Newspaper Advertising - How To Get Started In This Print Advertising Format
It has been reported that there is widespread concern across the advertising industry that the standard of newspaper advertising has taken an irreversible slump in the last few years. Beyond a sluggish economy and poor consumer spending, the changing dynamics of the marketplace may have had a severe effect on the quality and revenues of newspaper advertising.
Of course, this reaction is more likely caused by the big increase in online spend over the last three years, although it is true that a lot of traditional media has suffered with a drop in quality material and overall revenue.
However, in terms of generating immediate sales, newspaper advertising is still very much alive and continues to be a favourite among advertisers and consumers alike.
From an advertisers point of view, the great thing about newspaper advertising is that a recurring message is very easy to achieve. You can place a schedule of display or classified adverts in a newspaper for very little money and enjoy good returns over a short or long-term time period.
Many of the top Internet Marketers target National newspapers to sell their online products and services. They not only use them to generate leads and to add names to their database, but also as a quick promotional hit to a massive target audience. A few lines of text with a powerful call to action can bring tremendous results.
It is a fact that consumers now use newspaper advertising to make their purchasing decisions and it is the laid back way in which this medium is accepted and read that means consumers feel comfortable about buying products from newspapers.
It is also this psychological take on consumer mood that suggests that Strong, synergistic newspaper advertising can also work well when used in conjunction with TV and other media.
It is also good to see that this media is fairing well against some other formats. While the share of television commercials in the advertising market has decreased in the last few years, the share of newspaper advertising has grown by a few percent. This is not a huge amount, but still significant in a market currently dominated by online advertising.
So, with the state of the newspaper market still strong, how can you make the most out of this print media. The first step for buyers is to decide on whether to use national or regional newspapers. Of course, regionals hit a much smaller target audience, but will always be significantly cheaper than national advertising. However, if you have a local business, you can get a great deal of value from the regionals.
At the other end of the scale, we find national newspaper advertising. Many of the nationals have huge circulation figures and cater for a large variety of Advertisers.
If you are looking at newspapers, do your research first. Take a good look at what your competitors are doing and keep an eye on similar adverts over a one month period. If the same advertisers are using the newspaper week after week then something must be working for them.
Do make sure that when it comes to ad design, you test out a series of headlines and call to action copy. The space you have is usually surrounded by other adverts and it is a hugely competitive arena. A well written and designed advertisement will make the difference between success and failure.
One thing you must do is check out the full terms and standards for advert copy. Some newspapers have very strict guidelines in place when it comes to adverts that mention money or financial gain. In this case, you will usually have to back up any claims with financial statements and other evidence of income.
There will be a vast selection of newspapers for you to choose from, so all you have to do is investigate which ones are going to match your promotional push and the products and services you are offering.
If you would prefer someone else to handle the design and booking for you, there are numerous companies out there that can help.
Finally, it seems that even online providers are moving over to print networks. Google have now come up with a system where advertisers can easily put up campaign ads in newspapers included in the Google newspaper advertising program. With this program, advertisers and agencies can advertise in national or regional papers by using a simple web interface. creating an ad campaign in newspapers now becomes as simple clicking a mouse.
There is no doubt that technology is playing a part in the way that we are spending our advertising money.
However, the future of Newspaper Advertising seems to be as clear as the paper it is written on - whether technology lends a hand or not.
Andrew Long is an advertising sales consultant and expert in the field of generating revenues from websites and other media. He offers media companies a bespoke solution to selling advertising and making money from their websites and other media.
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Tags: advertising, marketing, newspaper advertising, print advertising