Angle development
Editors reject thinly disguised advertising. We find the genuine story inside your business — a milestone, a data point, a contrarian take — and build the piece around it.
Get featured in Inc. magazine — guaranteed
Inc. • growth companies • founders • operators
Inc. is the masthead for companies in the expensive middle — past startup, not yet enterprise. We guarantee the placement. You approve the outlet and the article before it runs, and you get a committed publication date.
★★★★★5.0 rated · Open 24/7 · 100% confidential · 1,000+ outlets
Inc. at a glanceLive
Inc.Business · growth cos
GuaranteedYes — approved first
You approveDraft before it runs
ReaderFounders & operators
Turnaround7–21 days
Best forScaling businesses
A real editorial article, approved by you before it runs.
Also placing clients in
ForbesUSA TodayBusiness InsiderEntrepreneurNewsweekFast CompanyBloombergInc.Yahoo Finance
The short answer
How do you get into Inc.?
A guaranteed placement, or a pitch with no timeline. We do both — one has a date.
Inc. speaks to operators dealing with hiring, cash flow, systems and scale. That makes it unusually well matched to businesses selling to other growing businesses — your reader is your buyer.
Our route is a guaranteed placement: we name the outlet in writing, you approve the full draft including headline and quotes, and the article runs on a committed date. No retainer, no lock-in, no waiting to see what lands.
What Inc. readers respond to
- Operator stories — a hard pivot, a systems insight, a hiring or culture experiment
- Growth mechanics — how you actually got from there to here
- Cash-flow and margin decisions that other owners are wrestling with
- Contrarian positions on something your industry takes for granted
Worth knowing: Inc. also runs ranked lists such as the Inc. 5000, which are separate annual programmes with their own applications and revenue-growth criteria. They are a different product from an editorial placement. If your numbers make you a candidate, tell us and we will point you at the application as well.
The routes
Every way into Inc., compared
Four doors. They are not equally open, and they do not cost the same.
| Route | What it takes | Realistic timeline | Typical cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Guaranteed placement | You approve the outlet and the full draft; it runs on a committed date. | 7–21 days | Quoted flat, all-in |
| Editorial pitch | A genuinely newsworthy hook and a credible voice. Most pitches go unanswered. | 3–12 months, or never | Free — or a $5k–$25k/mo retainer |
| Sponsored / partner content | A labelled commercial arrangement with the publisher’s brand studio. | 4–12 weeks | Five figures, campaign-based |
A guaranteed placement gives you a date. If you also want to pursue Inc.’s ranked lists, they run on an annual cycle with their own criteria — the two are complementary, not alternatives.
What we do
What a Inc. placement includes
A finished asset you can use the day it publishes.
Full drafting
Our writers produce the article to Inc.’s house style and length. You are not handed a template to fill in.
Your approval
You read the draft, adjust the headline, the quotes and the framing, and sign off. Nothing publishes unseen.
A committed date
Most placements publish 7 to 21 days after you approve the draft.
Permanent editorial URL
The article lives on inc.com with the masthead above it — indexed, citable, and yours to link to forever.
Leverage plan
Exactly where to put the logo, how to work it into your deck, your bio and your ad creative so one article earns more than one impression.
How it works
From call to live article
No retainer, no lock-in, no mystery.
1
Strategy call
We learn the business and the deadline behind the coverage, and give you a straight answer on whether Inc. is the right outlet for it.
2
Confirm the placement
You get the flat, all-in price and the live window in writing. Nothing is booked until you approve it.
3
We write, you approve
We draft; you revise and sign off. Revisions are included.
4
It publishes
The piece goes live on inc.com. You get the URL and the leverage plan the same day.
Why it matters
What a Inc. feature actually does for you
The four things clients tell us changed after publication.
It ends the credibility argument
Buyers, investors and partners stop asking whether you are real. The masthead does the work before your first slide.
It owns your name in search
A high-authority article ranks and stays ranked — the fastest way to put something credible at the top of page one.
AI engines cite it
ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google AI Overviews lean on established publications when summarising a brand. This gives them a source to quote about you.
It travels into documents
Decks, data rooms, petitions, award submissions, speaker applications. One article gets reused for years.
Common situations
Why people come to us for Inc.
An investor or buyer asked where we have been covered
Page one of Google is thin for our founder
A retainer agency produced nothing in six months
We need published material for an immigration filing
Competitors look bigger than they are
AI tools describe us wrongly or not at all
A deal stalled at due diligence
We are launching with zero third-party proof
We were sold a fake placement once already
Who we place
Built for people who need proof now
FoundersSaaS & techFintechE-commerceReal estateInvestorsLaw firmsHealthcareConsultantsAuthorsPublic figuresVisa applicantsAgenciesFranchises
Straight answers
Inc. placement FAQ
Including the parts other agencies skip.
Can you guarantee an Inc. placement?
Yes. We name the outlet in writing before you pay, you approve the full draft including headline and quotes, and the article runs on a committed date.
How much does an Inc. feature cost?
We quote a flat, all-in number covering angle development, writing, revisions and placement, for your specific angle. Call or text (855) 580-0099 for a figure.
Do I approve the article first?
Always, before anything goes live. Revisions are included.
How long does it take?
Most placements publish within 7 to 21 days of your approval of the draft.
What is the difference between a placement and the Inc. 5000?
A placement is an editorial article about you or your business. The Inc. 5000 is a separate annual ranked list with its own application and revenue-growth criteria. They are different products, and many companies do both — the article now, the list when the numbers line up.
What kind of stories work best?
Operator stories: hiring and culture experiments, systems and process, cash-flow decisions, unusual growth mechanics. Straight product announcements are the weakest angle.
Is Inc. better than Entrepreneur?
They overlap heavily. Inc. skews slightly toward companies already scaling; Entrepreneur skews toward earlier-stage founders and small business. Pick on audience fit — we will tell you which reads closer to your buyer.
How do I get started?
Call or text (855) 580-0099 or use our contact form for a straight assessment, a flat price and a publication window.
Keep reading
Related guides
Get into Inc. with a date on the calendar.
Tell us your growth story and your deadline. We come back with a flat price and a committed publication window.