LoopNet, an online commercial real estate marketplace, last month announced that it has signed distribution agreements with American City Business Journals and GlobeSt.com. The deal calls for LoopNet to electronically deliver commercial property listings to the visitors of these partners' websites. LoopNet members are positioned to benefit from the additional exposure these placements will provide.

American City Business Journals publishes a portfolio of weekly business newspapers and the alliance with LoopNet will include for-sale and for-lease listings in all geographic areas covered by BizJournals.com and BizSpace.com. LoopNet and BizJournals.com will also participate in some information-sharing programs, including news content from BizJournals and commercial property research from LoopNet. BizJournals.com content will appear in the LoopNews email newsletter, which serves a readership of more than 650,000 opt-in LoopNet members. GlobeSt.com is an online national news service that serves the commercial real estate industry. Its alliance with LoopNet includes for-sale listings across the U.S. LoopNet will also use the GlobeSt.com as a brand-building forum.

This is definitely a win-win situation for all of the companies involved. LoopNet, American City Business Journals and GlobeSt.com will all benefit from the additional exposure this distribution agreement affords. LoopNet will be able to widen the net for LoopNet members who post the property listings; these members wouldn't otherwise get their listings in front of visitors to the BizJournals.com, BizSpace.com and GlobeSt.com sites.

Some of the smartest data publishers have discovered that distributing some or all of their content through third parties is an effective way in which to get additional visibility. Oftentimes, these third parties have extremely valuable customers who are unaware of a particular publisher's offerings, but they are promising prospects. If those customers value the relationship with that third party, there's a good chance they'll welcome a new relationship with you, the data publisher. Sometimes a subtle introduction is all it takes.

If you're considering looking for distribution partners for your content, it shouldn't be too difficult a sell. Emphasize the fact that they will get access to very valuable and relevant content that will only bolster the appeal and value of their own offerings. It will also help them bring in new customers as well.