The Neiman Journalism Lab reports…
MinnPost, the non-profit news startup in Minneapolis, has rolled out a new form of advertising that looks a little bit like print classifieds, a lot like Twitter, and nothing like traditional marketing on the Internet. Theyre calling the service Real-Time Ads, and its live in the left column of the front page right now.
The service aggregates tweets, blog posts, and other feeds from local business with timely messages to convey an ice cream shop announcing the flavor of the day, for instance, or a clothing store offering a one-day coupon.
Real-Time Ads could appeal to marketers that already have Twitter accounts and blogs where theyre reaching out to customers, and MinnPost is hoping that the feature will become a destination site the way the classifieds section used to be treasured by newspaper readers.
Full article plus video interview with MinnPost CEO…