The Advantage News

The Herald (New Britain, CT) and The Bristol Press (Bristol, CT) are not strangers to Advantage Newspaper Consultants' programs and people. They have worked together successfully on the paper's TV/entertainment section for the past five years. With unsold ad inventory available on the group's websites, the newspaper management had already been discussing a Total Market Reach (TMR) sales blitz with ANC's president, Tim Dellinger. But there was nothing set in stone - until a last-minute schedule change left Media Analyst, Michele Bonk, with an extra week in New England. The TMR campaign for The Herald and The Bristol Press was confirmed on July 9th, with sales set to begin only a week later on July 16th. "The team at Advantage was great. I forwarded the packages that I wanted and they had sales collateral back to me in less than 24 hours." said Gary Curran, Sales Director. The program was co-branded with both of the daily paper's informa- tion, and advertisers were offered the flexibility of running their ad on newbritainherald.com or bristolpress.com, or rotating between the two on a monthly basis. Most of the ad packages sold were "digital only", purchased by new advertisers or those who previously only advertised in the print edition. But several inclusive packages were also sold that were comprised of digital and print advertising at an attractive price with annual contract. The sales team at The Herald and The Bristol Press were familiar with online ad sales campaigns and recognized the benefits to having third-party assistance in selling ad packages on an annual contract basis. "The concept of Total Market Reach is not something that newspapers have not already tried or done, but bringing in a consultant like Advantage gives a new perspective to our customers and it helps build the sense of urgency." said account executive, Leigh Ann Fletcher. "It's a different approach to customers than our day-to-day 'special sections' and the monetary perks are certainly motivating." ANC paid out more than $1,500 in bonus cash to the newpaper's team of five account executives. Account executive, Ben Scoville, noted that beyond the bonus money was the opportunity to educate their advertising clients on the importance of advertising to reach the newspaper's entire audience – not just those that read the print edition. "It was amazing how many business owners were not aware of the power of digital advertising. After showing them how to navigate our website combined with the incredible value of the program, they realized how much it will benefit their sales!" said Scoville. The week-long sales campaign resulted in over 20 contracts for annual advertising packages. The team surpassed the $50,000 goal on the third day and concluded the sales effort at $93,000. The ads sold began running on September 1st, both in print and online. Last Minute Total Market Reach Campaign Nets Unexpected Amount of Digital Advertising Revenue Sales Team at The Herald and The Bristol Press SEATED: Tony Jordan, Anna Lichniak STANDING: Ben Scoville, Brian Malloy, Gary Curran NOT PICTURED: Leigh Ann Fletcher Where We'll Be... September 9-11, 2018 Inland Annual Meeting (Chicago, IL) September 13-14, 2018 HSPA Annual Conference (Indianapolis, IN) October 26-28, 2018 NMPA Conference (Albuquerque, NM)

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