Since most of my life has been spent around the newspaper business, I was giddy when I spoke to my adult children prior to Thanksgiving and they told me how excited they were to go through the holiday newspaper to see all the Black Friday deals. For many searching the Thanksgiving Day newspaper is as much of a tradition on the holiday as the turkey and green Jello salad from grandma.
The Mail Tribune didn’t disappoint holiday ad hunters this year either. There were 45 preprinted inserts and many display ads within the paper to glean through for specials.
Media has become so factionalized that a business needs to take a multi faceted marketing approach. For consumers, we’re placed into a world where nearly everywhere we look there’s a business who wants to introduce us to their product or service in an ad. This has caused an advertising aversion where consumers want to “click” out of, through or bypass anything that resembles an ad or commercial. We believe we only want to see advertising when it’s on our terms.
So, now consider advertising medium where advertising is actually welcomed; where the information given in the advertising is often one of the reasons people read and use the medium; and where advertising is considered helpful in making buying decisions. Sounds like a great place to advertise doesn’t it?
That’s what you get with the newspaper.
Consider the following:
Newspaper advertising is selective, not intrusive.
Newspapers are the medium shoppers use most for shopping in an average week. Nearly six in ten (59%) use newspapers, exceeding others like television (38%) ad appearing in search engines (18%) or ads on general interest websites (15%) – (MORI Research 2009 newspapermedia.com)
86% of consumers used media to help plan shopping or make purchasing decisions in the past 7 days. Newspapers ranked first as a source by 59% of adults, followed by in store displays, direct mail, television, magazines, e-mail, radio and search. 80% of newspaper readers report looking at advertising when reading the paper. – (MORI Research 2009 Newspapermedia.com)
41% of adults report that newspapers are the media most used to check out ads; more than all electronic media combined (internet, television, catalogs, magazines and radio).
Shoppers rate newspapers first of all media for:
- Bringing sales to attention
- Most valuable for planning shopping
- Most believable and trust worthy
- Look forward to this type of ad
- Prefer for receiving advertising information (MORI Research 2009 newspapermedia.com)
It makes sense to associate your advertising in media where consumers welcome information about your business and not trying to avoid it. To associate your business in a positive consumer medium like the daily newspaper will help build success. Ready to learn more? Let’s talk.
Greg Smith Account Executive gsmith@mailtribune.com
The business world is constantly evolving as competition gets tougher and small business owners have to be more progressive than ever before just to keep up with the competition.
The answer is, to Like.
I have a confession to make: I’m a sucker for out-of-the-box thinking. I get so excited when I see a company doing something new that I can’t help but participate in any way I can. I do this because I like to see people taking advantage of the opportunities they already have, because it’s fun, and because I believe that every business owner should be doing whatever they can to make a lasting impression on their customers and potential customers.
In any business, there will be those times of the year that are lackluster, when we know that no matter what we do, our customers will most likely stay away and spend their money elsewhere. Businesses brace for these times, as many downturns are cyclical in nature and come the same time every year. Other fluctuations are less predictable, like an unexpected downturn when a competitor opens up nearby, eroding the market. Many business owners are surprised to learn that even a move across town will change their customer’s shopping habits. For whatever reason, if you find that business is slow, and you can’t come up with a plan to turn it around, don’t despair. Here are some creative ways to combat the really dismal days that try our souls.
Southern Oregon Media Group – “Online Boot Camp”
It is a Pay Per Click (PPC) program. No matter what your budget, you will only pay when customers click on your ads. Google AdWords allows you to advertise your website by the use of ads, and again you only pay if people click on your ads.
As a business owner, if you have not looked into co-op advertising opportunities, you may be missing out on a great source of funding. Co-op is an agreement between a manufacturer and a retailer to share the cost of advertising the manufacturer’s products. Using co-op dollars to advertise your products can draw traffic to your store and strengthen your relationships with your retail suppliers. There are different co-op terms and plans available depending on the manufacturer and how funds are earned through product purchases.
Over coffee recently, I was talking to a good friend about facebook. I mentioned that I had joined in November 2007, and it was so entrenched in my life that I couldn’t imagine not checking in to see what’s what at least once a day. “Four years? You’ve been on facebook four YEARS?” That was her reply. I think that almost qualified me for Foreverland. Back then it was a nifty tool to use to throw virtual sheep at people in offices across the hallway. Now it’s one of the most useful ways to engage with people interested in your business.
Search Engine Optimization = SEO. It is the process of improving the volume and quality of traffic to your website from search engines like Google, Yahoo & Bing via ‘organic’ search.
