Archive for December, 2011

Marketingcharts.com published yesterday a very interesting article and good read on research that shows once again that newspapers are still thriving. See below an excerpt from the marketingcharts.com article or click here to read the full article and to see the charts related to the research.

Marketingcharts.com reports:

“69% of residents in areas served by a local newspaper with circulation of under 15,000 say that their local paper provides valuable local shopping and advertising information, while 81% rely on the paper for local news and information, according to a survey released in December 2011 conducted by the National Newspaper Association (NNA) and the research arm of the Reynolds Journalism Institute at the Missouri School of Journalism. 86% of respondents say their local newspaper is informative, and 3 in 4 look forward to reading it.

Ads Better in Print

Data from the “2011 Community Newspaper Readership Survey” indicates that given the choice, 8 in 10 respondents say they would rather look through ads in the newspapers rather than view ads on the internet. In fact, two-thirds of respondents agree that they often use newspaper advertising inserts to help make purchasing decisions. Similarly, two-thirds agree that they often seek out newspaper advertising to find information on the latest offerings and sales available in their area, and almost half say that there are days when they read the newspaper as much for the ads as for the content.

3 in 4 Are Frequent Readers

74% of people in communities served by a local newspaper read one each week, while 11% read one every day. On average, readers spend about 39 minutes reading their newspaper, up from 37.5 minutes in 2010, and share it with 2.33 people. Almost all readers (92%) pay for their local newspapers, with the predominant method being through subscription (67%) rather than buying from a news rack or store (33%).

The survey also suggests that older adults, residents who have stayed in their communities longer, and those with higher education read local newspapers significantly more than younger adults, residents who have lived at their current addresses relatively shorter, and those with less education.

These findings align with results of a December Pew survey measuring local business search attitudes, which found that the groups most likely to use print newspaper to research local businesses included those aged over 40 (especially those over age 65) and those who have lived in their community more than 5 years.

Majority Prefer Print to Digital

According to the NNA survey, 48% of community newspaper readers with access to the internet say they never read the local news online, with just 1 in 10 reporting they read local news online very often. Of those going online for local news, the leading source is the local newspaper’s website (52%), ahead of the local TV station website (25%), and sites such as Yahoo, MSN, or Google (20%).”

Check out this interesting article below that gives some great tips on how to reap the advantages of newspaper classified advertising. It’s a good read! Click here to see the original article.

Unlike other marketing tools, newspaper classified ads bring forth a number of options for consumers, through the large classified advertising opportunity that they present. As a result, a consumer can make a decision after considering all the newspaper classified ads. From the point of view of an advertiser newspaper classified advertising has the potential of reaching a very wide audience. As a result, placing a classified ad in a newspaper is beneficial for both the consumers and the advertisers. You can gather the classified advertising info and details of various packages that are offered by different newspapers through consultants or even by carrying out an online search.

Planning a targeted classified advertising campaign
After gathering classified advertising info and selecting the suitable newspaper that you would like to advertise in, it is important to plan out the complete strategy. Entrepreneurs who plan on selling products using classified ads need to understand that just newspaper classified advertising would not be sufficient to reap results and if the strategy is not planned out properly, all their efforts would be wasted. As a result, it is important for them to plan out a targeted classified advertising campaign. In fact even if they are considering free classified advertising, until and unless the campaign is researched and well designed, all efforts of selling products using classified ads would be futile. A targeted classified advertising campaign helps in bringing forth the USP of the product, enlists the benefits that it offers over similar products, and at the same time taps the right segment of the market that would actually consider buying the product. Your campaign must clearly define all the advantages that a consumer would incur by selecting your product. One can even plan a blind campaign that merely entices a consumer to find out more about the benefits that you are offering. These campaigns usually garner a much higher response than other campaigns, but the response might not necessarily convert to consumers. This further stresses on the fact that an entrepreneur must understand the aim of the classified ad campaign before floating it. In fact, selling products using classified ads is actually quite easy if you can plan out a unique classified advertising campaign that stands out from the rest of the ads and at the same time communicates all the important details of the product.

Tapping the scope offered by free classified advertising
Nowadays, a number of print mediums are offering the opportunities for free classified advertising; as a result the consumers are bombarded with numerous choices. The problem with free classified advertising is that most times the advertisers get lured by the free package that is offered, but, audience is not right and as a result the free classified ad does not bring any returns. On the other hand, a well-researched and targeted classified advertising campaign, even if it is a free classified ad, holds the potential to tap the right nerve of the market and create a market even where it does not exist. In fact in the current scenario, it is imperative for an advertiser to have a thorough market understanding before placing a classified ad.

Ensuring a response – Classified advertising tips
There are certain classified advertising tips that an advertiser should keep in mind to ensure that he comes up with a unique classified advertising campaign. Firstly an advertiser needs to understand how the classified ad information especially in a large classified advertising medium, like a newspaper, is sorted so that he can place his ad on the top, as these ads usually get the maximum response. Usually there are a number of similarities in the way newspapers and other mediums sort and format the classified ad information, but it is essential to understand this in order to enjoy the benefits of classified advertising.

In order to design a truly unique classified advertising copy, one must ensure that it is direct, yet at the same time should interest the reader and entice him to find out more. In a large classified advertising medium, especially if it offers the opportunity for free classified advertising, it is essential to keep these classified advertising tips in mind, so as to ensure a response.

Community Classifieds

Christmas is just around the corner! Not only is this time of the year remarkable for the family celebrations, home cooked food, festive movies and the local Christmas market but the winter period also brings with it an expectation of gifts, Christmas shopping and Secret Santa’s at work. At Community Classifieds, we’re always keen on helping you find the best way to get your ad message delivered to the audience. Here is a list of ideas on how Community Classifieds can help you during this festive period.

1.) Get the word out about your local product or festivities

Whether you have a local cheese farm, bake the best Christmas cookies in town, run a small turkey farm or if you’re looking for more audience for the local festivities in town (Christmas train, Santa coming to town, Christmas market), using Community Classifieds would be a great way to get the word out there!  An ad in the local newspapers is a great way to reach your local community and help boost the sale of your local product or get people to talk about the local town festivities.

2.) Find extra help during the busy Christmas season through a newspaper ad

Christmas is the busiest time of the year and we know that businesses often need an extra hand during the holiday season. Why not advertise in the local newspapers?! It’s a great way to find some extra personnel. Many people would not mind working a bit extra during this season as we all know it is an expensive time of the year. Posting the job in the employment section will sure get the local interested ones to reply to your ad in no time!

3.) Earn extra money for the holiday season during the school vacation

As businesses often need an extra hand during this busiest time of the year, reading the local newspaper is a great way to find that temporary job you were looking for. Exams are over and school doesn’t start until the New Year so it’s the perfect time to earn some extra money (now you can finally buy that gift for your mum/dad!). Just keep an eye out for the local newspaper, look in the classifieds section and find the job ads in the ‘Employment’ and ‘Help Wanted’ section.

4.) Advertise a post-Christmas garage sale

Let’s face it: after the Christmas period we are often left with a house full of items that we don’t necessarily want or need. The New Year is an ideal time to declutter your house by holding a garage sale. In order to ensure that as many people as possible will know about your sale – especially the date, time and address – why not use Community Classifieds to place an ad in your local newspaper? This will ensure that the time you spend preparing for the sale will not be wasted.