đź’° Media Business
Advertising on Headlinne: How Sponsored Cards Work
Headlinne offers self-serve sponsored placements targeted by topic rather than by personal data. Here is how the format works, what it costs, and what it will not do.
By Headlinne Editorial Team · Updated on
The format
A sponsored card sits in the feed with the same shape as an article card—a headline, a short description, and a call to action—and is clearly labeled as sponsored. It is not an interstitial, a banner, or a pop-up, so it does not interrupt the reading rhythm.
The reason for that constraint is straightforward. The reading experience is the product; an ad format that degrades it would cost more in attrition than it earns in revenue.
Topic targeting, not people targeting
Campaigns are targeted by topic—up to five subject areas your campaign is relevant to. Readers currently engaging with those topics may see the card. Advertisers do not receive personal data about who saw or clicked a campaign, and Headlinne runs no third-party ad tags, advertising cookies, or tracking pixels.
That is a deliberate trade. Topic targeting is less granular than behavioral ad-network targeting, and it is the reason readers are not being tracked across the web to make it work.
Running a campaign
The self-serve portal takes a few minutes:
- Write the campaign content—headline, a one-to-three sentence description, destination URL, and call-to-action text
- Choose up to five target topics
- Set a budget between $50 and $10,000 and a duration from 1 to 90 days
- Review the live estimate of impressions, clicks, click-through rate, and reach
- Submit—campaigns are reviewed within 24 hours, with a full refund if rejected
What sponsorship cannot buy
Being explicit about the limits is part of the offer. A sponsored placement cannot influence the ranking of organic articles, cannot promote a publisher in personalized recommendations, and cannot affect bias scoring or any editorial signal. Every campaign is human-reviewed before it runs, and the sponsored label is not optional.
The estimates shown before launch are projections based on the budget, duration, and topics selected—not guarantees. As with any advertising, actual performance depends heavily on the creative and the offer.
Key takeaways
- âś“Sponsored cards match the article card format and are always labeled and human-reviewed.
- ✓Targeting is by topic, not by personal data—no ad tags, cookies, or tracking pixels.
- âś“Self-serve budgets run $50 to $10,000 over 1 to 90 days, reviewed within 24 hours with a refund if rejected.
Frequently asked questions
Who sees my campaign?
Readers engaging with the topics you select. You receive aggregate performance figures, not personal information about individual readers.
What is the minimum spend?
$50, with campaigns running anywhere from one to ninety days. The portal shows an estimate of impressions, clicks, and reach before you commit.
Can I sponsor a news story or promote my coverage?
No. Sponsored placements are a separate, labeled format. They cannot alter organic article ranking, bias analysis, or which publishers appear in personalized feeds.
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