Minding Your Business
We put the new CharterWave Media Kit online yesterday for potential advertisers, who flocked to our site in record numbers. Their enthusiasm really made us proud, as several new advertisers were literally trying to get their company logos onto CharterWave the very same day we made our new ad packages available!
One response, though, gave me pause–and I think it’s important for you, our readers, to understand exactly why.
The response was from a charter broker who wanted us to give him a CharterWave advertisement for free. In exchange, he would give us a percentage of profit from every charter he booked through the ad. He explained that we would make more money from him in this fashion. And he was probably right.
This is the kind of arrangement that many websites have with their advertisers, but it’s not one that we here at CharterWave will allow–for the simple reason that it takes us out of the editorial business and puts us in the charter-booking business.
If we’re selling the charters, or taking any cut of the profits from them, then we are simply not in a position to offer you unbiased advice and information that you can trust. And that is our primary mission here at CharterWave: to be the world’s most trusted yacht vacation resource. We have advertising partners, yes, but we’re not in their pockets. Which means we have absolutely no need to help them pick your pockets.
So we turned down this broker’s offer, and the extra income that would have come along with it. Our integrity and our readers’ trust is simply not for sale, at any price.
Which is why, we hope, you will continue to look to us for all the charter information you need. We’re minding your business and keeping your best interests in mind, even when nobody’s looking.