An op-ed gets published when it makes one clear argument that the publication's readers already care about, written in the author's own voice, backed by evidence, kept under about 1,200 words, and offered to a single outlet at a time. Editors reject most submissions for the opposite reasons: two or three arguments competing for space, a company talking about itself instead of an idea, no real stake in the subject, and a piece that has already run somewhere else. The writing is the easy part. The judgment about what is worth arguing, and to whom, is what decides it.
What is an op-ed, and how is it different from a press release?
An op-ed is a short opinion essay published under a named author's byline, making an argument the author is qualified to make. The name comes from its original position opposite the editorial page, not from "opinion editorial," though that is how most people now read it.
It is the opposite of a press release in almost every way. A release announces a fact about your company and is written to be neutral. An op-ed takes a position on something larger than your company and is written to be persuasive. A release is distributed to many outlets at once. An op-ed is offered to one. A release that mentions your product three times is doing its job. An op-ed that mentions your product even once is usually doing itself harm.
That last point is where most founders go wrong. They treat the op-ed as a longer, classier advertisement. Editors see that immediately, and it is the fastest way into the rejection pile.
What makes an argument worth an editor's page?
The test an editor applies is simple to state and hard to pass: would a reader who has never heard of you learn something or change their mind by reading this? If the honest answer is no, the piece does not run, no matter how well written it is.
A publishable argument usually has three properties.
- It is about one thing. Not your industry, not your journey, not three trends you have noticed. One claim you can state in a single sentence before you write a word of the essay. If you cannot write that sentence, you are not ready to write the piece.
- It is contestable. An argument everyone already agrees with is not an argument, it is a greeting card. A good op-ed takes a position a reasonable person could disagree with, then makes the case anyway.
- You have standing to make it. Editors want arguments that come from somewhere. The New York Times asks guest writers to explain their professional or personal connection to the argument for exactly this reason. Your authority to say the thing is part of why the thing is worth printing.
The strongest op-eds pair a timely news hook with expertise the writer actually has. A cybersecurity founder writing about a breach that was in this week's headlines has both. A cybersecurity founder writing about "the future of trust" has neither a hook nor a boundary on the subject.
Source: The New York Times Opinion guest essay submission guidelines, linked in the article.
What are the actual submission rules?
Outlets publish their requirements, and the requirements are stricter than most first-time writers expect. The New York Times, whose Opinion section is among the most sought-after in the world, states its rules plainly on its guest essay submission page:
- Length. Essays "typically range from 800 to 1,200 words, although we sometimes publish essays that are shorter or longer." Treat 1,200 as a ceiling, not a target.
- Exclusivity. Essays "must be original and exclusive to The New York Times, meaning they cannot have appeared elsewhere in any form in print or online." Posting a draft to your own blog or LinkedIn first disqualifies it.
- Sourcing. Writers are asked to include sources for key assertions, and on acceptance "the guest writer will be asked to submit an annotated copy of the essay, listing the relevant sources for each factual assertion." Every number in your piece needs a real source behind it.
- Response window. "If you do not hear from us within three business days, you should feel free to submit your work elsewhere." That three-day rule is the practical mechanism that lets you work down a list of outlets without burning bridges.
Other major outlets run similar rules: a word ceiling in the four-figure range, a hard originality requirement, and a short exclusivity window. The specific numbers vary, so read the target publication's own submission page before you write, not after. Writing a 1,500-word piece and then looking for a home for it is backwards.
How do you structure the piece?
An op-ed is not a mystery novel. Lead with the point.
Open with the argument, or with the news hook that makes the argument urgent right now, in the first two sentences. Editors and readers both decide whether to keep going almost immediately, and burying your thesis in paragraph four loses them before they reach it.
From there, a reliable shape is: state the claim, concede the strongest objection to it honestly, then spend the body dismantling that objection with evidence and specifics. Conceding the other side is not weakness. It is the single clearest signal that you have actually thought about the question rather than just holding an opinion.
Use concrete examples and real numbers rather than abstraction. "Enterprises are underprepared for this" is an assertion. "The median company took 194 days to detect a breach last year" is an argument, assuming you can source it. End on what should change, not on a summary of what you just said. The reader should finish with a clear sense of what you are asking them to think or do differently.
Keep the whole thing in your own voice. Ghostwritten op-eds that sound like a committee read exactly like what they are, and editors who read hundreds of submissions can tell within a paragraph.
How do you get it in front of the right editor?
The same discipline that governs pitching a journalist a news story governs pitching an op-ed, with one difference: you usually send the finished piece, not a query. Op-ed editors want to read the actual argument.
Pick one outlet whose readers are exactly the people your argument is for, and whose section genuinely runs pieces like yours. A trade publication your buyers read is almost always a better placement than a general-interest title that technically has a larger audience, because the trade outlet's readers are the ones who can act on your idea. Send the piece to the specific op-ed or opinion submission address, with a two or three sentence note saying who you are, why you are the person to make this argument, and why it matters this week. Then wait out the exclusivity window before moving to the next outlet on your list.
Timing is the part people skip. A piece tied to a news event has a shelf life measured in days. Sitting on a finished op-ed for two weeks because you are polishing it is how a publishable argument becomes a stale one.
Is a paid or "contributor" placement the same thing?
No, and the difference matters more than it used to. A genuine op-ed is earned media: an editor read it, judged it worth their readers' attention, and chose to run it with no money changing hands. That editorial judgment is the entire source of its credibility.
A growing number of outlets now sell what looks like the same thing. You pay a membership or a per-article fee, and a piece under your byline appears, often with light or no editing and no disclosure that it was paid for. We cover the specific case of one such program in whether a Forbes Councils membership is worth it. These placements can have uses, but they are closer to advertising than to earned coverage, and an informed reader who realizes a byline was bought discounts it accordingly. Know which one you are buying, and never let a paid placement sit in your mind, or your pitch deck, as if it were earned.
The direct answer, for anyone who read this far
To get an op-ed published, make one contestable argument your target publication's readers already care about, write it in your own voice under about 1,200 words with every fact sourced, offer it exclusively to one outlet at a time, and tie it to something happening now. The hard work is choosing an argument worth an editor's page, which is a question of judgment, not writing.
If you want help turning a founder's expertise into arguments editors actually want to run, rather than another paid byline nobody trusts, get in touch and we will show you how we would approach it.
