Excerpt: The Outline has been an interesting space for media buyers for its unique page layouts, “mobile-first approach and innovative ad units,” said Dan Richardson, director, Invention+, Mindshare, but its relative smaller audience “made it tough for buyers to make the case to add it to their plans.”
“It will be interesting to see if BDG is able to increase the reach and scale of the site, while maintaining the unique features that make The Outline so fun,” Richardson said.
Goldberg said he’s committed to further investing in the brands that he’s acquired, which he believes have passionate, engaged fans. He pointed to Elite Daily, which he said was “financially distressed” when BDG took it on, as a success story.
“Now it has massive audience engagement, a growing brand and meaningful profits. The Elite Daily team has really delivered for us,” Goldberg said.
The industry has yet to see Gawker.com come back to life, though the publication made headlines after two staffers quit over objections to the site’s editorial director, Carson Griffith, who will stay on under newly-appointed editor in chief, Dan Peres. Goldberg previously said the site would likely relaunch in the first half of 2019.
“BDG has acquired some brands that were struggling or failing and now the question is if those websites can better succeed when bundled together,” Richardson said. “I’m curious to see what their pitch is on how these brands help drive synergies between each other and draw in advertising dollars.”
Read the full piece in Adweek here.
