Appearing on a panel at the OMMA Publishing conference Wednesday, Copeland was tight-lipped about details of the online offshoot, but indicated that it would feature longer-form content and appeal more to mainstream advertisers who might not be as comfortable with the sensational, salacious coverage that characterizes PerezHilton.com.
But Copeland assured that the new property would appeal to the same core audience as the flagship site. "He has this genetic link with 26-year-old women," said Copeland of the "Queen of All Media." Separately, he revealed that Hilton also has six-figure deals in the works to handle sponsored Twittering for three unnamed advertisers.
Under the agreements, Hilton this summer will post Tweets about the products or services involved for a week on his Twitter feed, which Copeland said has more than 1 million followers. "Perez is a great springboard for anyone who needs a springboard onto Twitter," said Copeland, who claims that a link by the notorious blogger can send 10,000 to 20,000 new visitors to a site in an eye blink.
The Twitter campaigns will also be tied into PerezHilton.com in a "variety of modes," including new interactive ad units, according to Copeland. While he would not disclose the advertisers involved, he indicated they would be brands aligned with the pop culture, trend-focused content of the main site. "Not Corn Flakes," he said.
Ernie Cicogna, co-founder of Glam Media, who was a co-panelist with Copeland, agreed that advertisers were highly interested in exploring advertising around Twitter. He noted that women's ad network Glam was working with sites such as TwitterMoms.com and packaging Twitter campaigns as part of six-figure ad deals.
The fact that this person is making money at all at what he does is a mystery! It also makes a sad statement as to just exactly where we are as a society. And the fact that he was a judge for a major nationally televised pageant is appalling!
Ron (from California)