#105 - At Speakeasy, the content goes down smooth

WASHINGTON —— Generating content for companies for profit rather than news outlets, the Dallas Morning News’ content marketing and social media agency Speakeasy is taking off. It has already generated $1.5 million in revenue since its start in late 2012.

Grant Moise, the senior vice president of the Dallas Morning News, joined us on the podcast via phone to talk about the idea that’s creating a profit center with more than 50 clients so far.

Grant Moise is senior vice president, business development and niche products at The Dallas Morning News (DMN photo)

Depending on the size of the client, Moise said they generate content and in some cases handle the social media to start a conversation and drive interest.

“We are helping them create all their own content. We do editorial calendars at the beginning of each month and come up with unique things that can be relevant, depending on the audience they are trying to reach,” Moise said.

The Dallas Morning News partners with ad agency Sling Shot on Speakeasy, which can be found on every social outlet @YourSpeakEasy

Another perk of the venture, Moise said, is the opportunity to hire journalists looking for work.

“We’re able to bring people that have been laid off from our industry or radio or maybe they wrote digitally for radio or television stations in town,” he said. “We’re bringing people back to work who were former journalists.”

Moise added that helps ensure the fundamentals of good storytelling are in place.

— Megan Cloherty