Market Mix - 💩 Made For Advertising

Hey there 👋,

In this week’s newsletter, I discuss:

Cheers!

Richard Patey - @richardpatey

DIGITAL MEDIA

I’m super selective in who I let sponsor this newsletter, which is good as most crypto companies (especially NFT projects) that are interested are a scam.

This is not the case with content sites where, let’s be honest, 90% of niche sites are SEO factories designed to get people to click on programmatic ads or go to Amazon.

These ‘made for advertising’ sites (MFA) are typically:

And according to the programmatic consultancy Jounce Media, nearly a quarter of private marketplaces (PMP) allocate more than 25% of their budget to MFA inventory.

It was reported earlier this week in Digiday that one of the largest media agencies, GroupM, has taken matters into its own hands to vet potential MFAs within its programmatic business.

So how does this relate to our world of investing in digital media assets?

Firstly, I think this just adds to the AI trend of devaluing content sites.

In the Acquire The Web newsletter I’m now seeing less content site listings come onto the market to feature each week. And I just received this email from the top broker on Flippa (and previous sponsor) Joe Burrill from Just Website Brokerage talk about seeing a decrease in content sites and a move towards listing ecommerce sites:

As you’re probably aware, I’m personally betting that the move is towards newsletter businesses.

I think newsletters will 10x over the next few years and become the dominant online business digital asset seen on marketplaces.

But I agree with what Marketing Max posted, that the increased supply will make landing sponsors way harder going forward, and any that have been made purely for sponsorships will fail:

And I also agree with Adam Ryan, CEO of Workweek that the answer is by forming a collective of niche newsletters:

This is what I’m now doing at Letter Operators, by only taking on clients who are in business, investing and web3, so that I can be effective in managing their sponsorships as well as running their newsletters.

That’s right, Patey has productized once again:

CRYPTO

Over the last 7 days, the biggest NFT collections have lost between 20% and 50% of their value as the bloodbath continues. Mutant Apes are now almost back to where I first bought at 4.2ETH in August 2021.

So it was surprising to read that 80% of NFT holders have held their bags through this 2023 downturn:

A million dollar Banksy got investors 32% returns?

Mm-hmm, sure. So, what’s the catch?

We know it may sound too good to be true. But it’s not only possible, it’s happening—and thousands of investors are smiling all the way to the bank, thanks to the fine-art investing platform Masterworks.

These results aren’t cherry-picking. This is the whole bushel. Masterworks has built a track record of 8 exits, the last 3 realizing 10.4%, 35%, and 13.9% net returns even while financial markets plummeted.

But art? Really? Okay, skeptics, here are the numbers. Contemporary art prices:

Got your attention yet? Offerings can sell out in just minutes but DAI readers can skip the waitlist with this exclusive link.

DOMAINS

And finally, Ferrero, the maker of Kinder Eggs (my childhood) is dropping two of its TLDs.

Maybe patey.kinder can be up for grabs.

CLASSIFIEDS

Interested in reaching 5K+ subscribers with your message?

(Or know of a brand who could be a good fit?)

Disclaimer: Nothing in this email is financial advice and I am not a professional investment adviser. I send weekly updates on digital asset news and what I'm doing personally - consider it informational and for entertainment purposes only.