The idea for TalkAhead came about from two simple observations. First we looked at the growing number of comments written at the end of articles, and noticed that a significant number of them are written by advertisers. And why not? Many have realized it’s an opportunity for free advertising.
Second, we thought about the revolution of online search. In the beginning, online search was completely organic; search engines presented results in the order of relevance based on complex algorithms. But then came the introduction of paid search, enabling advertisers to buy the first spots in a search-results page. Today, paid search is a standard way for doing business on the Web.
Thus we realized that the current system for user-generated comments falls short for both publishers and advertisers. We decided to come up with a solution that enables publishers to:
- Harness the vast number of advertisers who are currently leveraging the comments section of publications
- Offer a better, more efficient way for advertisers to get their messages across in the comments section
- Keep the publisher's objectivity intact by being more upfront about the nature of the comments that promote products and URLs
- Create a revenue stream that requires very little effort on the part of the publisher (a self-selling model)
