Grand Island, NE Holiday Gift Guide warms the "bottom line" with triple previous year's revenue!
The Challenge
The Grand Island (NE) Independent had previously published a printed "Holiday Gift Guide" special section in 2003 that did not generate the revenue that management knew could be garnered from local advertisers. The Blinder Group was contracted to work with the newspaper to find new ways to package, price and offer this product in 2004, so that it would be more successful both for the advertisers and the newspaper's "bottom line."
Program Overview
During strategic planning sessions it was determined that the Independent would change their yearly single "Holiday Gift Guide" special section offering, into a multiple week, in-paper program that would appear each Friday, for 5-weeks, as a 3-page color section. The program would start the Friday before Thanksgiving and end the Friday prior to Christmas. The three full pages were segmented into 37 modular ad offerings, with each "slot" featuring a different gift item from a participating advertiser. To also increase the "reach" of the program to new audience, the section was also featured in the newspaper's weekly "TMC" product" "Hartland Express." Also, the online team of The Independent created a corresponding Web site that listed the gift items offered by each participating advertiser, that linked to an online version of the actual newspaper ad. To add excitement to the program and ensure readership, a contest was deployed that offered a weekly prize of a $100 gift certificate, that the winner could receive from any participating merchant they chose. The Independent informed the advertisers that THE NEWSPAPER would purchase the certificate from the advertiser if they were chosen from a contest winner. A single price was crafted that offered each participating advertiser all three elements of the program: traditional print, inclusion in the "TMC" product and online marketing for the full 5-weeks of the campaign.
Sales Strategy
One of the key elements in ensuring sales success of this initiative is garnering advertiser approval of meeting attendance as well as the validity of the concept in general. Some of these advertisers are wary of trying new ideas. One of the most effective means of accomplishing attendance and acceptance is to introduce the advertiser to an industry respected "outside" consultant who has had success with similar programs, with similar businesses, in similar markets, all across North America. That is why many media companies contract with the Blinder Group to perform "4-legged" sales training closing calls with traditional ad reps, to assist in the launch of programs like the one defined in this document. The Blinder Group supplied a proven "appointment- setting script" to the newspaper's sales team as an effective "tool" in assisting in getting potential advertisers to agree to attend a meeting with such an "outside" expert. The Blinder Group assisted the independent by creating sales support materials that made it easy for the sales reps to show the online portion of the program to potential advertisers. The Blinder Group also conducted sales staff training on how to present the program effectively to advertisers, as well as accompanying the sales reps on a number of assisted "4-legged" sales training/ closing calls on local advertisers, over a one-week period in early September.
Results
The results of the program were impressive. The Independent team was able to generate over $23,000 in new holiday related business as opposed to the $8,000 garnered in 2003. "We had an outstanding visit with The Blinder Group," said Don Smith, publisher of the Independent. "We easily exceeded our goals and our sales people learned a good deal about how to close a multimedia sale. One of our goals this year was to get out in front on the holiday package and steal some thunder from the radio folks who sell their holiday packages very early. Many of the accounts that were sold are regular radio advertisers, so our new strategy worked well!"
Contact Information
The Independent is a 25,000 daily located in Grand Island, Nebraska.
For more information on the sales strategy of this product, contact:
Don Smith, Publisher, Grand Island (NE) Independent
(308) 382-1000, donald.smith@theindependent.com
Sonya Schultz, Advertising Director, Grand Island (NE) Independent
(308) 381-9429, ssonya@theindependent.com
Alesa Johnson, New Media Director, Grand Island (NE) Independent
(308) 381-9418, alesa.johnson@theindependent.com
Lead consultant for The Blinder Group:
Mike Blinder
(917) 865-4827, mike@blindergroup.com
The Blinder Group
Tampa Offices: 6139 Fjord Way
New Port Richey, FL 34652 USA
(727) 847-2464 ~ (727) 847-5959 (fax)
profit@blindergroup.com
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