When it comes to magazine advertising, most people think oI the large, glossy, national

publications Iull oI big brand advertisers. And it may seem like your own business doesn't
belong alongside the "big guys," especially iI you don't sell your product outside a one-hundred-
mile radius--or even outside oI your own state. But that's just not the case.
In Iact, it's quite possible the next time you open one oI those national magazines to see an ad Ior
a business that's right in your own town that just has that one location. That's because, like a lot
oI other Iorms oI advertising, many national magazines have local sections aimed at smaller
businesses. OI course, these local sections are a bit larger than what you may be used to,
covering such areas as the "Northeast" or the "Southwest" parts oI the United States. So while
you'll be reaching people way outside your neighborhood, you'll also attract local business (and
may just wow the locals who see your ad on those pages).
Who should advertise in the local sections oI the national magazines? Although it doesn't seem
so at Iirst blush, these ads are really good Ior small, "niche-y" stores that carry very specialized
products, like hobby items. People will travel great distances to Iind a new supplier or expert or
specialist Ior their hobby, and they'll spread the word oI your existence to others with similar
interests. These ads are also wonderIul iI you have locations in more than one area oI any state or
in more than one state. You can probably cover most or even all oI them with just one ad iI they
all Iall into one oI those wide geographical areas that are sold as "local." Check the Iirst Iew
pages oI any magazine to Iind contact inIormation Ior the advertising department, where you can
ask Ior a media kit and get inIormation on rates and deadlines. And be sure to ask Ior a map that
shows you what each local territory includes.
OI course, advertising in magazines with national distribution is going to be expensive even iI
you're only advertising in the local sections, and it's not be the way to go Ior most small or
midsized businesses. You don't really need to cast such a large net--what you really need is to
choose publications that are closely associated with your target market.
One option is to go really local with Iree magazines that you'd Iind in grocery stores or
pharmacies. The Iocus oI these types oI publications is on home sales, cars, boats and other
topics--you've probably picked up one yourselI. Your business doesn't have to tie directly into
the topics oI any one oI the magazines, as long as the readers oI those magazines would also be
interested in your product or service. Remember, it's the audience that counts, and you can Iind
that audience in any number oI places. The contact inIormation Ior advertising in these
publications will also be located within the Iirst Iew pages. One thing to be aware oI is that these
types oI Iree publications are published on diIIerent schedules, sometimes just a Iew times a
year. And like most magazines, your deadline will be way ahead oI publication, so don't wait
until the last minute to call to place an ad.
One advantage oI magazines, especially monthlies, is that they have a much longer shelI liIe than
newspapers; they are oIten browsed through Ior months aIter publication. So your ad might have
an audience Ior up to six months aIter its initial insertion. Moreover, readers spend more time per
sitting with a magazine than a newspaper, so there's more chance they will run across your ad.
No matter which type oI publication you're buying space in, be sure to ask the Iollowing
questions beIore you purchase any ad space:
O What's the magazine's circulation?
O What are the demographics oI the readers?
O ow oIten is the magazine published?
O ow is it distributed?
O What are the special sections or themes planned Ior the year?
Also note that you have the opportunity with all magazines to save money on each ad by
agreeing to run an ad in more than one issue. In Iact, beIore you buy space in any magazine, it's a
good idea to see which businesses that are targeting the same audience as you advertise in each
magazine on a consistent basis. Remember, iI the ads weren't working, they wouldn't be there
issue aIter issue.
You can Iind publications that are appropriate Ior your advertising needs by looking through
reIerences such as the directories put out by the Standard Rate and Data Service (SRDS). The
SRDS directories list all the relevant inIormation about consumer and trade publications,
including a short description oI each publication, its editorial content, who the publication goes
out to, and breakdown oI circulation Iigures. Using this inIormation, you can compile a list oI
publications suitable Ior your advertising.
For more in-depth inIormation, contact an ad representative at each publication you've chosen
and request a media kit. These contain sample copies oI the publication, detailed inIormation
about the editorial content, a breakdown oI readers' demographics, the publication's ad rates, and
an audited circulation statement Irom the publisher.
There are two primary audits: the Audit Bureau oI Circulation (ABC), and the Business
Publications Audit (BPA). Audited circulations are sworn statements by the publisher, veriIied
by an outside source, that the publication is distributed to the number oI people claimed in the
circulation Iigures.
With this inIormation in hand, you can judge the cost-eIIectiveness oI advertising in a
publication by determining the relationship between its circulation and the ad rates. This ratio is
your CPM, or cost per thousand. For example, iI the circulation is 30,000 and the rate Ior a Iull-
page ad is $600, divide $600 by 30. You'd see that advertising in this publication would cost $20
to reach each thousand readers.
As well as Iinding out each publication's CPM, inquire about what kind oI deals you can work
out with the ad rep Irom each publication. For example, you can sometimes negotiate Ior special
positioning in the publication; inside the Iront cover, on the back cover, or within the Iirst Iew
pages oI the book are prime locations Ior ads. Publications will oIten charge an additional 10 to
20 percent oI the ad's cost Ior special positioning, but iI you're a good negotiator, you can
sometimes get it Ior no additional charge. Always ask Ior your ad to be placed in the Iirst third oI
the publication (where readers are apt to read more closely) on a right-hand page, which is not
considered special positioning.
You can also negotiate with the ad rep on a Irequency discount. II you run your ad three times,
six times or 12 times instead oI just once, you'll get a reduced rate Ior each insertion.
Publications have standard Irequency discounts by the SRDS directory or on the rate card the ad
rep gives you, but oIten the rep can give you an even better deal than the standard Irequency
discounts iI you run your ad on a regular schedule and iI the rep wants your business.
Most magazines also offer to place ads on their website, sometimes at a very reasonable
rate--even for free--if you're advertising in their hard copy issues. If you can swing it and
you're interested in selling worldwide or reaching a wider audience in your own hometown,
this is a great idea. Be sure to put your web address, or URL, on every print ad, no matter
where it runs, and put a link on your online ad that takes peopMagazine
Advertising - Trade Secrets
Copyright 2010, Studio 1 Productions, written by David Knarr
In the past, advertisers relied on magazines to deliver their ads to the
buying public. AIter all, running an ad in a magazine was much less
expensive than running an ad on national TV or Radio. This was
especially true iI you were marketing a product to a niche market.

For example, lets say you created a video on wood working. You really
wouldn`t run an ad Ior the video on national TV, you would run an ad
in a magazine that covered wood working. This would be much more
cost eIIect and it would better hit your target market.

In the past, since the advertisers relied so heavily on the magazine
publishers, this essentially put the magazine publishers in the drivers
seat, allowing them to charge lot oI money to run the ads.

For many years magazine publishers enjoyed high circulation Iigures,
along with high revenue Iigures. It wasn`t hard Ior the magazine
publishers to attract new advertisers either, since they were the main
advertising avenue.

Since then things have changed. More and more advertisers are either
moving away Irom or greatly reducing their print advertising, in Iavor
oI advertising on the web. This has eIIectively taken the magazine
publishers out oI the drivers seat.

With magazine advertising is shrinking, publishers are having to cut
costs by either reducing physical size oI the magazine or in the number
oI pages per issue. Some magazines are now only published on the
web, so they can eliminate printing and distribution costs. While other
magazines have either merged or they have gone out oI business all
Some of the
Products we Offer


together.

Magazine publishers are also seeing the number oI readers (the
magazine circulation) drop dramatically, as people are relying on the
Internet to get their inIormation, product reviews, news, etc. instead oI
waiting Ior the magazine to come out.

Today, magazine publishers are struggling to keep their existing
advertisers, while trying even harder to recruit new advertisers. They
are having to change the Iormat or content Iocus oI the magazine, in
order to keep readers interested enough so the readers keep subscribing
to it, so their circulation Iigures don`t keep eroding.

While this may all sound like bad news Ior you, the advertiser, it`s
not. In Iact, it gives you more leverage with the magazine. Remember,
they need you to advertise now, more than ever. BeIore you jump at
signing an advertising contract, there are a Iew things you need to know
and this inIormation may get you an even better deal with the publisher.


etermining the True Circulation of a Magazine and Why This is
Important

Some oI you might be thinking that all you have to do is call the
publisher and they will tell you how many people the magazine reaches,
right? Not necessarily! The magazine ad reps will most likely quote
you a readership Iigure. This is how many people they assume read the
magazine. In reality, they may not even print that many
magazines! There is a game that is played in the magazine world and it
has to do with the readership numbers or distribution numbers.

For example, a magazine may tell you that your ad is going to reach
over 70,000 readers, but they only print 35,000 magazines each month
and 10,000 oI those magazine go to dealers or newsstands Ior
sale. That leave only 25,000 subscribers, but remember they told you
that your ad is going to reach 70,000 readers. Well, maybe not.....

Now, you are probably a little puzzled on how you are going to reach
all 70,000 readers, when they only print 35,000 copies. It doesn't make
sense, does it?

This is because some magazines base their Iigures on what they call a
pass along rate. This is where the magazine publishers Ieels you will
pass the magazine on to someone else once you have Iinished with it or
iI the magazine is going to an oIIice then they will count a Iew more
readers to that one issue, since it is going to be seen by other people in



the oIIice.

Also, iI the magazine is going to a library they will count that as several
readers. These are just a Iew oI the ways they add in the number oI
readers to their magazine to get their readership numbers up.

While not all magazine do this, quite a Iew do.

Other magazines will give you distribution Iigures instead oI readership
Iigures. The distribution Iigures are how many copies oI the magazine
are sent out each month. But, you still have to be careIul with the
distribution Iigures.

I know oI a magazine that sends out complimentary subscriptions to
institutions and businesses to help boost the number oI magazines that
are distributed each month. Some oI these institutions are prisons,
school libraries, mental health hospitals, nursing homes, etc. While it is
Iine that they are sending Iree copies to these places, these copies are
not reaching your target market. AIter all, not too many prisoners are
going to be placing orders Irom the advertisers.

Relying on only distribution Iigures may not give you a clear picture oI
the readers that will be seeing your ad.

As you can see, there are lots oI ways the magazines can Iudge their
numbers. When you run an ad in a magazine, you really need to know
how many oI these people are qualiIied readers. I have Iound that iI the
reader has paid money Ior a subscription to receive the magazine, then
they are a qualiIied reader.

That's why I recommend to only look at the number oI paid subscribers.

II you ever come across a magazine that will only quote the readership Iigure or the distribution
Iigure Ior the magazine, ask iI they are ABC (Audit Bureau oI Circulation) audited. II they are,
ask Ior the most recent copy. This will give you a lot oI inIormation about the magazines sales,
including the number oI paid subscribers.

II they are not ABC audited, there is another way to Iind out the number oI paid subscribers. At
the end oI the year, most magazines have to publish a "Statement OI Ownership, Management
and Circulation". This is required with magazines that are mailed out second class mail. They
print this statement once a year and it can generally be Iound in the November, December or
January issue oI the magazine. Don't expect this statement to jump out and grab you. It is most
likely going to be buried someplace in the back oI the magazine, with very small print, so you
are going to have to look hard Ior it. In some cases they may reprint a reduced copy oI the actual
postal statement, which will make it easier to read.

So what does this Statement OI Circulation tell you? In the statement they will list, Paid and/or
Requested Subscriptions, Sales through Dealers or Newsstands, Free Distribution, LeIt Over
Copies, and Returns From Dealers and Newsstands.

These are the real numbers. When I place an ad in a magazine, I look at ONLY the number oI
subscriptions. I don't bother with the Sales through Dealers or Newsstands. The reason is, some
Dealers won't send back the copies that didn't sell. Instead, they may resell them to a magazine
shop that buys back issues.

We have a magazine shop like that in the area. ere you will Iind back issues to magazines that
are anywhere Irom 10 to 80 oII the cover price and some oI the magazines are up to 18
months old. Most people that purchase old magazines are buying them Ior the articles, not to see
what's new Irom the advertisers. You might be asking, why don't they just send the magazines
back and get credit Ior them. Well, it really depends on the distribution agreement that they have
with the magazine. Some magazines are sold at a lower price to the dealer, iI the dealer agrees to
keep all unsold issues.

For example, the magazine may have a cover price oI $4.95. The dealer may pay $2.50 per issue
on the agreement that there is no return privilege iI he can't sell all oI the issues that month. On
the other hand, the dealer may pay $3.95 per issue and then have the right to return the unsold
copies Ior credit. Some magazine publishers don't want returned copies Irom dealers, as it
lowers the total number oI magazines that were distributed Ior that month and that lowers their
overall distribution Iigures. Since I really don't know how many copies Irom dealers are really
making it to customer hands, I don't count those sales.

What happens iI you want to run an ad in a small magazine or newsletter that doesn`t print a
Statement oI Circulation? They are generally going to be mailed out using a bulk postage
permit, so then they had to Iill a Iorm out at the post oIIice each time they do a mailing. This
will be their paid postal receipt stating how many pieces were mailed and it should be stamped
by the post oIIice.

II they are mailing out the newsletter or small magazine and using stamps.. I would be careIul,
as you will have no idea how many people they are really mailing out to.

Back in the early 90s, I was selling an instructional video Ior the Tandy 1000 owners, I ran an
ad in a small magazine that was geared towards Tandy 1000 owners. In a letter the magazine
sent to us, they stated, "we have over 4800 subscribers". We ran a halI page ad in the magazine
Ior three months.

Our sales were terrible, however, in other magazines, such as PCM magazine, our sales were
great. I called the magazine's publisher and asked him exactly how many subscribers he had to
the magazine. This time he claimed over 7,000 readers. I asked him how many oI the readers
were subscribers. Well, Ior the next Iew minutes I got the run around. I then asked him point
blank, Ior a copy oI the paid postal receipt that he has to Iill out when mailing the magazine out
Iirst class bulk mail.

e said that he didn't have to Iill one out. At that point I knew he was lying, because he was
using a Iirst class bulk mail permit number on the magazine. I called the post oIIice where he
had the Iirst class bulk permit Irom and asked them iI he was Iiling a Iorm 3600-R each time he
was mailing out the magazine. They conIirmed that he did. I called the publisher back and told
him that post oIIice had them on Iile and I inIormed him that I wanted to see a copy.

To make a long story short, about two weeks went by and I received a copy that was stamped by
the post oIIice, to veriIy it was real. It showed he was only mailing out 524 copies each
month. e had committed Iraud, by stating in the letter that he had over 4800 subscribers, when
in reality he had only 524.

Needless to say, we received a reIund Ior the three ads that we did run and we got several months
oI Iree advertising. AIter that we never advertised with them again.

It's important Ior you to make sure your ad is really published. Don't rely on just a tear sheet. (A
tear sheet is where the magazine sends you a copy oI the ad, that they have ripped out oI an
issue.) Ask Ior a copy oI the entire magazine, this way you can see where your ad was placed in
relation to the article content. Most publishers do this automatically. II they won't send you the
entire issue, be careIul about advertising with them.

III a publisher contacts you to advertise in their magazine, and you have never heard oI them, ask
them send you 4 to 6 back issues beIore you advertise with them. Check out the magazine
beIore you sign up and run an ad. You may even want to start with a small ad to see iI you get
any response. When placing ads in magazines, be careIul oI the publisher or ad representatives
that make claims without written prooI like we described above. You could be paying Ior a very
expensive ad, that really isn't reaching all the people that the magazine claims.


"ualified Subscribers

In most markets, there are magazines that are available only to qualiIied subscribers. They may
oIIer a paid subscription or be available on the newsstand, but the bulk oI their readers are Irom
Iree subscription to people who 'qualiIy Ior them. Who meets the qualiIications will depend on
the magazine. With some magazines, everyone will qualiIy.

You have to be careIul when advertising in magazines that are Iree Ior qualiIied
subscribers. When someone is paying Ior a magazine, they have enough interest in it that they
are going to want to read it. AIter all, why pay Ior a magazine that your not going to read? And
those who do pay Ior a subscription are more likely to take their time going through the
magazine, which will improve the chances oI them seeing your ad.

With the Iree magazines, the reader doesn`t have an investment in it. AIter all they didn`t pay
Ior it. So they may not pay as much attention to it as they would a magazine that they paid
Ior. Now I realize that some people will read them cover to cover, but there are those who will
just Ilip through the magazine and toss it out iI they didn`t Iind an interesting article. In the end
these people will not see your paid ad.

Something I want to point out, is magazines that are primarily qualiIied subscriber based are
depending on the advertisers to cover all oI the cost oI the magazine, including the distribution
cost. Which can mean the ad rates may be higher than magazines with has paid subscribers.


Running Ads in a New Magazine

Although magazines are struggling, Irom time to time a new magazine will enter the
market. When they do, iI they see that you are adverting in another magazine, they will usually
contact you about advertising with them.

ere`s a Iew things Ior you to consider beIore advertising with them.

1. What do their ad rates look like? Are the higher, lower or about the same that you are
currently paying?

2. Are they oIIering any 'introductory advertising deals?

3. ow are they going to distribute the magazine? Through dealers, subscribers, web based, etc?

4. ow many subscribers do they have?

5. Are they paid subscribers or are they Iree issues going out to 'qualiIied subscribers?

6. ow did they qualiIy or obtain these subscribers?

7. ow many issues are they going to distribute?

8. Are they going to be oIIering the magazine as a web publication?

9. Do they want you to pay up Iront? II they do, don't.

These are questions you need to ask them beIore you advertise with them. In the past I`ve seen
magazines come on to the market, then only aIter a Iew months they Iold.

Don`t ever pre-pay Ior advertising with a new magazine no matter how good oI a deal they oIIer
you. I know oI a Iew people who did this, only to never see their ad run because the magazine
never got published. When they tried to contact the magazine to get their money back, they
Iound the phones were disconnected and mail was being returned to sender.

(The same holds true Ior web site advertising. ONLY pay as you go. Never pre-pay Ior several
months in advance.)

About a year ago, I got a call Irom a publisher coming out with a new video magazine. They
told me they had 30,000 qualiIied subscribers and the magazine would be coming out in a Iew
months. Something didn`t sound quite right to me. ow did they get 30,000 qualiIied
subscribers? The magazine hadn`t even been published yet and it wouldn`t be Ior a Iew more
months.

Next, they mailed a very nice slick looking media kit minus any sample issues. The media kit
contain several pages oI inIormation about the magazine, the demographics oI the readers, the
rate card Ior the display ads and on page stating they had 30,000 qualiIied subscribers. When I
contacted them about how they got the 30,000 qualiIied subscribers, I was given very vague
answers.

Something else that made me uncomIortable was their advertising rates. They were downright
expensive. More expensive than any other magazine.

owever, they were oIIering a special discount to try them out Ior just three months. You could
save 30 oII whatever ad size you wanted to run with. All you had to do was pre-pay Ior the
three months...

I decided to pass and not advertise with them. To this day, I`ve never seen any magazine, nor
have I ever heard Irom them again.


Online Magazines

Online magazines are magazines that are not printed on paper, but are magazines distributed by
PDF Iormat or some other online print Iormat. These magazines, when displayed on your
computer screen, look just like a printed magazine, complete with advertising, articles, classiIied
ads, etc. Most oI them are designed so iI you click on an ad, you will be linked directly to the
advertiser`s website, which is a bonus Ior you, as the reader doesn`t have to look up your website
later. They are taken directly to your site while the reader`s interest is at it`s highest Ior your
product.

With online magazines becoming more popular, you`ll Iind a lot oI publishers are starting to
oIIer their magazines both ways, electronically and in print.

Depending on the publication, there may or may not be a subscription charge Ior the online
version. Yes, you read that correctly. Some publishers charge Ior viewing the magazine online
line, in addition to charging a lot Ior advertising.

Some magazine publishers oIIer more articles or videos to accompany the articles in the online
version oI the magazine. They do this Ior several reasons:

1. They don`t have pay Ior the extra printing cost oI the additional articles.

2. By adding extra content to the online version, they can justiIy the subscription Iees they
charge Ior the online version.

3. By adding more value to the online version, they are trying to get people to switch Irom print
to the electronic version.

The main reason they want to convert readers to the electronic version is cost. It`s a lot cheaper
to put out an online version oI the magazine than it is to pay Ior the printing and mailing cost.

Now some oI you are thinking, 'iI the electronic version oI the magazine is cheaper to put out,
then the advertising costs will be less. Well, that is not always the case, you need to check with
the publisher.

We Iound some magazine charge the same ad rates Ior both online and print, while other
magazines, their online rates where up to 50 cheaper than the same size ad in print.

Some magazine publishers even oIIered us a print ad, with a Iree ad in the online magazine. Or,
they would oIIer some type oI combination rate Ior running in both print and online. Always try
to negotiate Ior a lower ad rate, especially Ior an online only publication, as you really don't have
any way oI knowing how many people are reading the online version oI the magazine. Oh sure,
the publisher will give you Iigures, but they may not be that accurate and be more wishIul
thinking on the publishers part.

ere is a test we ran in 2009. Two oI the magazines we advertised in, switched to online
versions only. Both magazines charged the same ad rates as we were paying in the print version
oI the magazine. So I wanted to see iI either ad was really paying Ior itselI or iI I was throwing
money away.

Tracking our results was easy. Each magazine were oIIering a link Irom our ad to our
website. We decided to put up a special page Ior each ad to link to, this way we could put a
counter on the page and see how many people were click on our ad.

I was surprised, the one magazine generated only a handIul oI people clicking on our ad, while
the other magazine generated a lot oI people clicking on the ad.

By having each ad link to a special pages on our site, it was easy to track the response we were
getting. Needless to say, we stopped advertising in the magazine that was generating only a
handIul oI clicks.

While online magazines are a growing trend in a lot oI markets, not everyone likes them. Some
people would preIer to have a printed magazine to look through instead having to sit in Iront oI a
computer a read a magazine. So iI you have the opportunity to run in both print and online, you
might want to go that way.

Tip: While print magazines generally have a 45 to 60 day lead time beIore the issue comes out
with your ad, online magazine generally have a lot less lead time. This means you ad will been
seen sooner rather than later.


Small Magazines and Newsletters

There are some markets where you will only have small magazines or newsletters with a small
circulation base and oI late, most oI these have become online only publications.

II the market you are working in only oIIers these small publications, then you will have no
choice but to run ads with them. Just be careIul and watch how much they are charging Ior ad
space.

Over the years I`ve talked to a Iew Special Interest Video producers who do work in very small
markets that oIIer only newsletters or small magazines. They have reported that their sales are
Iairly good in this type oI publication.

owever, my experience has only been in markets where you have large magazines supporting
the market, along with a Iew oI the small magazines and newsletters. My experience has been
the small magazines or newsletters never produced enough sales to cover the cost oI the
ad. owever, iI the small magazine or newsletter is an online only publication, the ad rates
shouldn`t be to bad. So I would suggest you at least try running some ads with them.

The advertising rates in these newsletters and small magazines will vary greatly. Some oI them
Ieel that their ad rates have to be in line with what the big magazines are charging. This is Iine
Ior them, but as an advertiser you have to watch how you spend your advertising dollars, as you
want to reach the most people you can with each advertising dollar spent.

I ran a test several years ago where I ran an ad in one small magazine, which had gone out to
about 3,000 people who belong to a proIessional organization. I didn`t get any sales oII the ads I
ran with them. I even went so Iar as to run a 15 oII coupon in the ad and I still didn`t get any
response.

When I ran this ad, a 1/6 page ad in a larger magazine that reached 45,000 people cost $600.
While the same size ad in the small magazine that reached 3,000 people cost $600.

Let`s do the math.
$600 to reach 45,000 0.014 cents per person.
$600 to reach 3,000 0.20 cents per person.

As you can see it was more expensive to advertise with the smaller magazine.


Media Kits

Whenever you contact a magazine about advertising make sure you ask them to send you a
media kit. Most oI them will email you an electronic media kit. The inIormation you can gain
Irom a media kit can be very valuable and it can give you some insight into the type oI people
who read that particular magazine.

A Media Kit will generally include:

1. A sample issue oI the magazine or a link to a copy oI the magazine online.

2. A rate card - explaining the advertising rates, allowable discounts, positioning, etc.

3. Advertising speciIications - listing the dimensions Ior the diIIerent ad sizes, what is needed Ior
black and white and color photographs, what material is camera ready, etc.

4. Circulation inIormation - Depending on the magazine this maybe nothing more than a cover
letter stating the number oI "readers". With most magazines this inIormation will be a little more
detailed. You will Iind demographics on the readers and other statistical inIormation.

The statistical inIormation can be helpIul in determining iI the magazine is going to reach
customers that will have an interest in what you are oIIering.

For example, let`s say a magazine has a subscription base oI 100,000 Videographer`s and you
are thinking about running an ad in this magazine Ior a video on 'Shooting Tips Ior D Video
Cameras

The magazine sent over readership statistics show that 32 or 32,000 readers oI this magazine
that own an D camera, with another 16 or 16,000 readers who are planning to buy an D
camera.

This means that almost halI oI the readers oI this magazine are your target market.

Now let`s say you are doing a video on using Sony Vegas editing soItware. The same
magazine`s statistic report that only 6 oI the readers use Sony Vegas soItware to edit their
videos. ThereIore, only 6,000 people that read the magazine would be your target market.

By knowing this type oI inIormation you can gauge whether or not you want to spend the money
they are asking, Ior an ad in that magazine. Another possibility is when you talk to the ad rep,
you can always use their own statistics to work out a lower ad rate, since their magazine doesn't
hit a lot people with an interest in using Sony Vegas editing soItware.

I have used this type oI inIormation when negotiating rates with some magazines. When the ad
rep called back, I used their own statistics to lower our advertising rate by nearly halI. I do want
to point out that there were a Iew magazines that would not budge on their rates. But it never
hurts to try.


Market Research

What ever magazine you plan on advertising, I recommend trying to get two years worth oI back
issues, or at a minimum, one year`s worth. You may have to pay Ior the back issues oI the
magazine, but it is a small price to pay Ior the amount oI inIormation you can obtain.

Once you have the magazines, grab some paper or make a spreadsheet oI the Iollowing
inIormation:

1. Make a list oI the number oI pages in each issue. This can show you iI the magazine is
growing, shrinking or holding steady with regards to the size oI the magazine.

2. You can see iI the magazine gets smaller during certain times oI the year. II so, this can
indicate when the slow season is Ior the magazine and Ior this market. This can help you adjust
your marketing eIIorts.

Whether or not you plan on advertising in the magazine, it helps to know when the slow season
is Ior a particular market. Most businesses have a slow season or slow time oI the year.

3. You can see how other advertisers are advertising in the magazine.

4. You can Iind the Statement oI Circulation to see the actual number oI paid subscribers.

Make a list or a spreadsheet oI the number oI advertisers each month and the ad sizes each
month. Below is a sample oI what I am talking about.

# oI
Advertisers
Full Page 2/3 Page 1/2 Page 1/3 Page 1/4 Page 1/6 Page
Jan 64 36 7 3 4 8 14
Feb 72 36 7 3 4 7 15
Mar 72 44 9 5 10 10 10
April 80 54 12 8 14 12 8
May 96 62 16 7 19 12 8
June 96 66 16 7 21 12 10
July 96 65 17 6 19 12 10
Aug 92 60 17 6 18 9 10
Sept 80 58 14 2 12 14 16
Oct 80 46 12 2 6 10 16
Nov 62 34 7 1 6 4 16
Dec 62 32 7 1 6 5 14
This type oI inIormation allows you to learn that the months Irom April to October are the best
months in this market. You will see the magazine not only increases in the number oI pages
each month, but the number oI advertisers increase, as does their ad sizes.

Note: In the above chart some advertisers are running multiple ads.

Most magazines will not give you this inIormation. Why? Because they are going to want you
to sign a twelve month contract to advertise with them. They don`t want new advertisers to see
what the experienced advertisers already know and they dont want you to see iI the market is
seasonal.

The experienced advertisers already know what months their sales drop oII. They will start
downshiIting their ad dollars to smaller ads or no ads at all.

This inIormation also tells you when would be the best time to start advertising in the market.

Using the inIormation above, how many oI you would launch a product in November? ow
about April?

II it was me it would be April just as the market is heating back up.

aving inIormation like this can help you make inIormed decisions and it can help you
determine any sales trends. For example, you launched an instructional video in April and over
the next Iew months the video sold really well. Then comes September and sales start to drop a
little and even more in October.

Then comes November and sales drop to a trickle. You might start to panic over your
sales. owever, armed with the inIormation in the spreadsheet, you would know that you are
heading into a normal slowdown Ior the market. This allows you to adjust your ad spending and
other business costs.


Tracking Your Sales

A lot oI advertisers I`ve talked to over the years don`t track the response they are getting Irom
their ads. They haven`t the Ioggiest idea which ad or magazine is pulling the best
response. They`re just happy because they are making money Irom their videos or
products. owever, iI you think about it, they could be wasting money on ads that are producing
enough sales to cover the cost oI the ad.

One oI the most single important things you can do Ior marketing analysis is to ask the customer
this Iollowing question. "ow did you hear about us?" Then write down the response, keep it in
a log or track it with a spreadsheet. This inIormation is vital, as you are going to want to know
which magazine is pulling the best Ior you and which ones you are losing money in.

II you are running an ad in an online magazine, see iI the ad can be linked to your website and
have the ad link to a special page, so you can count the number oI people visiting your site Irom
that ad.

By tracking all oI our sales, at the end oI the day, week, month or year, I can tell you exactly
which source oI advertising (including which magazine, internet, mailings, reIerrals, repeat sales,
etc.) are generating sales and how many sales Irom each source. Armed with this inIormation I
know exactly where to spend my marketing money and where not to.

(NOTE: I have been asked many times about my soItware package that I use to run the
business. It is a custom package that I wrote myselI. At this time it is not Ior sale, but who
knows, maybe down the road it will be.)

Some books I've read and people I've talked to say, advertise everywhere. II the customer sees
your ads everywhere, it will increase their chances oI buying Irom you. In some markets this can
be true. owever, Irom my own personal experience I can tell you that's not always true. II
your ads are selling a product direct, such as a product or video, it doesn't always work.

Now some oI you may say, "you'll make money on the backend, when the customer comes back
and buys more products Irom you." Yes, this may be true, however, iI you are not making
enough money to cover the ad costs, you wouldn`t be in business long enough to make money on
the backend. You have to make sure you are at least making enough money to cover your ad
costs.

ere is an example. AIter running an ad in a magazine Ior six months I looked at the number oI
sales, the proIit Irom the sales, the number oI times the customer came back to us as a repeat sale
and the total cost oI running the ad Ior six months. ere are the numbers Ior a halI page ad that I
ran in one magazine.

6 months x $1245 per ad $7470 total ad cost
Total sales Irom this ad was during the 6 months 116 sales
The proIit oI each video sold was $33.65
----------------------------------------
Total proIit made $3903.34

Repeat sales 70
ProIit oI each repeat video - $33.65
----------------------------------------
Total proIit on repeats $2355.50
Grand total oI proIit made Irom this magazine was $6258.84
With an ad cost oI $7470.00
------------------------------------------------------------------
We lost a total oI - $1211.16

(Luckily at the time I was running ads in other magazines, which helped to oIIset the loss.)

Since this magazine did sell videos, I didn't pull the ad all together, but I did reduce the size oI
the ad Irom a halI page to a 1/6 page and ran Ior 6 more months. ere are the numbers Ior the
1/6 page ad.

6 months x $420 per ad $2610 total ad cost
Total sales Irom this ad was 87
ProIit Irom each video $33.65
----------------------------------------
Total proIit made $2927.55

Repeat sales 60
ProIit Irom each repeat video $33.65
----------------------------------------
Total proIit on repeats $2019.00
Grand total oI proIit made Irom this magazine was $4946.55
With an ad cost oI $2610.00
------------------------------------------------------------------
I made a small proIit oI $2336.55

Again this magazine had smaller circulation base oI somewhere around 10,000 to 12,000
people. Their ad costs vs. their circulation was high.

In another magazine, I was paying about $850 Ior a halI page ad in magazines with a paid
subscriber base oI 80,000 people. (These rates are Irom several years ago) This ad was pulling
upwards towards 100 orders per month,with around 600 orders Ior a 6 month period.

All oI the above examples were based on only two videos. As I added more videos to the
product line, overall video sales went up. I really started to make money oII that ad when three
more videos were added to our line. I went back up to a halI page ad and now I was selling three
hundred videos in a six month period, which made a proIit on the Iront end and the backend.

ad I not been tracking sales so closely, I would have never known iI the ad was making
money. Since I tracked the ad results, it allowed me to make adjustments to our ad size, so the
ad became more proIitable. AIter all that's the name oI the game, to produce a proIit and to build
a business.


Choosing the Correct Ad Size for Print

As you saw in the above example, when the ad size was reduced Irom a halI page to a 1/6 page,
sales didn't drop too much. The cost oI the ad sure did.

You may Iind that iI you are the only one advertising a video on a particular subject in a
magazine that a small ad may work well just as well as a larger ad. Whatever you do, start small
and let the ad size grow. Don't jump in with a single video and take a Iull page ad, unless the ad
space is very cheap.

Years ago a lot oI books on marketing said people would have more conIidence buying Irom a
company with large ads vs. small ads. Things have changed, especially with the online world we
live in today. Advertisers are Iinding that small ad can have a tremendous pull.

Today with the internet, more and more advertisers have reduced their ad sizes. They use the
print ad to drive people to their websites. I have done this here at Studio 1 Productions and it`s
been very successIul. It has allowed cuts in advertising cost by 50 while increasing our sales.

When selecting your ad size, whatever you do, don't let the advertising rep "help" determine the
best ad size. They will most likely try to put you into a larger ad than what is really
needed. Remember, they are out to make money Ior the magazine and to increase their
commissions.

Most oI the time you are going to Iind the cost oI the ad will determine what size ad you can
run. Ad reps will generally tell you that you need to run the ad Ior at least 3 months, so you can
determine iI the ad is working or not.

While in some cases that may be true, you should know within the Iirst month iI your ad is
generating any response. You should see an increase in web traIIic and a increase in orders.


Classified Ads

Some people will tell you that classiIied ads in a magazine are a waste oI money, while others
will swear by them.

II you want to run an ad in the classiIied section oI a magazine, it`s best to run a small one or two
inch display ad in the classiIied section. Then as sales come in, increase the ad size Ior more
visibility.

II you have a very limited marketing budget, I would recommend you start oII with a classiIied
ad. As sales grow, you will always have the option to increase your ad size and ad placement.

With a classiIied display ad, your space will be limited. Don`t crowd the ad with too much
inIormation and make sure it includes your web address.


Ad Placement

Where should your ad be placed? In the Iront, middle or back oI the magazine? Does it really
matter? Depending on the magazine, it can make a diIIerence. When you place a display ad
you can sometimes request certain positioning oI the ad. For example, you may request the ad
be place on the right page, outside edge, or near the Iront oI the magazine. Depending on the
publication, you may or may not get what you want, but it doesn`t hurt to ask.

Most magazines will charge extra Ior positioning an ad, usually between 10 and 20 oI the ad
cost. Some magazines may have restrictions on the ad size in the Iront oI the magazine. I ran
into this once, only Iull page, Iour color ads were allowed in the Iirst Iorty pages oI the
magazine. The smaller ads got placed towards the back oI the magazine.

Ads that are placed next to text generally tend to pull better. The reason behind this is, while the
reader spends time on the page reading the text, they are more likely to glance over at the ad that
is next to it. You need to make sure you have a good strong and interesting headline. Once your
ad has their attention, you want them to read the rest oI the ad. Ads that are 1/3, 1/2 and 2/3 page
in size are usually the only ad on the page and will be placed next to text. (Although this may
vary Irom magazine to magazine.)

Some magazines will block the ads to certain sections oI the magazine. For example, in some
photography magazines, the manuIacturers almost always seem to be up Iront in the magazine,
but the dealers that are selling the equipment are located in the back oI the magazine. This really
isn't a problem in this type oI magazine, as most readers know this and when they want to
purchase a camera or another piece oI equipment, they will head straight to the back oI the
magazine to Iind the dealers. II the magazine you are advertising in is laid out like this, then you
might do better in the back oI the magazine.

But, what about the ad getting lost among all the other ads in the back? It may get lost to a point,
so you will have to make your ad stands out among the rest by using bold headlines, contrasting
color or reverse print. Remember, iI the reader goes to the back oI the magazine to look Ior
products to buy, then chances are they will read or glance over all oI the ads in their search. So
make yours stand out.

There is a section in some magazines that is made up oI all ads. This area is usually a "Market
Place Section". Sometimes the ads are all the same size or they may be a variety oI sizes. The
"Market Place Section" is usually near the back oI the magazine and this section will most likely
have a lower ad cost than a regular display ad. When talking with diIIerent advertisers, most oI
them said they did quite well in the "Market Place Section", as they Ielt most readers would stop
and look over this section to see what is new.

owever, there were a Iew that didn't like advertising in this section, as they Ielt their ad was not
being seen. It was getting lost among all the other ads. The key to advertising in this section is
to make the ad really stands out. II most oI the ads in this section are in black and white, then
make yours color. Use bold colors as borders or bold colors as a background to help your ad
stand out among the others.

II the magazine has ads all throughout that are selling directly to readers, try to have the ad
placed next to an article or a regular column. Ads that are placed in certain sections like product
reviews, don't always pull as well as they do when placed next to an article. This is due to the
Iact that not everyone reads the product review sections, but most people read the articles and
regular columns.


ow often should you change your ad?

Some marketing people will tell you to try several diIIerent ads and then stick to the one which
pulls the most sales. While this is Iine Ior some markets, however, I have Iound that you should
change your ad oIten. Keep the ad Iresh. Change the products or layout oI the ad.

When you run the same ad month aIter month, the regular readers skip right over it. And what
happens iI you add a new product to the ad. II the ads look so close to the old ad, people won`t
even pay attention it.

In the ads I have run, I change them every couple oI months. Sometimes I just change the colors
oI the text or the background colors. Other times I change the layout oI the ad. This keeps the ad
Iresh and I have noticed it improves sales.


Getting Your Ad esigned

You can design you own ads with most any desktop publishing program such as MicrosoIt
Publisher or Adobe InDesign. Also, you can design your ad with soItware such as Adobe
Photoshop or another paint shop type program.

Spend some time looking through magazines at other ads. What catches your eye? Looking at
other ads, what they are selling and how they have the ad laid out. This will give you a lot oI
ideas on how to design your ad.

Note: I am not saying to copy someone else`s ad, what I am saying is to see what you like out oI
their ads and see how you can incorporate that into yours.

There are several types oI ads that are quite common. They are:

1. Direct Sales Ads. These are ads purposely to make a direct sale to the reader.

2. Ads that direct you to a website. This type oI ad usually has several products, oIten without
any pricing. The idea is to get the reader interested and Ior them to go to the web Ior more
inIormation and to order online. The ads will contain a directive such as, 'visit our website Ior
more products or 'visit our website Ior more inIormation'. This type oI ad is great Ior online
magazines that oIIer a link Irom the ad to your site.

3. Promotional Ads. We have all seen ads like this. Ads Ior a camera Irom a manuIacturer or
ads Ior shoes. They are not selling the product directly to you, they are promoting the product.

Almost all advertisers who are selling a product will use the Iirst and second method listed
above, unless they are selling their product through a dealer network and not directly to the
customer.

I highly recommend you go to the library or a bookstore and get some books on advertising or ad
design. They will contain a wealth oI inIormation and ideas, along with plenty oI examples oI
ads. These books will give you more inIormation than we can cover here on how to layout your
ad.

When designing your ad, check with each magazine that you are going to run ads in and see what
their requirements are.

II you are not into designing your own ads then:

1. Check with someone Irom a local college who is learning graphic arts and hire them.

2. Check online in some oI the Iorums to see iI you can Iind a graphic artist.

3. You can hire a local graphic artist to create your ads.

4. See iI the magazine oIIers ad design services.

5. Contact a local ad agency. (This will be the most expensive way to go.)


Key Points For Your Ad

Below is a description oI an ad that was run by a gentleman who produced a series oI dog
training videos. e created a simple ad that did very well Ior him. I wish I had a copy to show
you, but I don`t. So I will give a description oI what it looked like.

Train Your German Shepherd
(a photo oI the videos)
Learn Irom a ProIessional Trainer
Working with a German Shepherd
Covers Basic to Advanced Training
$39.95 Ior Each Video
SAVE - All 3 Videos Ior $99.95
CALL NOW XXX-XXX-XXXX
www.DogTraining.com

The ad was simple, but eIIective. ere are the key points oI the ad:

1. The headline was large and caught the attention oI German Shepherd owners.

2. The photo was in color and included all 3 volumes.

3. The body oI the text highlighted seeing a proIessional trainer with a German Shepherd.

4. The price oI each video and the price Ior all three videos.

5. The Call To Action. This is the 'Call Now statement.

II you are selling direct to the customer, make sure your ad covers all oI the above points.

Your ad should always include a call to action statement, such as Call Now, Call Today, urry
Call Now, etc. These action statements really do work. They direct the reader to do something
and iI the person really has an interest in your video, this may actually cause the person to pick
up the phone and call you.

II your ad directs them to the web to order, the action statements such as Visit Our Website
Today, Order at our Website Now, etc. will cause a lot oI people to take action and go to your
website while they are thinking about it.

This may seem obvious, but make sure you have your phone number and/or web address in the
ad. Also, double check to make sure your phone number and web address is correct.


Ad Costs

There are several ways to reduce your advertising cost.

1. Ask Ior an in-house agency discount. This is usually a 10 to 15 discount oII the published
advertising rates. You will need to submit your own camera-ready art work. Most magazines
will accept an ad as a PDF, JPG or Photoshop Iile.

2. A Irequency discount. This is where you agree to run an ad Ior so many times. For example,
you want to run a 1/6 page ad Ior your product in a magazine, you may Iind the rates listed like
this:

1 Time rate $100
3 Time rate $90
6 Time rate $80
12 Time rate $70

As you can see, the more time you commit to running your ad, the lower the ad cost.

3. Direct Rates or Mail Order Rates. Companies dealing directly with the public and not through
resellers are considered a mail order or direct sales company. Some magazines will a have
discount rate Ior this type oI advertiser. Make sure you ask the ad rep at the magazine
iI they oIIer any special rates to direct sales companies or mail order companies.

4. II you are a new advertiser, see iI the magazine has any type oI new advertiser discount. This
has worked Ior me. I have received a twelve time rate on a three time contract. This allowed me
to see iI the magazine generate orders. At the end oI the three time run, we went on to commit to
a twelve time contract.

5. Negotiate the rates. I have talked with other advertisers who have been able to negotiate better
rates than what are printed on the rate card, especially since magazines need advertisers.

6. Ask about remnant space. This is space the magazine has leIt over and they usually try to Iill
it right beIore the issue closes (or goes to printing). Remnant space can be VERY
inexpensive. Ask the ad rep about it.

Almost all magazine are going to want you to sign a contract saying that you will run your ad a
certain number oI times during a year. A three time contract means you will need to run your ad
three times during a one year period. You can run the ad over three consecutive months or run it
every other month Ior three times or run it every Iour months, etc. It generally doesn`t matter
when you run it as long as the ad runs three time during a one year period.

7. BeIore you sign any contract with the magazine, make sure you know about the subscribers,
demographics, etc. that we covered earlier.

I can't stress this enough, magazines are hurting Ior advertisers. Negotiate with them Ior better
rates or discounts and Ior a banner ad on their website.

When signing the ad contract, check to see iI there is any penalty iI you reduce your ad
size. With some magazines, iI you sign a contract Ior a 1/2 page ad and you Iind your are not
pulling enough sales and you will probably want to reduce the ad size to something
smaller. owever, they may not let you depending on the contract.

II that is the case, sign a contract Ior a 1/6 page ad or the smallest ad you can, then run a larger
ad. They usually don`t have a problem iI you want to go up in an ad size, but the don`t like it
when you go down.


Lead Times

The lead time is the time it takes Irom when you submit the ad to the time that magazine issue
comes out. Lead times are usually six to twelve weeks depending on the magazine.

Let`s say you are going to place an ad in a magazine with a twelve week lead time. That means
you submit your ad on June 2, your ad won`t come out until Sept. 2. Make sure you watch your
lead times so you know when your ad will appear. Also, don`t Iorget iI you want to run a
holiday special you have to layout the ad early enough.

I remember once seeing a company run an ad Ior a Christmas special. It wasn`t in the December
or January issue, but there is was in February issue.


The Cover ate

Some magazines may have a cover date oI one month, but come out in another.

ere are two examples oI magazines that we advertise in:

1. Magazine A will have a cover date oI April, but they come out in the beginning or middle oI
March.

2. Magazine B will have a cover date oI April, but they don`t come out until the end oI April or
the Iirst week oI May.

Check to see when the issues actually come out. This will be important iI you are going to run a
sale or you want to announce a new product.


ow Often Should I Run My Ads

The response you get with that question will vary greatly.

Some will say run the ad every month and their reasons Ior that answer is:

1. This keeps your ad in Iront oI the reader so when they are ready to buy, your ad is in the
current magazine issue.

2. This keeps your name out there and the customer gets Iamiliar with you. Some Ieel it takes
the ad being seen 3 or more times beIore you get the readers attention and Ior them to take
action.

3. It helps build name recognition. II people see your ad month aIter month, they will recognize
your company.

Other will say, run the ad every other month or every Iew issues oI the magazine. Their reasons
are:

1. Your ad is being seen by the same crowd over and over again.

2. II they are going to buy, they will buy when they are in need oI the product and not as a result
oI the ad running 3 or more times.

3. Your wasting money by running the ad Ior the same products every month.

4. You should rotate your advertising between print and the Internet.

So which way oI thinking is correct? ..Both, as it really depends on your market.

The world in changing to an online world. With people migrating more and more to the web to
get their inIormation, you need to keep that in the IoreIront oI your mind when running
ads. owever, don't discount print advertising all together. Try a combination oI both
avenues. Try running some small print ad, even iI you only run a print a a Iew times a year.
le directly to your own site.
No matter what magazine you choose to advertise in, your message will need to be strong and
eye-catching. You only have a Iew seconds to grab the readers' attention and pull them in to read
the rest oI the ad. A bold graphic and an interesting headline will help you make a connection
with readers right oII the bat. The graphic and the headline must come together to pinpoint a
problem and oIIer a solution to the reader.
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