Advertise on Board Game Beat

Board Game Beat LLC is led by W. Eric Martin (formerly of BoardGameGeek) and focuses on the craft, culture, and business of tabletop games.

Alongside up-to-the-minute news, Board Game Beat offers convention coverage, weekly deep-dive articles and interviews (with audio), biweekly member polls, and a monthly video.

We run a small number of premium, direct-sold ad placements with no ad networks and no tracking scripts.

That means your brand stands out in a clean, editorial environment that’s welcoming to people who make, market, play, and love board games.

Why advertise here?

An audience that buys and builds games.
Engaged hobbyists, designers, publishers, media, and retailers who actively follow the tabletop industry.

Credibility that transfers to you.
Eric has spent two decades earning trust in the board game industry through hard work, consistency, and deep knowledge of the field. When you advertise here, your brand benefits from that trust.

Scarcity = attention.
We offer only one homepage billboard, one leaderboard above posts, and one leaderboard before comments — with no rotations. There is only one sponsorship slot in audio episodes and a maximum of three sponsors per monthly video. Fewer ads means more focus on yours.

Cross-format flexibility.
You can book a single placement or build a campaign across display, audio, and video for launches and special promotions.

Rate Card

WEBSITE (DISPLAY)

Weeks run Monday–Sunday.
4-week bundles do not need to be consecutive.

Home Billboard (homepage masthead)
Our largest, most prominent placement — the only ad in the homepage masthead. Ideal for launches and brand awareness.

• Full Week (Mon–Sun): $900
• 4-Week Bundle: $3,060 (15% off)

Blog Top Leaderboard (above article title)
High-visibility placement above the article title on every blog post. Great for reach and repeated exposure to engaged readers.

• Full Week: $650
• 4-Week Bundle: $2,210 (15% off)

Blog Bottom Leaderboard (before comments)
A supporting unit before the comments. Ideal as an add-on for extra frequency.

• Full Week: $450
• 4-Week Bundle: $1,530 (15% off)

WEEKLY AUDIO (1 sponsor per episode)

Our exclusive audio slot: a single sponsor per Boardcast episode with a host-read message and closing thanks. Boardcast is a narration of the weekly main article and is available only to paid subscribers at the $5+ level...so a smaller audience but with higher intent.

• Pre-roll (30–45s) + closing “thanks” (5–10s): $350 / episode
• 4-Episode Bundle: $1,190 (15% off)

Monthly Video (2–3 sponsors; read-only)
Our monthly feature video includes one Title Sponsor plus up to two Supporting Sponsors — a small, curated lineup designed for strong brand visibility.

• Title Sponsor (pre-roll): $900 / video
• Supporting Sponsor (mid-roll; 0–2 slots per video, depending on video topic / length): $500 / sponsor / video

Our videos are published on PeerTube and embedded on wericmartin.com. We do not monetize via YouTube, which keeps the experience clean and privacy-respecting — and keeps the focus on your brand.

Specs & Deliverables

WEBSITE (DISPLAY)

Please supply static image ads for the following slots. All measurements are in pixels.

Homepage Billboard

• Desktop: 1940×500 px (renders at 970×250)
• Tablet: 936×120 (renders at 468×60)
• Mobile: 640×200 (renders at 320×100)

Blog Post Leaderboard (Top or Bottom)

• Desktop: 1456×180 (renders at 728×90)
• Tablet: 936×120 (renders at 468×60)
• Mobile: 640×200 (renders at 320×100)

Additional specs:

• File format: PNG / JPG / WebP (static only; no animation or third-party tags).
• File size: ≤ 500 KB preferred (per asset).
• Alt text (for accessibility): Provide a short description of what’s visually in the ad so a screen reader user gets the same info. Include the brand, the key message, amd any essential details (game title, product type, date/price if shown).

For example: Adjective Animal Games Inc. Making Plans for Nigel board game. Preorder open. Box cover with tuxedo cat on orange planet.

• Click URL: Please provide one click URL per placement (UTM parameters optional).

AUDIO (WEEKLY)

Audio sponsorships include a 30–45 second pre-roll and a 5–10 second closing thanks.

Reads are baked in, meaning they become part of the episode archive permanently.

Eric doesn’t just read a script; he uses the points you supply to create a natural-sounding sponsorship call-out.

Please supply:

• Copy: 3–5 bullet points (about 6–12 words each).
• URL: One destination URL (UTM optional). We’ll create an easy-to-say short link at bgb.news that redirects there.
• Optional: Discount code (for example, “BGB15” for 15% off).

VIDEO (MONTHLY)

Video sponsorships include a 30–45 second pre-roll.

The Title Sponsor also receives a 5–10 second thanks at the end of the video, and their link is listed first in the show notes.

Reads are baked in and remain part of the episode archive.

Eric uses the talking points you supply to create a personal, natural read, rather than a stiff script.

Please supply:

• Copy: 3–5 bullet points (about 6–12 words each).
• URL: One destination URL (UTM optional). We’ll create an easy-to-say short link at bgb.news that redirects there.
• Optional: Discount code (for example, “BGB15” for viewers).

UTM / Tracking Guidance

We don’t track our visitors. If you’d like basic click data in your own analytics, you can add UTM parameters to your link.

How to standardize a UTM-tagged link

This will help us streamline your ad placement.

• utm_source=wericmartin
• utm_medium= one of: billboard, leaderboard_top, leaderboard_bottom, audio, video
• utm_campaign=YYYYMM_campaign-name (e.g., 202502_new-title)
• utm_content= creative variant (optional, e.g., v1, v2)

Example of a UTM-tagged link (Top Leaderboard)

https:​//publisher.com/new-game?utm_source=wericmartin&utm_medium=leaderboard_top&utm_campaign=202502_new-title&utm_content=v1

Deadlines & Scheduling

Booking window
We soft-hold requested dates until payment is received; invoices are payable in 7 days.

Creative deadlines

• Display: 3 business days before your start date.
• Audio / Video: 10 business days before the publication date.

Timing
All scheduling uses Eastern Time (ET).

Make-goods & refunds
See policy below for how we handle issues and changes.

Policies

Privacy & Tech

• We do not run tracking pixels, third-party ad tags, or fingerprinting scripts.
• All display ads are simple image links that we add by hand.
• All sponsorships are spoken reads in audio / video.
• You may use your own UTM-tagged links for your first-party analytics.

Acceptable Creative

• Family-friendly, and relevant to tabletop games or adjacent creative / education tools.
• No crypto, gambling, adult content, or unverifiable claims.
• We reserve the right to decline ads or request changes at our editorial discretion.

Make-Goods

We stand behind delivery by placement and dates (not clicks or impressions). If we materially fail to deliver the promised placement due to an issue on our end (e.g., site outage, feed misconfiguration, publication delay), we will provide equivalent bonus days / episodes within 60 days — typically +2–3 days for display or the next eligible episode / video for sponsorships. Make-goods are our default remedy.

Booking & Payment

Payment

• Due on booking; placement is confirmed when paid.

Cancellations

• 10+ business days before start: Cancel for a credit equal to the booking, valid for 6 months.
• 3–9 business days before start: 50% kill fee (we credit the other 50% for 6 months).
• Fewer than 3 business days before start: 100% non-refundable. We’ll try to reschedule once within 60 days, subject to availability, with a $150 change fee.

Questions?

Email media@wericmartin.com with any questions or to talk through a custom plan.