From Ads to Automation: How Publishers Can Unlock $2M+ in Revenue Growth
Last updated: September 11, 2025
For years, digital revenue for publishers meant selling more ads: banner takeovers, video units, and “chum boxes” stuffed onto every page. But that model is showing its cracks. Audiences are fatigued. Ad performance is declining. And advertisers are no longer satisfied with just impressions—they want verified leads and measurable ROI.
Questex faced this challenge head-on. Instead of adding more ad slots, they built a marketing automation engine powered by their first-party data in Omeda. The result? More than $2M in new revenue—and a repeatable system for proving value to advertisers.
As Rhonda Wunderlin, SVP of Performance Marketing at Questex, put it:
“Our goal was to really help move clients or their potential clients through awareness and interest into conversion. That’s what we’ve built with this multi-touch, multi-channel marketing, leveraging marketing automation.”
Here’s how Questex did it—and how publishing leaders can learn from their playbook.
Why Publishers Can’t Rely on Ads Alone
Jacob Donnelly, Founder of A Media Operator—who moderated a recent webinar highlighting Questex’s story—recalled that digital revenue used to mean “stuffing as many ads as possible onto the page.” That’s how most publishers thought about monetization.
But for Rhonda and her team, that approach wasn’t sustainable. Advertisers wanted outcomes, not just pageviews.
“We all know a lot of our buyers are marketers. They’ll work on these programs, we’ll collaborate, we’ll get some really great leads and then we hand them off to marketing—and they disappear into the ether of the sales team. You don’t know: were they good leads, did anything close?”
That gap—between generating leads and proving conversion—was the problem Questex set out to solve.
Building an “Account Activation Center”
The solution became what Questex calls its Account Activation Center. The concept is simple but powerful: create an integrated program that goes beyond one-off lead gen.
Instead of just offering a whitepaper download or a webinar, Questex designs holistic journeys tailored to each client’s ICP within Omeda. These journeys use multiple channels—onsite display, newsletters, email, social, and offsite retargeting—and guide prospects step by step down the funnel.
Rhonda explained it this way:
“With account activations, we were really looking to do something more integrated. It’s not just one tactic—it’s awareness, interest, and conversion all working together.”
Content as the Driver of Conversions
At the heart of this approach is content. But not just any content. Questex insists on mapping the right content to the right stage of the funnel.
- Top of funnel: Educational, problem-oriented pieces. “Do you have a problem with X?”
- Mid-funnel: Solution-oriented assets—like webinars or whitepapers.
- Bottom of funnel: Case studies, ROI calculators, and executive interviews.
This structure solves a common challenge Rhonda sees when clients hand over assets.
“We get content from clients that is very sales driven—and you really can’t start with that. You have to start with: what’s going to make your life easier, your job easier, your company more money?”
To support this, Questex even builds content resource centers where all of a client’s assets live in one place. Just like Netflix, Omeda’s content recommendations provide “the next piece of content you might be interested in.”
The Role of First-Party Data & Automation
Data quality is critical to making this work. Questex invested heavily in first-party data cleansing and enrichment so that campaigns reach the right people, not just the right companies.
“It’s not just, ‘Oh, this person is a C-level at a big pharma company.’ It’s: what’s their job function? What’s their role? Is it the right company type? That’s what drives the momentum of the program.”
From there, marketing automation in Omeda’s Odyssey tool takes over. Campaigns can run 15–18 steps long, with branching paths based on engagement:
- If someone opens an email but doesn’t click, they get a follow-up with a new subject line.
- If they consume three or more assets, they’re flagged as a bottom-funnel lead.
- If they stall, they might get a “last chance” offer with high-value content.
As Rhonda described:
“There are multiple journeys based on where that content fits in the funnel. If you do this, you go this way. If you don’t do anything, you move over to another path.”
The automation ensures that no lead falls through the cracks—and that clients receive a prioritized list of prospects based on real engagement.
Real Results That Speak Volumes
Questex’s automation engine isn’t just theory. It consistently delivers measurable impact:
- 200+ leads per month per program.
- One client closed a $300,000 deal directly from leads.
- 1 in 3 prospects make it to mid-funnel.
- Multiple six-month programs have renewed because clients see ongoing ROI.
Reporting is another differentiator. Instead of just handing over a list of names, Questex provides insights into what content each lead consumed and how far they moved through the funnel.
“Our clients love that it’s not just, ‘Here’s your list of leads.’ It’s: here’s the list, here’s what they engaged with, and here’s how to prioritize them.”
For publishing leaders, that’s the holy grail: not just generating leads, but proving their value.
The Publisher’s Opportunity: Start Small, Scale Fast
Questex’s journey holds a clear lesson for other publishers: ads alone won’t cut it anymore. Advertisers want measurable ROI, and audiences expect personalized, valuable experiences.
By investing in clean first-party data, mapping content to the buyer’s journey, and automating engagement across channels, publishers can build renewable revenue engines that drive millions.
Rhonda’s advice to peers just starting out:
“Definitely start small. Don’t build something as complex as what you saw on the screen. Start with what you know about your audience, map it out on a whiteboard, and grow from there.”
Publishers are at a crossroads: keep selling ad slots, or use automation to deliver lasting value to advertisers and audiences alike. Questex chose automation using Omeda—and built a $2M revenue engine.
Ready to design your own automated funnel? Talk to an expert.
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