When readers buy products and services discussed on our site, we often earn affiliate commissions that support our work. .2. Modular pricingWith this type of pricing, newspapers charge based on set modules, such as half page, full page, quarter page, etc.Modular specs taken from How to Get a Discount on Newspaper AdsThere are a few ways you can pay a lower price on your newspaper ad:Advertise multiple timesThe amount of times that you advertise in a newspaper–also known as frequency–will change how much you pay per column inch. These discounts should be listed in the newspaper’s rate card, and can be broken down by the amount you spend or the number of column inches advertised in the newspaper annually.Here is an example of newspaper discounting based on how much the advertiser agrees to spend on advertising during a one year period:Chart taken from Bozeman Daily Chronicle’s .Ask for special discountsMany times newspapers will offer introductory rates for new advertisers. You can ask for your ad to be featured in a seasonal or special insert for lower than average rates. Newspapers also sometimes offer a remnant space rate that can be discounted up to 80% off of the list price. If you go this route, your ad will be placed in spaces that the paper was unable to fill. You are not guaranteed that your ad will run, however.
To Get A Handy Printable PDF of This GuideA small business owner’s advice on getting discounts:Rebecca Harnden, CEO of Humboldt Light Dep, LLC, offers this tip to get your business in front of pre-qualified leads cheaper than regular print runs. “Contact your local newspaper and ask if they have any upcoming special event features. Newspapers run special inserts during the weeks of special events. The cost for printing in one of these special inserts or handouts is usually much less expensive than running an ad in the regular newspaper, since less people will see it. However, the people who do see it will be interested in your product or service.”She offers this example, “if you are a wedding planner, run an ad in a seasonal industry specific newspaper insert or in a newspaper produced program distributed at a bridal fair. You know the people who see your ad will be brides or know a bride-to-be, making your campaign much more effective for much less money!”Newspapers Attach Premiums to Popular Ad SpacesUnfortunately, you can expect to pay extra to have your ad in prime spots, and some publishers charge extra just for you to specify where you want your ad. That being said, you will most likely want to splurge to specify where your ad is placed. If your ad is in a bad position, few people will see it.Position premium chart from the Washington Post’s rate cardLooking to advertise in your local newspaper for free? Bernice Mirrilees, PR Director at the marketing agency Red Caffeine, suggests you try to land press coverage/earned media. “Earned media – articles written about your company or by a company employee – can trump a paid ad by establishing credibility and authority as an expert in your given industry or field. It takes some leg work to identify the best writer at any given publication and then pitch them on an article idea that is newsworthy to their readers. But it can pay a great ROI by positioning you as a thought-leader.” We have a guide on how to get local press for your business, which you can view .Benefits and Challenges of Newspaper AdvertisingMake sure you are taking advantage of the benefits of newspaper advertising when you are running your ad. These include the following: Local audienceBy advertising in your local paper, you are able to reach people that are in close vicinity to your business. You are also integrating your business into the local community by placing your ad among local news and events.Reach new customersNewspaper advertising is another venue for your message, and therefore you will reach more people than if you are focused only on online marketing, email marketing, etc.People expect ads in the newspaperPeople are less likely to be annoyed by your ad in the paper than an ad on the TV or radio. Not only do they expect to see advertisements, but the ads also don’t interrupt them from reading an article.People can look at the ad for a long timeThis is a plus because you can put more information in a newspaper ad (i.e. pricing, phone number, website, etc.) and people will be able to get a good look at it. This differs from , , and , where the message flashes by quickly.Target based on interestsIf you own a business that correlates to a section of the newspaper, you can target your ad to people that read that section. For example, if you sell sports gear, you could advertise in the sports section of the paper. This is a win-win situation: it will actually cost you less than advertising in the main section, but you will get a more targeted audience.Can offer couponsNewspapers are the perfect medium for the distribution of coupons. The physical act of tearing out a coupon creates a strong level of engagement with your message, increasing the probability of people coming into your store.However, there are some challenges to print advertising. A few examples are:People don’t read the whole newspaperEven if a newspaper has a high circulation, it’s unlikely that everyone who receives the paper will see your ad. If you want maximum exposure, you will need to place your ad in a premium spot, which will cost more.Your ad is competing with other adsThere are likely to be other business ads surrounding yours. You need to make sure that your ad can stand out amongst the masses. Try asking your newspaper sales rep whether your ad can stand alone, or if they can make sure none of your competitors have ads right next to yours.Hard to measure resultsUnlike online advertising, where you can easily track who came to your website from an advertisement, measuring your exact ROI with a newspaper ad is trickier. We will go into more detail on the best way to measure results . Is Newspaper Advertising Right for Your Small Business?Do you have an older target demographic?Is your small business related to one of the sections of the newspaper (i.e. sports, fashion, travel, etc.)?Can you provide an enticing offer or coupon?If you answered yes to the questions above, your small business can probably successfully utilize newspaper advertising. The biggest majority of newspaper readers are older, with 64% of newspaper readership over the age of 55. This compares to only 39% of Americans ages 18-34 that have read a newspaper in the past week. Therefore, newspaper ads are ideal if you are looking to target people over 55.Newspaper advertising is great for businesses that fit into a specific section of the newspaper. For example, if you are a travel agent, you can target your ad to people that read the travel section of the paper. If you own a sporting goods store, placing an ad in the sports section will increase the chance that people that view the ad will be interested in your product. These sections are also less expensive to advertise in then the main section. Newspapers are key coupon sources, so try advertising your small business with a coupon. Make sure that you have a placement around the edge of the newspaper, because readers are unlikely to clip out a coupon from the middle of the page. To Get A Handy Printable PDF of This GuideWhere, When, and How Often Should you Advertise?You can visit , which lists newspapers by state and city, to find the different local newspapers in your area. To determine which local paper you should advertise in, ask for information on their circulation. Most newspapers will have details on the demographic of their audience. Decide which section is best for your businessYou will have several choices when you buy newspaper ads: Run of paperIf you choose this option, the position of your ad will be determined by the publisher. If your ad has a bad position in the newspaper, there’s a good chance that no one will see it, so make sure you understand exactly where your ad could show up if you go with this option. Main news sectionThis is the most read section, with 80% of readers looking at the main news. Expect to pay the most if you want to advertise in this section. One downfall of advertising here is that you risk your advertisement being next to an article about a horrible human catastrophe or other negative news. Local news sectionThis section sees a small decline from the main news at 75% readership. If your product has broad appeal, we suggest advertising in the local section. You are emphasizing that you’re part of the community, and you will pay less than if you advertised in the main news section.Other sections (travel, sports, health, etc.)Readership drops off by around 20% for these sections, but placing an advertisement here is a good idea for some business. For example, if you own a health food store, you can target people that are interested in health by only advertising in that section.Where on the page do you want your ad to appear?The ideal placement for an advertisement would have the following three traits:Above the fold (the top half of the page)On the right hand page, right hand side of that page is even better.N not surrounded by other ads.Points 1 and 2 will help your ad be seen by readers flipping through the paper, while point 3 will keep readers’ eyes near your ad for longer periods of time. Work with your sales representative to get your advertisement in an ideal spot. You will probably have to pay a premium, but it will be worth it for more people to see your ad.Which day of the week should your ad appear?This depends on the type of service that you offer and how attention catching your ad is.Monday & Tuesday: There are fewer ads during these days, so your ads may get more notice during these days. However, circulation (the number of people receiving the paper) is usually lower.Wednesday & Thursday: Grocery stores tend to like to advertise on these days, as this is when many people plan shopping trips.Friday & Saturday: A good day for restaurants and entertainment providers.Sunday: The day with the highest circulation and the most ads. The paper is full of coupons on Sundays.How often should you advertise?The amount of times you advertise depends on your marketing budget, but you should try to run your ads at least once per week. You will be able to get a frequency discount if you advertise with a newspaper multiple times, and a potential customer will likely need to see your ad a few times before they decide to visit your business.In addition to running an ad multiple times, you may want to consider putting your business message out there on multiple mediums. Look at our guides to advertising , , and
to get started.What size should your ad be?The cost of your newspaper advertisement is directly proportional to the size of your ad, meaning the bigger your ad, the more you will pay. Even though it’s been proven that the larger your newspaper advertisement, the more likely people will notice it, this doesn’t mean that you should go with a full page ad. Here is the percentage of people who will remember your ad from a study by Starch Research:Full Page 42%Three Quarter Page 38%Half Page 34%Quarter Page 26%One Eighth Page 23%As you can see, an eighth of a page is a big bargain compared to a full page ad. You get over half of the attention of a full page ad at an eighth of the cost. Plus,
of the page provides enough space for the ad to have a big headline, a couple sentences of text, and a coupon or photo. Going smaller than
of a page in my opinion impacts your ability to communicate your message.For certain businesses, there is an argument for larger size ads. If your customers are not necessarily frequent shoppers and are buying big ticket items, having more potential customers notice your advertisement may be more important than the efficiency of the spend. This point of view is well articulated in this article “”.Creating an Effective Print AdYou can have the best ad spot in the highest read newspaper, but if your ad is not attention grabbing, people’s eyes will glance right past it. We have included some tips to make sure you advertising dollars don’t go to waste.Writing the CopyThe most important element of your ad is the headline! If those 3 to 8 words don’t interest the reader, the advertisement will fail. Also consider offering a coupon or discount in your ad. That way, the reader will have a motive to visit your business. Lastly, make sure you include your business information, such as address (or proximity to a well known local landmark), website, and phone number. When writing your ads you should do the following:Look at ads from competitors. Though you don’t want to copy their ads exactly, you want to have a feel for what’s out there, and their ad might spark an idea for your next ad. Get suggestions from your newspaper account executive. They will often come up with sample ads when trying to initially get your business.Test different ads to see which one is most effective. You always want to be improving your ads. However, make sure you have a system in place to track which sales are coming from which ads. Producing Your AdNewspapers will have a production department that can help you create a professional looking ad based on detailed instructions. However, you are going to have to be very clear for the ad to look the way you want. You don’t need to use the production department of a newspaper to create the ad. However, you will need to find out their technical specifications to provide to a designer. Working with a professional designer will enable you to give feedback and make changes to the ad. Creating a good looking newspaper advertisement should cost around $150 to $500. Another option is to have a
create your ad for as low as $5. Requesting and Approving the ProofYou should always request the proof for a newspaper or magazine advertisement. A proof will show you exactly how the ad will look in the publication. For a variety of reasons, something can go wrong when you give creative direction to a newspaper or hand over files from a graphic designer. A proof gives you an opportunity to check something did not go wrong before the ad is published.How to Measure SuccessYou will need to keep a pulse on how well your newspaper ads are performing if you want to run a successful print advertising campaign. If you are not measuring the results, you could be wasting money on ads that aren’t producing any profit for your small business. Here are some ways to determine if sales are coming from your newspaper ad:Include a couponCoupons are great for newspaper advertising. Include a deal at the bottom of your ad for people to rip out and bring to the store.
This is an easy way to track business that comes from your ad.Use a call tracking numberA great tactic is to use a phone number on your ad that you only use for newspaper advertisements. That way, if someone calls that number, you will know they called after seeing your newspaper ad. We have an article on
that will walk you through the process of setting up this number.Use a vanity URLSimilarly to a call tracking number, a vanity URL can track which people went to your website after seeing your ad in the newspaper. An example of a vanity URL would be . You can purchase a vanity URL for your site
(use domain name search). The downside is that this only works to measure success of your ad if you are looking to drive traffic to your website.Ask your customersIf you are a small business owner that interacts with your customers on a one-on-one basis, simply ask them how they heard about your business. This works well for realtors and doctors, but not so well for restaurant owners and clothing stores (although such stores can ask for customer surveys).Calculate your salesIf you are running your newspaper advertisements in isolation, you may be able to determine if the ads are successful by looking at how well your business performs during the months that the ad is running. A positive fluctuation in sales is a good indicator that your newspaper ads are paying off. However, keep in mind that other external events, like a holiday, can also be responsible for driving up sales. To Get A Handy Printable PDF of This GuideThe Bottom LineNewspaper advertising is a great way to reach middle age to older adults who are fairly affluent. If this demographic is likely to be interested in your products and services, then incorporating newspaper advertising into your marketing strategy is not a bad idea. Newspaper advertising costs can be pretty affordable, especially for your local paper.Work with your newspaper sales representative to make sure you are getting a good ad placement, and include an offer or discount to get more foot traffic to your store. Following the guidelines in this article should help you get more business from advertising in your local paper.Usually, the most successful strategy is to pair newspaper advertising with other types of advertising, such as , , and . Have a question? Leave a comment below.
About the AuthorMaggie Aland is a staff writer for Fit Small Business currently specializing in marketing with a focus on digital marketing. Before joining Fit Small Business, Maggie worked as a marketing associate at a small publishing company.Related Posts04 Oct 201604 Nov 2016Get Buyer's GuidesChoose a CategorySales & MarketingLoans & FinancingAccountingManaging EmployeesLegal ResourcesStarting a BusinessRealtor ToolsSee More Buyer's GuidesA content analysis of the newspaper advertisements westernization in China
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A content analysis of the newspaper advertisements westernization in ChinaLi Dongjin An Shenghui Yang Hua Research ArticleDOI:
10.-007-0032-xCite this article as: Li, D., An, S. & Yang, H. Front. Bus. Res. China (8. doi:10.-007-0032-x
The purpose of this study is, by means of studying the changes in Chinese advertisements’ contents and forms over a decade, to evaluate the advertising westernization in China and to provide suggestions for Chinese companies in selecting proper advertising strategies. If relatively typical Western cultural characteristics are presented in Chinese advertisements, it indicates that the cultural distance between East and West is reduced, and standardization strategies may be a better choice for foreign enterprises. Otherwise, they should adopt specialization or combined strategies.advertisement westernizationadvertising appealcontent analysisBang Hae-Kyong, Raymond M A, Taylor C R, Young Sook Moon (2005), A comparison of service quality dimensions conveyed in advertisements for service providers in the USA and Korea: A content analysis. International Marketing Review, 22(3), 309–326Bellk R W, Bryce W J, Pollay R W (1985). Advertising themes and cultural values: A comparison of U.S. and Japanese advertising. Academy of International Business, 32–41Cheng Hong (1994). Reflections of cultural values: A content analysis of Chinese magazine advertisements from 1982 and 1992. International Journal of Advertising. 13(2): 167–183Cheng Hong, Schweitzer J C (1996). Cultural values reflected in Chinese and US television commercials. Journal of Advertising Research, (3): 27–45Hong J W, Muderrisonlu A, Zinkhon G (1987). Cultural differences and advertising expression: A comparative content analysis of Japanese and U.S. magazine advertising. Journal of Advertising, 16(1): 55–62Kassarjian H H (1977). Content analysis in consumer research. Journal of Consumer Research, 4(6): 8–18La Ferle C, Lee Wei-Na (2002). Attitudes toward advertising: A comparative study of consumers in China(mainland), Taiwan Province of China, South Korea and the United States. Journal of International Consumer Marketing, 15(2): 5–23Li, Dongjin (2000). Modern advertising: Principles and exploration. Beijing: Enterprise Management Publishing HouseMiracle G E, Chang Kyu Yeol, Taylor, C R (1992). Culture and advertising executions: A comparison of selected characteristics of Korean and US television commercials. International Marketing Review, 9(4): 5–17Mueller B (1987). Reflections of culture: An analysis of Japanese and American advertising appeals. Journal of Advertising Research, 27: 51–59Mueller B (1992). Standardization vs. Specialization: An examination of westernization in Japanese advertising. Journal of Advertising Research, 32(1): 15–24Tse D K, Belk R W, Zhou N (1989). Becoming a consumer society: A longitudinal and cross-cultural content analysis of print advertisements from Hong Kong, the People’s Republic of China and Taiwan, Journal of Consumer Research, 15(3): 457–73Wang C L (2000). Right appeals for the “Right Self”: Connectedness-separateness self-schema and cross-cultural persuasion. Journal of Marketing Communications, 6(4): 1–13.Wang C L, Chan A (2001). Content analysis of connectedness vs. separateness themes used in US and PRC Print Advertisements. International Marketing Review, 18(2): 145–159Wang C L, Bristol T, Mown J, Chakraborty G (2000). Alternative modes of self-construal: Dimensions of connectedness-separateness and advertising appeals to the cultural and gender-specific self. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 9(2): 107–115Zandpour F, Chang C, Catalano J (1992). Stories, symbols, and straight talk: A comparative analysis of French, Taiwanese, and US TV commercials. Journal of Advertising Research, 32(1): 25–38Zhang Yong, Neelankavil J P (1997). The influence of culture on advertising effectiveness in China and the USA: A cross-cultural study. European Journal of Marketing. 31(2): 134–149Li Dongjin 1An Shenghui 2Yang Hua 11.Department of Marketing, Business SchoolNankai UniversityTianjinChina2.School of BusinessUniversity of International Business and EconomicsBeijingChina
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