Scott Steinberg · Consultant, Analyst and Business Strategist
A co-op satelitte media tour (SMT) puts several brands into one segment and splits the cost between them. It provide a fun roundup format that stations prefer to book for an affordable fee. Scott Steinberg hosts co-op SMT tours in today's top brand categories.
Event host for TV, radio, online, virtual and social media multi-brand satellite media tours, including roundup formats, seasonal gift and buying guides, and category showcases. CPG, toys, technology, small business, video games, AI, apps, finance and banking, travel and hospitality, lifestyle, health and wellness and more!
Co-op works when the segment has a reason to exist beyond the brands sponsoring it. The sections below cover the structure, where it outperforms a single-brand tour, and where it does not.
Participants split satellite time, production, talent and booking costs, which typically brings a national tour within reach of a budget that would not fund one alone.
The trade is exposure: each brand gets a portion of a segment rather than all of it.
This is where co-op tours capture stations' attention. Brands that share an editorial theme create a winning mix that interests producers and engages audiences of all kinds.
It's best to feature complementary rather than competing products, a coherent story linking them, and a mix that lets each participant appear without the segment becoming a list.
The roundup is the native format for co-op, and it is also a format stations independently want, which is why the structure works at all.
Buying guides, trend roundups and category showcases give an anchor something genuinely useful for viewers while accommodating several brands.
Seasonal windows are where co-op is strongest, because stations actively want gift guides and seasonal roundups and a multi-brand segment fits that need precisely.
Holiday, back-to-school and summer windows fill early and competitively, so assembly needs to start well before the outreach does.
Every participant paid and every participant wants their moment, but a segment where each brand gets an equal scripted block reads as an infomercial.
Balance means each brand landing its point where the editorial flow makes room for it, which requires agreement before the tour rather than negotiation during it.
Producers decide what co-cop satellite media tours and celebrity experts to host based on timing, audience fit and framing, among other variables.
Acceptance improves when the segment leads with a viewer benefit, the host carries recognisable credentials, and the brand mentions feel incidental to the story.
Several brands means several approval chains, several legal reviews and several sets of expectations converging on one tour date.
Coordination works when boundaries and messaging are settled early and one party owns the final call, rather than each participant negotiating separately.
Every participant receives the same amount of coverage, screen time and presentation opportunities wherever possible.
If you're looking to be a part of a co-op SMT, it's important to fit your messaging and runtime according to these parameters.
Most co-op satellite media tours feature three to six brands. Brands and products of virtually every kind are welcome to join.
Gift guides, back-to-school and holiday buying segments where multiple brands sit naturally inside one editorial frame.
Several brands within one category presented as a trend or buying-guide segment rather than a product list.
A segment built around a genuine trend story, with participating brands illustrating it rather than driving it.
Tours for trade bodies, member organizations or brand collectives sharing an audience and a message.
Scott Steinberg is a futurist keynote speaker, #1 bestselling strategic consultant and trends expert with over 25 years of experience advising more than 3,000 businesses and brands, from startups to government agencies and Fortune 500 firms.
He is the author of over 30 books and has published more than five thousand articles covering technology, marketing, leadership, innovation, advertising and digital transformation. He appears regularly on ABC, CBS, CNN and NBC.
He has led seminars, keynotes and training programs for organizations including Wells Fargo, the PGA Tour, Century 21, Ford, Dell and Procter & Gamble, and has been recognized by the International Association for Scholastic Excellence, Fortune and the 21st Century Icon Awards.
A tour where several non-competing brands share one segment and split the costs of satellite time, production, talent and booking. Each participant gets a portion of a segment rather than a dedicated one, at a fraction of what a single-brand national tour would cost.
When the budget would not fund a solo national tour, when the product fits naturally into a roundup, and when seasonal timing means stations actively want multi-item segments anyway. Co-op SMTs are a great fit for brands and organizatios of all kinds.
Three to six in most cases. The best tours work when there's ample time to cover each item and topic in-depth in ways that capture and engage audiences.
Brand mix, almost always, and a winning theme. It helps to have a strong and timely seasonal or newsworthy editorial hook. Curation matters more than any other factor including budget.
Every brand receives a coverage report. All participants have a chance to see which TV, radio, virtual or online outlets picked up the segment and in which markets it aired.
Whether you are a brand looking to join a tour or a producer assembling one, send the category, timing and how many participants you are planning around.
Co-op SMT programs and online virtual tours are a good fit for brands looking to get the word out to a wide mix of stations and audiences.