Pressing Issue November 2008
Joel Campbell Legislative Monitor Bill would reduce Truth-in-Taxation ads A legislative interim committee will consider a bill Nov. 12 that, if passed, would result in fewer truth in taxation ads appearing in newspapers. The bill would require entities to publish one ad announcing the truth in taxation hearing and then allow entities in a county to combine their second notice into one ad published by the county. The sponsor, Gage Froerer,R-Huntsville, says it would help save money and redundancy in the advertising process. To view the bill click here http://www.le.state.ut.us/asp/interim/Commit.asp?Year=2008&Com=INTREV. If UPA members oppose this scheme then they should contact Froerer ASAP at gfroerer@utah.gov or Home Phone: 801-745-0505, Work Phone: 801-621-0505, Cell Phone: 801-391-4233, and/or testify on Wednesday, Nov. 12, at 8 a.m. in Room C445 at the Capitol. Open meeting minutes Meeting Oct. 16, The Government Operations Interim Committee approved the concept of requiring public bodies to make available recordings of public meetings within 72 hours and post an "unapproved version" of the minutes when they are prepared for the public body. They do not have to be approved in a public meeting. They will vote on the final bill is scheduled for Nov. 12. The committee voted unanimously rejecting a call from the Utah Special Service Districts that minutes only become public after they are approved by a public body. Utah Legal Notices Web site moves forward The UPA board has approved $5995.00 to contract with Media One to create a new Utah Legal Notices Web site. Programming is underway and Utah Press newspapers have provided test feeds of legal notices. Here is a link to a beta site: http://legals.mediaoneutah.com/ Legal Line Rate Bill UPA members are asking Sen. Kevin Van Tassel, R-Vernal, to run a bill in the general session that would remove the price control on legal notices for third- and fourth-class cities. Mark this date The Utah Press Association has reserved the Capitol Rotunda for a legislative reception on Thursday, Feb. 26 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. To avoid a fee, we also need to consider some public education component to this event. We can draw up specific plans at the next board meeting. I would like to have some computers featuring the Public Notice Web site.
Newspapers: Protect your people
Newspaper employees working along federal highways will soon be required to wear a specific type of high-visibility safety vest.
Department of Transportation regulation, which goes into effect on November 24, requires media representatives who work within the rights-of-way of federal-aid highways to wear a specific type of high-visibility vest. This applies to all newspaper employees, not just reporters and photographers.
The required garment (see photo) is an ANSI Class II- 2004-107 safety vest. UPA is offering them for sale at cost. The price is $16. plus sales tax and shipping for sizes large and X large. Even larger sizes are available by special order and will be priced accordingly.
To order from UPA, please download this form: Safety Vest Order Form on the UPA Website. We have some in stock but special orders take 3 to 6 weeks to get to you.
CapitolBeat 2008
www.capitolbeat.org
Raleigh, NC
What: The Association of Capitol Reporters and Editors annual conference.
When: Nov. 13 though 16, 2008
Where: Raleigh, NC
Venues: The new Marriott City Center and other downtown locations.
Capitolbeat's annual conference offers reporters a chance to hone their craft, catch up on the latest storytelling tools and get insight from leaders in a variety of public policy fields.
We'll meet for the 2008 conference just after an historic general election campaign. Our sessions will help you make sense of the election outcomes and beginning planning for the very interesting legislative year ahead. Mental health, education, the financial market meltdown, corruption, criminal justice, immigration, polling and more are on the agenda.
This year's conference will also include a strong emphasis on multi-media tools. As the use of online has grown for both print and broadcasters, traditional journalists find themselves telling stories in different ways. This conference will help you learn how to use new tools and put them to work in your traditional reporting and online.
There isn't anywhere else statehouse reporters and others who write about government will find this mix of important topical briefings combined with instruction on the new nuts and bolts of the trade.
For more information, please log onto www.capitolbeat.org.
SPECIAL NOTE: We know the economy is bad. Capitolbeat is able to offer some financial help for those who apply. For more information, see the website or contact conference chairman Mark Binker at (919) 832-5549 or mbinker@gmail.com; or CapitolBeat President Laura Leslie, statehouse reporter for WUNC radio at (919) 831-9862 or lleslie@mail.wuncfm.unc.edu.
TWO LOCAL NEWSPAPERS, PRINT SHOPS COMBINE
The owners and publishers of two local newspapers and print shops
announced today that The Morgan County News has acquired the newspaper
known locally as “The Weekly,” as well as the print shop known as Hot
Copies.
“We are tremendously excited about this new venture,” said Chris
VanCampen, publisher of The Morgan County News. “The acquisition of The
Weekly, as well as the full-service print shop capabilities will enable
us to provide a total package for our advertisers.”
Brandon Winchester, owner of Hot Copies, is happy about the merger as
well. “We have loved doing business here in Morgan County, and we plan
to continue to do so,” said Winchester. “We just feel like we want to
move on to other projects.” Winchester indicated that Hot Copies will
close its doors on Thursday, October 23, 2008.
Long-time customers of Hot Copies needn’t worry, however. The Winchester
family will still be available for a month or two to help with the
transition to the new shop. They will be working with the staff of The
Morgan County News’ print division to impart their knowledge and experience.
Look for a format change for “The Weekly” in the near future. Although
the publication will remain a free distribution newspaper, it will
feature more local content, and likely will become a monthly
publication. Advertisers and contributors to The Weekly will be
contacted in the very near future in order to work out the details of
the transition
Editor’s notes on letters – a sure-fire way to squelch the exchange of ideas
By Jim Pumarlo
Letters to the editor truly are the lifeblood of editorial pages. Letters underscore the value of editorial pages and represent an active citizenry.
But the letters column, if it is to serve its greatest purpose, must be monitored or it can quickly become nondescript. The dos and don’ts of letters should be well understood by everyone at the newspaper, and it is equally important to let readers know the ground rules.
Too often, editors give free reign to letters and are hesitant to impose restrictions on “free expression” of ideas. In reality, a letters column without policies may prove more detrimental than beneficial to the exchange of ideas.
Here’s a list of basic dos and don’ts to ensure that the letters column will remain relevant:
Limit length: Readers have limited attention span for lengthy stories. The same is true for letters. Editors are doing the writers a favor by imposing limits; 350 words is a good starting point.
Limit frequency of authors: Individuals should be limited to one letter per month, except in the case of rebuttals (see next item).
Be ready for rebuttals: Exchanges among writers should be limited to two letters from each individual on a particular subject – in other words, a letter and a rebuttal, plus a counter-rebuttal from each writer. After that, the readers can carry on their conversation privately. Writers will complain that the other person “had the last word,” but that always will be the case – no matter how long an exchange continues.
Give priority to local opinions: In general, letters should be accepted from local readers only. An exception might be a letter on a local topic from a recognized expert who lives outside the area.
Reject mass-produced letters: The churn of orchestrated campaigns is increasing, and not only during election season. Mass-produced letters – even if submitted by a local resident – should be rejected.
Verify letters: All letters should be verified prior to publication, preferably by a phone call. Editors should require name, full address and telephone number on all submissions.
Reject thank-you letters: Publication of “thank yous” dilutes the letters column. There are exceptions, of course, such as in the stranded out-of-town motorist who wants to pass along appreciation for the after-hours assistance by a local service station. In most instances, however, “thank you” letters are a shortcut for organizations that seek to save the time and expense of writing a personal note to individuals who contributed to the success of an event.
Letters are no substitute for news stories: Only in rare circumstances should editors accept letters promoting an event or program. Once you say “yes” to one, it’s nearly impossible to say “no” to another.
Be conscious of display: Be sensitive to the prominence letters receive – how they are displayed – especially those that present opposing views on the same issue.
Edit aggressively: Make readers aware that letters are edited aggressively, especially those that repeat themes.
Stick to public issues: Letters should be restricted to public issues or issues that come before public bodies. Compliments and/or criticism of private organizations and businesses are not regular subjects for letters.
Identify authors where appropriate: Letters should carry a note identifying the writer if it’s germane to the letter. For example, a writer might be identified as a nuclear engineer if the letter addresses nuclear energy.
Newspapers have the opportunity to weigh in on issues. Vibrant editorials will prompt a healthy exchange of opinions – if editors do not overstep their bounds. In other words, resist the temptation to add a postscript to letters. Editor’s notes might be appropriate to correct an error in fact or a grossly overstated accusation, but they should not be tacked on to defend or restate the newspaper’s position.
Take the instance when an editor went so far as to discredit a writer in an editorial the same day the letter appeared. The display of one-upmanship was duly noted by another reader in a follow-up letter, landing an appropriate blow to the newspaper’s mission of fair play.
Jim Pumarlo writes, speaks and provides training on Community Newsroom Success Strategies. He is author of “Votes and Quotes: A Guide to Outstanding Election Coverage” and “Bad News and Good Judgment: A Guide to Reporting on Sensitive Issues in a Small-Town Newspaper.” He can be contacted at www.pumarlo.com.
THE UN-COMFORT ZONE with Robert Wilson
Don’t Get Stuck in Reverse
I love this quote by Gandalf the Gray from the book Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien, “When we despair we cease to choose well. We give in to short cuts.” It’s so true and we all know that we have been guilty of it at some point in our lives.
It reminds me of the Dot Com Bubble that burst in March of 2000 and caused the stock market to crash, I remember those heady days of “irrational exuberance” as Federal Reserve chairman, Alan Greenspan referred to it. It seemed like everyone was worried they were going to miss out on the digital revolution. They were motivated by the dreams of easy money. It was all about taking a short cut.
Several start ups approached me to help them promote their new Internet businesses in exchange for stock options. I looked at a couple of cobbled together companies that were little more than a guy with a website and the hopes of mining some venture capital. The idea was to generate web page hits with a clever name or gimmick, sell a ton of stock at the Initial Public Offering, then retire a millionaire. I decided to stick with those willing to pay in cash.
After the burst, I read about a repo man in Silicon Valley who repossessed the expensive cars of former Internet millionaires. He reported that he frequently found dozens of losing lottery tickets in the cars -- evidence that the former car owners were acting out of despair and looking for short cuts back to the elusive wealth that had slipped from their grasp.
Beverly Sills, the famous opera soprano, once said, “There are no shortcuts to any place worth going.” But, too often when times are good we pile on the responsibilities. Later on when we encounter adversity, we look backwards instead of forward. We attempt to go back to where we enjoyed success in the past even when it is counter-productive to our current goal.
In my seminars on innovation I conduct a fun exercise that demonstrates how we frequently feel we must go backwards before we can go forward. A volunteer from the audience is selected and sent out of the room. The audience chooses a simple behavior they want the volunteer to do (like jumping up and down on their left foot). What makes it fun is that the volunteer must guess the behavior. The audience can only help by saying the word, “yes” when the volunteer does anything that comes close to the desired behavior. They are not allowed to say, “no” or give any other hints.
Once the volunteer performs the desired behavior, the audience rewards it with a round of applause. I ask for a second volunteer, but this time we change the rules after the person leaves the room. When the desired behavior is reached, the audience goes silent, says nothing, and gives no applause. Since the volunteer is no longer getting feedback in the form of “yes” he or she will go back and repeat behaviors that did elicit a “yes.” The audience, however, remains silent.
As we watch the volunteer, we can see despair forming on his or her face. The volunteer will then go further backward to find a previous behavior that generated success. Eventually the volunteer quits going backwards and starts initiating brand new behaviors in the hopes of regaining another, “yes.” It is after several new behaviors are performed that the audience is signaled to applaud and reward the volunteer for his or her efforts. The purpose of the exercise is to force the volunteer to backtrack to the point that they realize success can only be found by moving forward.
In life, the trick is to stay focused even when our luck seems to be changing. We may have to slow down or make changes in our methods, but the goal must remain the same. Henry David Thoreau observed, “We rarely hit where we do not aim.” In other words, if you’re moving backward you are moving away from your goal... and it’s hard to hit a target when you’re facing the wrong direction.
Robert Evans Wilson, Jr. is a motivational speaker and humorist. He works with companies that want to be more competitive and with people who want to think like innovators. For more information on Robert's programs please visit www.jumpstartyourmeeting.com.
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How to write better headlines
By John Foust
Raleigh, NC
In the 1980s, International Paper ran an award-winning “Power of Print” ad campaign, featuring a series of educational subjects – each delivered by a well-known literary figure. Here’s a sampling:
- “How to write a business letter” by Malcolm Forbes
- “How to read faster” by Bill Cosby
- “How to write with style” by Kurt Vonnegut
- “How to read an annual report” by Jane Bryant Quinn
- “How to enjoy poetry” by James Dickey
- “How to make a speech” by George Plimpton
- “How to improve your vocabulary” by Tony Randall
What do these headlines have in common? By using the two simple words “how to,” each ad clearly states a benefit. Readers instantly know what they will gain by reading the rest of the ads. If you want to accomplish the same thing in your ad copy, here are a few points to keep in mind:
1. Start with a relevant benefit. The vital first step in the process is to gather as much information as possible about the product or service you are advertising. Ask questions, probe for details, and look at the situation from the target audience’s point of view. Although all features have at least one corresponding benefit, remember that not every benefit will be a deal-maker to your audience.
Are your typical buyers most concerned about selection? Price? Location? Find the benefit that is most important to your audience, and build the advertising around it.
2. Use the words “how to.” These two words lead directly to a benefit – by way of a verb that puts the reader in the driver’s seat. You’ve seen this strategy in book titles, such as Dale Carnegie’s “How to Win Friends and Influence People.” The title (1) tells you exactly what the book is about, and (2) promises a benefit.
3. Be specific. The words “how to” will not work unless they are connected to a specific statement, as illustrated in this simple progression:
a) “How to save money” and “How to save a lot” are vague and ineffective.
b) “How to save money on your new car” is a little better because it at least pinpoints a product category.
c) “How to save money on your new Widget-mobile” is another step in the right direction because it identifies a name brand.
d) “How to save $2,000 on your new Widget-mobile” is even better. It clearly states what the ad is about, and promises a specific benefit.
When you’re talking about saving money, it’s always smart to specify a percentage or a dollar amount.
4. Consider dropping “how to.” One of the most interesting things about this “how to” copywriting technique is that it can work without the words “how to.” Crazy as it may sound, you can often eliminate the opening without changing the meaning. For example, “Save $2,000 on your new Widget-mobile” says the same thing as “How to save $2,000 on your new Widget-mobile.”
Headline-writing is an important advertising skill. You have to be willing to tweak the words until they’re just right.
COPYRIGHT LINE
(c) Copyright 2008 by John Foust. All rights reserved.
CREDIT LINE
E-mail John Foust for information about his training videos for ad departments: jfoust@mindspring.com
Take time to plan the editorial page
By Jim Pumarlo
News content is strongest when editors and reporters routinely identify those stories and events that will warrant their attention. The value of an editorial calendar is twofold.
Some events occur every year and this gives opportunity to look for fresh angles for coverage. City festivals, local government budget hearings and United Way campaigns fall into this category. Plus, by having this coverage in hand, newsrooms are better prepared to handle the unexpected issues and events certain to surface.
Absent from planning in many newsrooms, however, is the role of the editorial page. As a result, many newspapers fall short on writing editorials on local issues. Among the most common reasons cited by editors: “I don’t have the time,” or “I can’t think of anything to write about.”
Generating ideas is the first step in writing editorials. Researching the subject is step two, and crafting the words is almost the easiest part of the process. Though many editors struggle with identifying ideas, it shouldn’t be that difficult.
Think of the many items that cross your desk that provide fodder for commentary. Here’s one checklist of ideas:
Set the agenda: Craft resolutions for your community. Identify the challenges and suggest actions. This can be done for local government bodies. It might be appropriate as well for certain civic organizations, such as the United Way, that are integral to local quality of life. Or identify communitywide issues that invite cooperation by the public and private sectors. Some of these editorials can run in the spirit of New Year’s resolutions; others can be published in conjunction with goal-setting by various groups.
Follow the agenda: Monitor the agendas of governing bodies. A periodic check-up is fodder for news stories. Editorials might applaud and acknowledge the accomplishments, or ask why the lack of progress on some initiatives.
Scrutinize budgets: Governing bodies put immense time into developing budgets, and newspapers routinely report the numbers. An editorial can further analyze budgets. Where is spending increasing the most, and is it appropriate? Are some interests getting shortchanged? What is the tax impact and are the arguments for or against more spending persuasive?
Citizen recognition: Organizations often recognize citizens. A news story will identify the standard accomplishments, and an editorial might spotlight a particular achievement that will have long-lasting impact on a community. Use the editorial page at any time of year to highlight extraordinary and noteworthy achievements.
Fresh perspectives on regular events: Most editors feel obligated to acknowledge recurring events such as high school graduation. Including this in editorial calendars is a reminder to look for fresh angles. For example, for high school commencement, chronicle the academic and athletic achievements of a particular class. College graduation is an opportunity to praise the students but also remind them of the challenges of competing in a global economy. And what better way to observe the nation’s birthday by encouraging individuals to step forward for public service.
Localize state, national reports: Myriad state and national reports provide fodder to localize the statistics and talk to community leaders about the issues. What does the report from Kids Count Data Book produced by the Annie E. Casey Foundation mean for community vitality? The Tax Foundation releases a report on Tax Freedom Day, a state-by-state accounting on the day when Americans have earned enough money to pay off their total tax bill for all levels of government. Seize the opportunity to remind citizens to monitor government spending.
Elections: Politics at all levels – from local to state to national – offer ample opportunities for commentary. What’s at stake for your region in terms of issues at the state legislature or U.S. Congress? Check in periodically with lawmakers; have they delivered on their promises? Lobbying has reached the extremes where local government is lobbying state and federal government; what is the return on the investment? Every election is an opportunity to give a “thumbs up” to those individuals who you believe will best advance the interests of a community.
Year in review: Select the top local stories of the year and state their importance.
This list is by no means exhaustive, and many newsrooms already pursue news stories on these topics. Editorials can provide additional interpretation and be the springboard for a lively exchange of ideas by readers.
Jim Pumarlo regularly writes, speaks and provides training on Community Newsroom Success Strategies. He is author of “Votes and Quotes: A Guide to Outstanding Election Coverage” and “Bad News and Good Judgment: A Guide to Reporting on Sensitive Issues in a Small-Town Newspaper.” He can be contacted at www.pumarlo.com.
Well-run Web site won’t hurt print product
By Gary Sosniecki
I hear it time and time again when I talk to small newspapers that still don’t have Web sites:
“I’m afraid a Web site will hurt my print product.”
These publishers tell me they’re afraid their newspaper will lose circulation if they start giving away content on the Internet. They also say they’re afraid any online advertising they sell will cost them print ads.
What these publishers should be afraid of is what could happen to their newspapers if they don’t have a Web site.
Remember the shopper invasion of the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s? Small newspapers that didn’t take competing TMC’s seriously often saw their ad bases erode. Smart publishers who recognized the threat started their own shoppers to keep advertisers from jumping ship to a competing shopper. Maybe their newspapers lost a little advertising, maybe they lost a few readers who were more interested in ads than news, but they lost them to their own shoppers instead of a competitor’s.
The same is true with the Internet.
Today, a newspaper -– even the smallest newspaper -- needs its own Web site to prevent readers and advertisers from jumping ship to a competing Web site.
Don’t think you have online competition? Guess again. Go to your favorite search engine and type in the name of your town and state.
Scroll down the list of results and pick out the competitors. See the stories about your town on the local Topix site? See the community-calendar items from your town on the local American Towns site? See the ads local businesses are running with Merchant Circle? Craigslist may not be in your town yet, but Topix and American Towns are, and a few of your advertisers might be trying out MerchantCircle or something similar.
Even scarier are those towns where news-and-information Web sites have sprung up in competition with the local newspaper. I learn of another one almost every week.
So, yes, you need your own Web site. The key is to minimize its impact on your newspaper. The best weekly-newspaper Web sites complement their newspapers rather than compete with them.
If you update your Web site only once a week, you’re competing with your newspaper. If you post too many of the same stories on your Web site, you’re competing with your newspaper.
But if you’re selective about what you post, if you don’t duplicate too much of your print product online, if some of your online news is unique to your Web site, you will complement your newspaper and minimize any loss of readership.
Some suggestions for your main weekly update:
--Post major front-page news, two or three stories. Don’t post routine crime news.
--Post your main editorial or personal column. Don’t post letters to the editor or your “yesteryear” column.
--Post varsity sports from the local high school, but not junior varsity or lower.
--Post full obits. Don’t post births, weddings and engagements.
Complement your newspaper by posting content you might not have room to run in print. Some examples:
--Post photos of your high-school sports teams and schedules at the start of each season. Leave them up all season. If you’re really ambitious, update the schedules with the final scores as the season progresses.
--As candidates file for local elections – city councils, school boards, county commissions – update a master list online and keep it posted until the election.
--Post a transcript of local candidate forums. Even better, post a video clip of each candidate answering a key question.
Of course, nothing distinguishes your Web site from your newspaper more than the breaking news you can post online: Fires, floods, major storms, death notices, sports scores, boil orders, weather-related school closings, election results on election night. With each online update, remind readers that they’ll get a full report in the next edition of your newspaper.
In 2001, I coordinated the launch of a redesigned Web site for a small daily in Missouri. Three years later, I launched the first Web site of a small weekly my wife and I owned.
Neither time did our newspaper lose any readers – or advertisers – because of our Web site.
I can’t guarantee that your newspaper won’t lose some readers or advertisers if you launch a Web site.
But if you do, you’re better off losing them to your own Web site than to someone else’s.
Gary Sosniecki is a regional sales manager for Townnews.com specializing in weekly newspapers. He has owned three weekly newspapers and published a small daily in Missouri during a 34-year newspaper career. He may be reached at gsosniecki@townnews.com.
----
Gary Sosniecki Regional Sales Manager
TownNews.com 1510 47th Ave. Moline, IL 61265 Office: 1-800-293-9576, ext. 1012 Cell: 573-470-4840
gsosniecki@townnews.com http://www.townnews.com
Self-serve ad ordering: cash while you sleep
By Jim Townsend
If your Web site doesn’t let classified advertisers build, book and buy ads online, you could be missing out big time. In most cases, self-service advertising sales lead to improved customer service, bigger buys, increased revenue and reduced costs.
When customers order ads off your Web site, they’re in control. If upsells are available, they’re more likely to pick those which they think will help their ads get noticed. Such upsells are hard sells in a phone room. Customers end up spending more and are generally happier with the results. And it all happens 24/7, rather than restricted to business hours.
If you operate an Internet pure-play, you might think you’ve got this nailed. There’s always room for improvement. If you’re a broadcaster, pay particular note because classifieds aren’t core to your culture. If you operate a printing press, managing Web-to-print sales add a degree of complexity and expense, but it’s worth doing well. If you’re offering category-specific, free private-party ads online, why wouldn’t you want to include a print upsell?
We’re not suggesting self-service is slam-dunk. There are pitfalls you should avoid. It’s easy to make the system too simple or too cumbersome to be useful. Here are a few best practices. If you’re already offering self-serve, this guide just might help you improve your results.
■ Test and retest. Use your system before turning it loose. Focus groups and usability studies can identify problems. Use an external mystery shopper to periodically test your system from the perspective of a novice advertiser.
■ Promote and promote. Sites that creatively marketed their self-service application reported higher revenues and usage.
■ Upsell! We’ve seen too many sites that could have presented upsell options at various points of the ad-creation process, but did not. To be told, for example, that we would “save $X per day” by choosing a 10-day run instead of seven, it might convince us to spend more and do more. Upsell opportunities are everywhere – don’t waste them.
■ Offer tips and customer-service help. Where possible, give advertisers tips or show related ads to help them compose a more effective ad. Include design and writing tips. Our favorite systems weave the tips right into the ad-creation process.
■ Offer a “shopping basket.” In many cases, placing multiple ads is a hassle that requires users repeat the process from square one. Being able to park each ad in a file or “basket,” create additional ads, and pay for them all at once is a convenience that might lead to greater sales.
■ Trust, but verify. An advertiser’s credit card or other form of payment should be verified before an ad runs. There are many verification-service providers on the ’Net, so shop around for rates. Batch processing is usually cheaper.
■ Offer human support. Even though people are placing ads online because they want to, make sure they can find a telephone support number on every page. Help them with online chat support if feasible. And offer lots of help screens and explanations so they can figure out what they’re doing. Remember, it’s about convenience.
■ Post ads quickly. If you’re already offering self-serve, do the ads go through an approval process before they appear on site? Some free-ad sites, notably, Craigslist, don’t vet ads before the listings go live. There are virtually no standards for quality or acceptability. That said, these sites set a high standard for immediacy. Your customers will expect similar treatment. Don’t let pending ads languish in an approval queue. If you have an on-call tech staff, why not train them to review ads during off-hours?
■ Keep it simple. While you don’t want to offer too few upsell choices, you don’t want to overwhelm customers with too many choices. Don’t make your pricing structure too hard to understand, either. Newspapers take particular note: Your customers just want to place an ad – they don’t want lessons on picas, points and column inches.
There are many technology companies that offer systems for ad-order entry as part of their suite of services or as stand-alone products. Some of these systems are sophisticated, elegantly designed with robust, flexible features. Others are fairly rudimentary, but straight-forward and relatively inexpensive to launch. If you need help deciding which system is right for you and your budget, give us a call.
Jim Townsend is a principal and editorial director of the AIM Group – publisher of Classified Intelligence Report – a global consulting firm that works with media companies, dot-coms and broadcasters to help develop profitable interactive media services. The AIM Group offers strategic and tactical support, training, workshops, product development and research. Townsend can be reached at jim@aimgroup.com, 1-281-998-2540.