You do not need to imagine what a sponsored article on WCIA looks like. You can open wcia.com today and read them: article after article with a local business's name in the headline, published on the region's own news site. Hospital systems are there. So are a fiber company, a fabric shop, a siding company and a towing company. The only thing nobody has published is the explanation of how a business gets one. This page is that explanation, complete: the format, the route, what decides the price, and the one email that starts it.
The short answer: yes, a Central Illinois business can get featured on WCIA
Yes, and the proof is sitting on the site. Sponsored articles for local businesses already run on wcia.com in a clearly labelled form that any reader can open today, under headlines that begin "Sponsored content:" and name the business. The route to yours is a paid article placement arranged through us at PressFeature. This is not pitching a story to the newsroom. It is the same labelled article format the site already publishes, with your business in it, reviewed by the outlet before it goes live and permanent once published.
You need a business worth writing about and one email. The rest of this page walks you through the visible product and the exact steps, so nothing about the decision rests on trust alone.
Ready to get your business on WCIA?
Send us your business name, your website, and what the article should be about. You get a fit confirmation and your individual quote back by email.
uzairasad@pressfeature.orgOne email starts it. No form, no obligation.
What you actually get: your business in a "Sponsored content" headline on wcia.com
Picture the finished thing, in the most concrete form of any station on this page. A live article page on wcia.com carries your business's name in the headline, in the same recognisable form local readers already see every week, with your story in the text beneath it: what you do, why Central Illinois customers choose you, and how to reach you.
Then the article works the way every business already in that run uses it. You send the link to the customer in Springfield or Decatur who is deciding between you and a competitor. You add WCIA to the "As Featured On" row on your own website, and the claim is verifiable in one click, because the page is really there. In a region where the sponsored run sits in plain sight, your absence from it is the only version of this purchase that looks like a gap.
Why WCIA carries weight in Central Illinois
WCIA first broadcast on 14 November 1953 and is the CBS station for the Central Illinois region, licensed to Champaign, with studios on South Neil Street in downtown Champaign and a bureau in Springfield. That two-city footprint matters: the station's habit covers both the Champaign-Urbana side of the region and the capital side, which is how Central Illinois actually does business.
The station also built the region's defining lifestyle stage. ciLiving, its daily hour-long lifestyle programme showcasing local businesses and organisations, has been on air since 2011 and was described at its launch as the market's first hour-long 4 p.m. news programme in lifestyle form. The figures sit under that standing: in our outlet directory, wcia.com carries a Domain Authority of 61 and roughly 516,600 monthly organic visits. This is the region's established station, and its website is where the region reads.
Inside the format: the sponsored articles already on wcia.com
This is the anatomy section, and it can be unusually specific because the evidence is public. On wcia.com, sponsored articles run under the ciLiving strand with headlines in the form "Sponsored content: [Business]". The write-up is supplied by the sponsor and the page carries a sponsored-content disclaimer, so every reader can see exactly what the piece is and who stands behind it.
Look at who is in the run, because it teaches the real lesson of this format. Alongside hospital systems sit a fiber company, a fabric shop, a siding company and a towing company: ordinary Central Illinois businesses, not national brands. The format is not a velvet-roped product for big advertisers. It is how local firms in this market present themselves on the region's news site, in the open, under a label.
A placement arranged through us takes that same form: a full article page about your business, labelled as paid content, reviewed by the outlet before publishing, permanent once live, with links to your website carrying sponsored attributes under paid content rules. Anyone promising a plain editorial dofollow link instead is describing a different, imaginary product.
The TV segment and the article are two different buys
Because the sponsored run lives under the ciLiving name, one confusion is worth clearing. ciLiving is a television programme, and a segment on it is a broadcast appearance: it airs, and then the show moves on. The sponsored articles are web pages on wcia.com. They stay live, they can be found in search, and they can be sent to a customer at the exact moment a customer is deciding.
Some businesses do both, and the two buys complement each other. But if you can only hold one asset afterwards, the article is the one still working next year. This page sells the article. Our guide to which news outlets accept sponsored content explains how the written route compares across outlets.
Who a WCIA article is right for, and who should skip it
This placement fits Central Illinois businesses, and the visible sponsored run is your fit mirror: healthcare providers, home services, retailers and trades are already in the format, presenting themselves to the same customers you serve. If businesses like yours are visibly buying this, the honest conclusion is that the format was built for businesses like yours.
It does not fit a business with no Central Illinois customers. If nobody who matters to you reads wcia.com, spend the money where your customers actually are. We would rather tell you that now than sell you the wrong placement.
How publishing on WCIA works, step by step
Step 1: Email us. Write to uzairasad@pressfeature.org with your business name, your website, and what the article should be about. That email is the whole application. For the article, you contact us, and you deal with one email address throughout; we handle the placement with the outlet.
Step 2: Fit confirmation and your quote. We confirm your business and topic fit the outlet, and you receive your individual quote for this placement.
Step 3: The article. You can supply the article yourself, or we arrange the writing for you. Either way, the draft goes to the outlet for review before anything is published.
Step 4: Review and go live. The outlet reviews the article. Once approved, it is published on wcia.com in the labelled sponsored form, fast once the review is complete.
Step 5: Your live link. You receive the live link to your article, yours to send to customers and add to your site from that day on.
Your protection is stated plainly because it is part of the arrangement before you pay anything: payment is in full in advance, and if the article does not go live, you receive a full refund, in writing.
What decides the price, the honest limits, and how to start
There is no public price for a WCIA sponsored article, because each placement is quoted individually. The deciding factors are the ones that differ between businesses: the scope of the article, whether you supply it or we arrange the writing, the placement specifics, and timing. Our guide to how much a sponsored article costs explains that factor model in full, and one email returns your exact figure with no obligation.
The limits, plainly, and this format makes them easy to state honestly. The article is paid content, visibly labelled in this very format; it is not editorial coverage and not the WCIA newsroom endorsing your business. No one can guarantee rankings, traffic or sales from a placement like this. What it does is put your business in the same permanent, labelled run your competitors and neighbours are already in, on the news site this region reads.
If your business belongs in that run, the next step is a single email. Write to uzairasad@pressfeature.org with your business name, your website, and the story the article should tell. Our services page covers the wider picture of what we do, but the WCIA article itself begins with that email.
Get your business on WCIA
One email with your business name, your website, and the story you want told. Your fit confirmation and individual quote come back by email.
uzairasad@pressfeature.orgFull refund in writing if your article does not go live.
Frequently asked questions
How can my business get featured on WCIA?
Email us with your business and story. We confirm fit, quote individually, place the article in the labelled sponsored form wcia.com already runs, after the outlet's review, and send you the live link.
How much does a WCIA sponsored article cost?
No public price exists, because each placement is quoted individually. The factors are scope, production, placement specifics and timing, and one email returns your quote with no obligation.
How do I get on ciLiving on WCIA?
ciLiving is the station's TV lifestyle programme, and segment appearances are a broadcast arrangement. The permanent written route is a sponsored article on wcia.com, which is what we arrange.
Does WCIA publish sponsored content on wcia.com?
Yes, visibly and routinely. Articles run under "Sponsored content:" headlines in the ciLiving strand, with a sponsored-content disclaimer on the page.
How do businesses get a sponsored story on WCIA?
Through a paid placement in that labelled article form, arranged by email through us, with the outlet reviewing the article before it is published.
Who do I contact at WCIA about sponsored content?
For the article, you contact us. We handle the placement with the outlet and you deal with one email address throughout.
How long does a sponsored article stay on wcia.com?
The article placements are permanent pages. They do not end when a segment airs, and if yours does not go live you receive a full refund in writing.
Can a small business in Champaign buy a feature on WCIA?
Yes. The visible sponsored run includes small local firms alongside hospital systems, and fit with the Central Illinois market is the test, not size.
Disclosure: PressFeature sells article placements on WCIA, and this page is our own marketing content, published to explain the placement honestly. The sponsored examples described are format evidence from the site's public pages, not PressFeature clients. Published October 2026. Last reviewed: October 2026.