsored story?

The short answer: not entirely (and that’s a good thing!). The long answer: We do review and reserve the right to edit all sponsored stories. We hold the same high standards for sponsored stories as we do for other stories at CBJ, and so they are carefully edited and larger claims must be justified. We may scale back “best” and “first” claims, in particular (e.g. say “among the best” or “likely the first” instead), since those claims can be the hardest to fact-check. We also require permission to include references to other brands in a story. One reason for these guidelines is that you wouldn’t want other brands to be able to say anything they want about you, either. Instead of “us versus them” stories (which often do not resonate with CBJ readers in the community-focused climbing industry), consider focusing on the great work your business is doing!

For more “salesy,” promotional articles we offer a robust press release service which is not subject to our typical editing process, but we do reserve the right to editor or not publish press releases with unsubstantiated claims that our team can’t fact-check. Be careful about puffery. We do not run attack ads.

What if I need writing support?

Many sponsored stories you read at CBJ were written by our experienced and knowledgeable in-house team of professional writers. We offer this service for only $300/story. Examples of past sponsored stories with writing support can be found here and here.

What is the usual turnaround for a sponsored story?

We ask for at least 30 days advance notice for sponsored stories, and at least 90 days if you’d like writing support. Generally, stories are processed in the order that complete submissions are received and can spend a few weeks in the editing process upon reception. A complete submission includes the full final text document and accompanying photos. After receiving your complete submission and making suggested edits, we’ll always send a preview of the revised draft for you to review. We won’t publish your sponsored story without your approval. Once we have your approval we’ll schedule your story for publishing, which typically takes place on Fridays.

Your responsiveness through the editing process can dramatically affect turnaround times.

What is the visibility of sponsored stories through different CBJ publishing channels?

Sponsored stories flow through our homepage, weekly emails, social media, and are archived permanently.

Here is a comparison of the exposure visibility for sponsored stories and press releases:

ASPECT	SPONSORED STORIES	PRESS RELEASES
Creation Process	Either you send the story, or a CBJ writer works with you to outline and craft it. You review drafts, make edits, and approve the final before publish.	You send text/message and at least one image to CBJ. We copy/paste the content.
Homepage Exposure	"Top of the fold" premium visibility - among the first articles our visitors see. Additional listing mid-page. Together over 4500 impressions.	Lower on homepage. Over 3000 impressions.
Website Archive	Permanent placement.	Permanent placement.
Pageviews / Direct Clicks	400-500 average, 200-2000 range	50-100 average, 20-300 range
Email Exposure	Visible alongside native stories with a full size image and caption in Newsletter. Linked in Insider, and in the following Newsletter. Together over 5500 impressions.	Linked in both Newsletter and Insider. Together over 4000 impressions.
Social Media Exposure	Dedicated posts on Instagram, Facebook, Linkedin. Together 1000-5000 impressions.	Shared post with other press releases that week on Instagram, Facebook, Linkedin. Together 1000-5000 impressions.

CBJ retains the right to edit any Sponsored Story for accuracy and conformity with our editorial standards.

DEDICATED EMAIL FAQ

Dedicated Emails are perhaps our most potent and valuable method of exposure – in a moment, your message is delivered to targeted decision-makers, sent by CBJ on your behalf. See examples here.

What makes for a great dedicated email?

Tell our audience about some compelling product, service, news, or offer. The goal of these emails is to give recipients a reason to click for more.

What is an ideal dedicated email format and length?

Shorter is sweeter. While you can go longer, emails are typically consumed by recipients very quickly – a matter of seconds. Every word of your message should be refined to it’s essential and most potent minimal form, while at the same time retaining your brand voice and values.

These are the essential pieces:

Subject line
Opening image
Opening headline
Paragraph or two of message
Button: call-to-action with URL (use UTMs to track reach)
Closing image

An important part of getting the most value from dedicated emails is to prepare the URL landing page to convert visitors. Recipients of your email are B2B decision-makers, and they tend to make purchasing decisions slower than general consumers, so trying to get them to “buy now” is a tough pitch. Instead, have a form on the landing page, or a pop-up, that collects their info so they can “get wholesale pricing” or “get a quote” or “get a free consult”.