Getting featured in Forbes is the number one media goal we hear from clients. And we understand why. Forbes is one of the most recognized media brands in the world, and a Forbes feature provides instant credibility. But the landscape of what "featured in Forbes" actually means has changed dramatically in recent years, and understanding those changes is critical before you invest time or money chasing a Forbes placement.
Contributors vs. Editorial: A Critical Distinction
For years, Forbes operated a contributor network that allowed thousands of writers to publish articles directly on Forbes.com with minimal editorial oversight. This created an entire cottage industry of PR firms and agencies that would connect clients with Forbes contributors for a fee. Your company would pay somewhere between $1,000 and $10,000, a contributor would write a piece about you, and you could say you were "featured in Forbes."
Forbes has significantly scaled back this contributor program. They have removed thousands of contributors, tightened editorial standards, and added more oversight to contributor content. The easy path to a Forbes feature that existed a few years ago is largely gone.
More importantly, the market has wised up to the contributor model. Savvy investors, partners, and customers can tell the difference between a Forbes editorial piece written by a staff journalist and a contributor post that was essentially paid placement. Google has also gotten better at evaluating the authority of individual articles rather than just the domain, which means a low-quality contributor post on Forbes.com may not carry the SEO weight you expect.
What Actually Works for Forbes Coverage
Genuine Forbes editorial coverage still happens, and it is still extremely valuable. But it requires the same things that any real press coverage requires: a newsworthy story, a relevant angle, and a relationship with the right journalist.
Forbes has staff writers and editors who cover specific beats. If your company is doing something genuinely noteworthy in an industry that Forbes covers, the path to coverage is identifying the right journalist, understanding what they cover, and pitching them a story that serves their audience. This is no different from pitching any other major publication.
The journalist newsletter strategy we recommend works particularly well for Forbes. Many Forbes journalists are active on social media and responsive to sources who provide genuine expertise and insight. Building a relationship over time by being useful and knowledgeable is far more effective than a cold pitch or a paid placement.
The Paid Placement Problem
There are still agencies that offer "guaranteed Forbes features" for a fee. Be very careful here. Some of these placements are legitimate contributed content that adds real value. Others are barely disguised advertisements that provide little credibility and may even hurt your reputation if they read as promotional.
Before paying for any Forbes placement, ask these questions. Will the article be clearly labeled as contributed or sponsored content? Who is writing it, and what is their track record on the platform? Will Forbes editorial staff review it before publication? And what happens if the article gets removed, which Forbes has been doing more aggressively with content that does not meet their evolving standards?
We have seen clients spend $15,000 on a Forbes contributor piece only to have it removed six months later during one of Forbes' periodic content audits. That is an expensive lesson that could have been avoided.
Realistic Alternatives
If your goal is media credibility rather than specifically a Forbes logo on your website, there are often better paths to get there. Industry-specific trade publications may reach your actual target audience more effectively than Forbes. Regional business journals provide strong local credibility. And newer digital publications that have built strong editorial reputations can provide comparable authority in specific verticals.
A feature in the top trade publication for your industry, written by a journalist who covers that space full-time, may actually be more valuable for your business than a generic Forbes contributor post. It reaches the people who make buying decisions in your market, and it carries the weight of genuine editorial selection.
For Wikipedia notability purposes, what matters is the independence and reliability of the source, not the name recognition. A well-sourced article in a respected trade publication counts just as much as a Forbes feature, and often more than a Forbes contributor post.
Building Toward Major Media
The most reliable path to coverage in Forbes and comparable publications is to build your media presence progressively. Start with trade publications and local media. Build relationships with journalists. Develop a track record of being a useful, quotable source. As your media profile grows, the opportunities to be featured in major national outlets grow with it.
We have helped clients progress from zero media presence to genuine Forbes editorial coverage, but it did not happen overnight and it did not happen through paid shortcuts. It happened because they invested in building real relationships with journalists and consistently had something valuable to say.
If you want help building a media strategy that leads to real coverage in major publications, our press placement service is designed for exactly this kind of long-term relationship building. You may also find our guides on getting press coverage, writing a press release, and press release distribution useful as you develop your overall approach.
Related Resources
- How to get press coverage — Proven strategies for building media relationships
- Writing a press release — Create content that journalists actually want to cover
- Press release distribution — Get your announcements in front of the right journalists
- Wikipedia notability requirements — Press coverage builds your notability foundation