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Research · Media & Publishing

Research support for media & publishing teams that can't afford gaps in accuracy

By Zack Pennington, CEO Updated

Whether you're a digital publisher tracking trending topics, an editor vetting sources for a long-form feature, or a content strategist building an editorial calendar around data, research is the work that never fully gets done. The problem isn't a lack of information: it's that pulling, organizing, and verifying it consistently takes hours your senior staff shouldn't be spending. Nacho EAs handle the research layer so your editorial and creative teams stay focused on the work only they can do.

Tools we work with: LinkedIn Sales Navigator Apollo.io SEMrush SimilarWeb

Can a Virtual Assistant handle research for media and publishing companies?

Yes. Nacho matches media and publishing companies with a vetted, 100% US-based Specialist who owns research week after week, not a one-off task. Set a Talent Budget starting at $1,000 a month, begin with a $300 Delegation Strategy Plan, and expect to be matched in about a week.

See how the match works What a Talent Budget costs Book a discovery call

How it works

How your Specialist owns research for media and publishing companies

A Nacho EA assigned to a media or publishing client typically works within tools like Airtable, Google Sheets, Notion, or your existing CMS to organize and deliver research in formats your team can actually use. Day-to-day, that might look like pulling competitor content audits using SEMrush or Ahrefs, aggregating industry data from sources like Statista, Nielsen, or trade publications, or building annotated source lists for journalists and editors working on deadline. Your EA follows a brief or research template you provide, or helps you build one during onboarding, and surfaces findings with clear citations so your team can verify and use them without starting from scratch. Your role is to set the scope and review outputs; the EA handles the digging.

Off your plate

What your Specialist takes off your plate

The most common mistake first-time delegators in media and publishing make is handing off research without a defined output format, your EA can pull excellent data and still deliver something your editor can't use if the structure isn't specified upfront. Before your first assignment, put together a one-page brief that includes the intended use (article, pitch deck, editorial calendar), preferred source types, citation format, and how you want findings organized. Your Client Success Manager can help you build this during onboarding so it becomes a repeatable template rather than something you re-explain every time.

  1. Competitor Content Auditing

    Systematically reviewing competing publications or media brands using tools like SEMrush or BuzzSumo to identify content gaps, top-performing topics, and publishing cadence.

  2. Source Verification and Fact-Checking Support

    Cross-referencing claims, statistics, and quotes against primary sources, academic databases, or credible trade outlets to support editorial accuracy before publication.

  3. Audience and Market Research Compilation

    Pulling demographic, readership, or viewership data from sources like Nielsen, Pew Research, or platform analytics and organizing it into a usable brief or summary doc.

  4. Story and Trend Monitoring

    Setting up and managing Google Alerts, Feedly, or Meltwater keyword tracking to surface relevant news, emerging topics, or industry developments on a recurring basis.

  5. Interview and Expert Source Research

    Identifying and compiling contact information, credentials, and background on potential interview subjects or subject-matter experts relevant to upcoming editorial assignments.

Your stack

Tools our team works with

We adapt to your existing stack, no forced migrations.

Gemini
SimilarWeb
Claude
ChatGPT
G2
Statista

...and many more!

Client proof

Trusted by media and publishing companies

Nacho supports media and publishing companies including An Arm And a Leg, IDSCO, Susan B. Trachman, MD, handling everything from research to broader operational support.

The model

What delegating to Nacho actually looks like

This is ongoing delegation to one vetted, US-based person, not a task posted to a marketplace.

  1. Start with a Delegation Strategy Plan

    A one-time $300 onboarding fee pairs you with a Client Success Manager who maps what to hand off first. See the full process.

  2. Get matched in about a week

    We match you with a vetted, 100% US-based Specialist in your time zone. If the fit is not right, the Nacho Guarantee re-matches you free.

  3. Set a monthly Talent Budget

    Budgets start at $1,000 a month and draw across Executive Assistants from $40/hr, Specialists from $65/hr, and Fractional Executives from $125/hr. Up to $200 of unused budget rolls over each month. See pricing in detail.

  4. Three months, then month to month

    The initial term is three months so the working relationship has time to compound, then it rolls month to month. Book a discovery call to size yours.

Talent Budget

What delegating research costs for media and publishing companies

Drag the sliders to build a monthly plan that fits your workload.

Executive Assistants
from $40/hour
10 hours $400
Specialists
from $65/hour
20 hours $1,300
Fractional Executives
from $125/hour
0 hours $0
Your monthly budget
$1,700

Starting at $1,000/month. One-time $300 onboarding fee includes your Delegation Strategy Plan.

Good questions

Frequently asked questions

Can a Nacho EA access paywalled trade publications or licensed databases we use internally?
Yes: if your organization has existing subscriptions to tools like Cision, LexisNexis, or industry-specific databases, your EA can work within those platforms using credentials you provide. Nacho EAs do not bring their own licensed database access, so the research scope will depend on what your team already has available.
How does this work when research is tied to a tight editorial deadline?
Nacho operates on a flexible hourly model, so you can direct more hours toward research-heavy weeks and fewer during lighter periods, and up to $200 of unused budget above your monthly minimum can roll over to the following month. For deadline-sensitive work, clear turnaround expectations set at the start of each assignment tend to work better than open-ended requests, and your Client Success Manager can help you establish a workflow for that during onboarding.
Is this service a good fit for a small independent publisher, or is it designed for larger media companies?
It works for both, but independent publishers and small editorial teams are often the best fit because research bottlenecks tend to hit hardest when there's no in-house researcher on staff. Monthly talent budgets start at $1,000, which gives a lean team meaningful research capacity without the overhead of a full-time hire.

Ready when you are

Put a researcher behind your editorial team

Nacho matches you with a US-based EA who understands media workflows, and a Client Success Manager who helps you delegate research without losing editorial control. Start with a $1,000/month budget and a Delegation Strategy Plan built around your actual needs.

Not sure yet? See how it works, compare the Executive Assistant, Specialist, and Fractional Executive roles, or read why we stayed 100% US-based.