Great Ideas.

Greater Profits.

The

Great

AdVenture

How to Succeed in Newspaper Advertising Sales

Version 3.0

Table of Contents
Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii

Section One: Introduction to Newspaper Advertising . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

The Role of a Newspaper Representative . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Criteria for Success . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Did You Know? That . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Why Newspaper Media? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

The Newspaper Value Proposition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Ten Ways to Waste Your Advertising . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Ten Top Reasons to Advertise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Defining ROI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Whom Should You Call On? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Ten Reasons to Advertise in a Newspaper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Ten Reasons to Advertise on a Newspaper Website . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Section Readership Among Adults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

News Content of Your Newspaper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Special Sections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Ten Facts About Newspapers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Ten Reasons to Advertise Frequently . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Internet Marketing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Competitive Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Keeping Sales Information Organized . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Section Two: Self-Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

33

Making the Most of Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Ten Time Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

The Great AdVenture How to Succeed in Newspaper Advertising Sales

iii

Section Three: The Advertising Budget .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Understanding Your Customers Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

How to Determine a Budget . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

The 4-Step Ad Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Where to Improve Current Ad Schedules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Methods Used for Budgeting Advertising . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Co-op Advertising Funds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Why Retailers Dont Use Co-op Funds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Tips to Maximize Co-op Funds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Prospecting for New Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Ring the Bell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Changes in Existing Businesses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

Section Four: Creating the Ad .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Ten Components of a Good Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

Standardized Layouts and Formats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Checklist for Spec Ad Idea Generation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Tips for Creating Effective Ads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Writing Headlines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

Writing Body Copy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Branding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Illustrations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

iv

Type and Type Families . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

Using Color in Ads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103

Ten Reasons to Color Your Ad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103

Creating Online Ads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .106

Ten Tips for Creating Online Ads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .107

Ten Tips for Creating Search Ads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .108

How a Newspaper is Produced . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .109

2011 Newspaper Association of America

Section Five: The Customer-Driven Sales Approach .

. . . . . . . . . . . . 113

Effectively Presenting Information and Plans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .115

Things to Take With You on Customer Calls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116

Preparing for a Presentation Sales Call . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .117

24 Questions for Newspaper Reps to Ask Customers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118

The Five-Step Sales Presentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .121

Understanding Your Customer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123

Helping Your Client Develop a Marketing Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .126

A View of Business Survival . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .127

Creative Strategy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .129

Merchandising and Creative Strategy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .130

Answering Objections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .132

Answering Most Common Objections to Newspaper Advertising . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .134

Most Common Objections to Newspaper Website Advertising . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .145

Closing the Sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .150

Follow-up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .156

Selling With Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .157

Selling Advertising on the Telephone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .160

Tracking Your Advertising . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .166

Section Six: Glossary of Terms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .167

Newspaper Terms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .167

Digital Terms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .175

The Great AdVenture How to Succeed in Newspaper Advertising Sales

Section Three

The Advertising Budget

Where to Improve Current Ad Schedules

Help merchants see when they need to advertise by
doing a timing test with them. Graph advertising
expenditures for clients versus their sales figures as
shown in the 4-Step Ad Plan. This can be done as a
percentage of sales if they dont want to give you exact
figures. The graphs can be done weekly or monthly,
depending on how much interest merchants show and
how much they trust you. Chances are fairly high that a
merchants ad expenditures and sales trends dont look
much alike on the graph.

7. Newspaper discounts. What frequency discounts

does the newspaper offer? It might be advantageous
for the advertiser to run more linage to obtain the
extra discount.

When helping a merchant determine a monthly,

quarterly or annual budget, consider these steps:

Retailers are constantly seeking opportunities to bring

more people into their place of business, whether its
the primary mall in town or a single location. They
know that theirs is a numbers game and that the more
people who come through, the higher sales are likely to
be because shoppers tend to be buyers.

1. Start with frequency. People buy products

and services all year. Allocate week-to-week
expenditures because thats the amount each week
that will vary.
2. Heavy payroll weeks. Look for particularly heavy
payroll weeks of major employers. You know that
the first week of the month Social Security and
welfare checks are in circulation.
3. Heavy store traffic and sales weeks. What are the
naturally heavy store traffic and sales weeks? What
are natural sales events such as the Fourth of July,
Labor Day, back-to-school, Mothers Day, etc.? A
list of them is included on page 62.
4. Tie-ins. Are tie-ins possible with national and local
merchandising or promotional events? Are special
co-op funds available?
5. Competitive arena. What are competitors doing?
Are they advertising heavily? They cant be ignored
in a merchants overall advertising strategy.
6. Creative strategy. Whats the creative strategy
(multi-item ads vs. individual merchandise ads)
favored by the merchant? Multi-item omnibus
ads expose more merchandise at a lower cost per
item because several items share the headline and
signature costs.

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8. Special sections. What targeted special sections are

appropriate for the advertiser?
9. Color ads. Use of color has a striking effect on
readers noting of ads. Studies have shown that
color also increases sales of merchandise in the ad.

Holidays are often used as a theme for sales. Not

surprisingly, most months include holidays, so its very
common for a retailer to build a sale around one. A
few of the most popular holiday and seasonal events
include post-Christmas, New Years and Martin Luther
King Jr. Day (January); Presidents Day, Lincolns and
Washingtons birthdays and Valentines Day (February);
Easter and arrival of spring (March or April); Mothers
Day and Memorial Day (May); Fathers Day (June);
Independence Day (July 4); summer (June-August);
back to school (August or September); Labor Day and
Grandparents Day (September); Columbus Day and
Halloween (October); Election Day, Veterans Day and
Thanksgiving (November); Hanukkah, Christmas and
New Years Eve (December).
Of course, local dates and events in most communities
also dot the calendar.
Ad themes are built around events such as those above,
and ad headlines and body copy flow naturally from
those themes. Who hasnt seen a Sizzling Summer, New
Years Clearance or Christmas in July sale announced
in the paper? Retailers can use other themes and
approaches. (See section below on Creative Strategy).

2011 Newspaper Association of America

Section four Creating the Ad

Every ad has certain physical features.

Ad layout features are:
Headlines and subheads
The function of the headline is to attract attention and
stop readers, summarize the selling message, stimulate
interest in the ad proposal, draw readers into the copy
and pull prime prospects from among all readers.
Headlines usually get strong typographical treatment.
In layouts, they should be given about the same size
and weight theyll have in the finished ad. Subheads
elaborate on the headline.

Illustrations
These are intended to work with the headline to make
the ads theme instantly recognizable, attract reader
attention and select prospects from among all readers.
In layouts, block out areas in roughly the same size and
shape that the illustration will occupy in the finished
ad. The heavier the illustration will look in the ad, the
darker the space should be on the rough layout.

Copy
This tells the sales story in detail for the reader.
Placement of copy blocks should help the ad achieve
balance and symmetry. On rough layouts, copy blocks
in bold type should be indicated as darker gray.

Signature
This is the standard logo of a store with other
pertinent information such as store hours, credit card
information, address, phone number, map, etc. These
are found at the bottom or top of ads, sometimes both.

Borders and ornaments

Plain or fancy, the intent of a border is to define
the space an ad occupies and enclose its contents.
Ornamental borders are often used when no other
art is available. Simple, straight lines usually do the
job without diverting attention from the ads most
important parts.

White space
Just as music isnt music without space between the
notes, so copy and art is just black ink without the
contrast of white space around it. Without enough

76

white space around the black ink, the message is

difficult to read. Use of white space to balance black ink
is important in making a visually appealing ad.

Ad writing tips
More than anything else, a good ad stops the reader.
Otherwise, all production work and expense are
wasted. An ad has five to 10 seconds to jump off the
page and grab the reader. Thats how long the average
reader looks at a newspaper page before settling on
something to read or turning to another page.
Advertising performs the same function as a salesperson,
telling potential customers what the product will do for
them. The difference is one of numbers. Ad copy speaks
to large numbers of people, while a salesperson usually
speaks to one or two at one time.
Some advertising works well, and some doesnt. Good
ads are built on a concept or idea. If an ad is to be
effective, a reader should instantly recognize the concept
being communicated. If not, the message becomes
scrambled, and the power of a good layout, good copy or
illustration is at least partially lost. The concept should
be firm before any part of the ad is created.
A good ad sells a products benefits, not just its
features. Features are mentioned only to hang benefit
statements on, much like a skeleton allows muscles
and organs to be supported. People buy a product or
service because of what it will do for them, not because
of what it is.
Most good retail ads have a sense of urgency and tell
the reader to do something. A good ad promotes the
store name while visually creating an image for the
store. A good ad speaks to a specific group of people its
trying to reach. A good ad gives readers all facts they
need to make a purchase decision. It tells things such as
available sizes, colors and prints. It tells when the store
is open, where its located and its phone number.
Not everyone who lays out an ad knows all tricks of the
trade. Some are covered in this section. The more you
pay attention to ads you see, the more and faster youll
learn. Good layouts make an ad look better, grab more
attention and sell more for the merchant.
Well-designed ads are organized for maximum clarity.
Orderly division of space is at the heart of all layouts,
2011 Newspaper Association of America

Section five The Customer-Driven Sales Approach

Things to Take With You on Customer Calls

1. A copy of the newspaper should go with you on
every sales call. Its something new every day, and
many people you visit each business day may not
have read it. Its something you can give a prospect
rather than just asking for something. You dont call
every day, so dont worry about the client expecting
a free subscription. But it makes good sense to have
one on hand everywhere you go. You make a lot
of people happy with the gift of todays newspaper,
and you give them the chance to enjoy the product
youre trying to sell.
2. Speculative layouts and tear sheets with new
ideas are among the simplest and most effective
sales tools for an outside sales representative.
Theyre great for introducing an idea, making a
recommendation and involving the account in
decision making. Theyre also helpful in discovering
what the account likes and doesnt. Use them as
often as possible for established and new accounts.
Spec layouts are highly salable. Take two spec ads
of similar size but different ideas or orientations
for consideration. Sometimes, an ad from another
publication will greatly interest prospects, and they
respond when you urge them to run similar ads in
your paper under their own signatures.
3. Color overlays. With these, show clients what
color would do for an ad. Color adds to noting and
readership, and grows results.
4. Linage records. Linage figures are of great interest
to most accounts, so look them up before you
go. You can show linage gains to demonstrate
growth and strength. Showing linage figures of
competitors in the same business or industry can
be a forceful eye-opener as to how others use your
newspaper. You can show how one account has
grown dramatically in linage, relating this to sales
figures, if possible, and serving as a success story
for your newspaper. Linage records have many uses.
You can even use lack of lineage in a category as an
opportunity to own that category in the paper.

116

5. Testimonial letters. In terms of success stories,

these are great. Youll probably have to ask for them
because accounts often dont like admitting great
successes in advertising. You may even have to
offer to write them for the accounts. When you can
get them, make sure you use them widely. Merely
mentioning an account or campaign doing well
through your newspaper will frequently have its
effect.
6. Co-op information. Most retailers have accrued
a certain amount of cooperative ad dollars. Using
them can stretch an accounts total advertising
expenditures by 50 percent or more. Information
about manufacturers co-op plans are readily
available, usually from the advertising department.
The retailer often has this information, too, but
it may not be high on the priority list. More
information on co-op is in Section Three.
7. Research. Market research information is
excellent to show an account. Anything that gives
customers knowledge about the market in which
theyre competing is helpful. Many resources for
information are listed elsewhere in this book. Your
newspaper may have market-specific information
based on surveys in the primary market or other
commonly accepted sources. Become very familiar
with research the newspaper has on hand. It can
be used to support logical sales points as long as
its interpreted relative to your newspaper and
importance to the buyer.
8. Layout and copy advice. Most independent local
merchants arent great copywriters or layout people.
Assistance or material you provide will make their
advertising work better. Occasionally, show them
information that could be of value in improving
their ads.
9. Helpfulness pays. At the very least, your efforts to
take something with you in the decision-making
process or help your prospect will show that youre
conscientious and accommodating. Sales material
provides a starting point for you and the prospect
to begin discussing an advertising program that will
benefit the accounts business.

2011 Newspaper Association of America

Section five

The Customer-Driven Sales Approach

Understanding Your Customer

The first step in virtually any selling situation is getting
to know something about the business youre interested
in selling. After that, what we usually think of as the act
of selling begins. Unless we know something about the
clients business, were no better off than a flea-market
peddler who stands around hoping that someone will
show up and buy.
There are many ways of finding out about a customers
business. The best is asking about it, and the best way
to ask people about their business, especially for the
inexperienced, is a series of questions such as those
that follow. Dont be afraid to carry the questions into
a place of business in written form. Having them on
a form brings an air of credibility to the procedure
and makes you look more professional. In addition,
the answers are written down, so you dont have to try
to remember everything. You can concentrate on the
questions and learn as much as you can during the
fact-finding process.
Some retailers, however, are too busy or uncomfortable
with such questions and might balk at answering. If
thats the case, start with a few questions at a time.

After each visit, record the answers when you leave.

Youll quickly have all the information you need to
devise an advertising plan that will help. Dont forget
that magazines about the industry could give you
valuable insight to your customers problems.

The kind of information you need to

know:
What kinds of promotions have you used?
What kinds have worked well?
What didnt work?
W
 hat areas of the business developed better
than you thought in the last two years? How did
you do it?
W
 hat has disappointed you in the way it
developed? Why didnt it work the way you
expected?

Account survey
Account____________________________________

Income

Contract___________________________________

Approximate percentage of customers who are:

Low income

_________%

Sex

Lower middle income

_________%

Approximate percentage of customers who are:

Middle income

_________%

Male

Upper middle income

_________%

Upper income

_________%

________ % Female
________%

Marital status
Approximate percentage of customers who are:

Education

Single ________ % Married

________%

Approximate percentage of customers who have:

Home ownership
Approximate percentage of customers who are:
Renters ________ % Homeowners
________%

No high school degree

_________%

High school degree

_________%

Some college

_________%

College grad or more

_________%

The Great AdVenture How to Succeed in Newspaper Advertising Sales

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Section five The Customer-Driven Sales Approach

33. I dont have a website, so why do I need web

advertising?
The answer is simple: Were selling eyeballs, not
technology. Regardless of where the message is
placed, the advertiser should clearly communicate
a call to action. Whether thats by phone call, a visit
to the storefront or email, online advertising can
have positive effects.
34. My clients are older and dont read online.
Research shows that people 65 and older compose
about one-fourth fifth of the average weekday
audience and one of the fastest growing age groups.
The average age of a newspaper website reader is
about 40. These individuals often assist in making
purchase decisions for parents and relatives who are
in the older age group.

Orienting Questions
1. Why is it important to look at customer needs
before attempting to sell something?
2. Why is it important to give something back to
the customer?
3. What are things you should always bring on
customer calls?
4. What are basic steps involved in the sales
process?
5. What arise the difference between openended and closed-ended questions?
6. What are the Four Ps of marketing strategy?

Closing the Sale

Closing a sale in its most basic form is an invitation
to the customer to take action of some kind. Its the
most delicate and, for some, most difficult part of
the selling process. This is true for salesperson and
buyer. Heres the moment of truth, the point in time
at which salespeople discover how well they have
performed. Sales reps aim to get through the close
as painlessly as possible. Customers try to hold on to
their money until they see how theyll benefit from
exchanging it for whats being sold. Sometimes, slight
tension arises as a sales call comes to an end.
Inexperienced salespeople often find asking for
the order more difficult than it needs to be because
they dont know how to ask. One help is an attitude
of sincerely wanting to help the customer. If youre
proposing something good for the customer and you
believe it, the close is automatically easier. You can
look into the customers eye and be sincere in your
recommendations. The more you know, the easier
the close. Consciously asking for the order repeatedly
is something that no longer makes you hesitate.
A close should flow easily out of a presentation or
discussion. It shouldnt be forced, and you should
never appear to be attempting to take advantage.
That doesnt mean you shouldnt nudge, suggest,
initiate or control the direction of the conversation.
150

It doesnt mean waiting indefinitely for the prospect

to take action. It does mean that attempting to
outsmart the buyer is a good way to create shortterm relationships.
The close is only part of the effective salespersons
overall effort. Closing is interlaced into all steps
of selling. So it might be said that if salespeople
arent thinking about the close from the beginning,
theyll probably have a harder time with the
opening, qualifying, presenting, demonstrating and
negotiating, too.
Practicing closing techniques in role-playing
situations is helpful. Practice helps the real situations
go more smoothly. But dont hesitate to use them in
real situations. Nothing will help you improve more
than game situations.
Luckily, some very good salespeople have worked
out a few good closing techniques that still work.
All you must do is learn and become comfortable
with them. Two simple practices make closing
easier: Make it easy to say yes, and learn when to
quit talking and start listening. One very successful
salesperson told an audience, Make your closing
statement and then be quiet. The first one who talks
loses.

2011 Newspaper Association of America