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2014 Fall convention closes in recognizing member’s acheivements ANA News

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New officers and directors for 2014 - ‘15 ANA News

The new 2014Nintzel, Tucson Weekly, were named 2015 Officers the ANA 2014 Journalists of the Year. for ANA board Arizona Newspapers In the ANA Excellence in ­Advertising were ­nominated Association competition, 29 newspapers ­entered and selected for a total of 545 entries. The during the kick-off to the afternoon ­advertising competition consists of 12 ceremonies Saturday, ­September 20. categories that measure the overall These individuals will be filling the quality of advertising created by the ­following ­positions: newspaper staff.

Don Rowley, President; Available on the ANA ­website is a­ Publisher, ­Arizona Daily digital presentation of the ­awardSun (Flagstaff), 2-year Daily winning entries, a complete list of ­director, term expires 2016. ­winners by ­category and ­more ­photos Donovan Kramer Jr., may be found on our Flickr ­account.

1st Vice P ­ resident; CoANA would also like to send a speThis year, 47 newspapers and 7 cial thank you to the Washington Publisher, Casa Grande high schools entered in the Better ­Newspaper Publishers Association for ­Dispatch, 1-year, Daily ­Newspapers Contest for a total of judging the entries this year. ­Director, term expires 2015.

1,153 ­entries.

Additionally, in conjunction with Kit Atwell, 2nd Vice The Better Newspapers Contest ­the training and awards ­convention, P ­ resident; ­Executive VP, ­consists of eight categories that the ­local chapter of the Society of Western News&Info., 1-year ­measure the overall quality of the ­Professional Journalists (SPJ) held Director, At-Large, term newspapers and 24 categories that its Freedom of ­Information Awards expires 2015. honor individuals who contribute to ­Luncheon. The event was co-sponsored journalism excellence.

Manuel Coppola, 3rd Vice

by ANA and the Associated Press Media The Arizona Republic (daily Editors (APME).

President; Publisher, Nogales ­newspaper) and White Mountain International, 2-year NonFour ­prestigious ­categories were ­Independent (non-daily ­newspaper) ­presented: Daily, term ­expires 2016. took home the coveted award for • ANA/APME Freedom of­ Phil Vega, Secretary/­ ­Arizona Newspaper of the Year. Information Award, which ­honored Treasurer; ­Publisher, Sierra ­Newspaper of the Year Awards are ­journalists who made a ­significant Vista Herald, 1-year Daily, calculated from honors won in the contribution to First ­Amendment Term expires 2015. ­Excellence in Advertising Contest­ and ­Freedom of ­Information ­issues. added together with winning entries ­Recepients were: Carli Brosseau, Pam Miller, Past from the Better Newspapers Contest. ­Arizona Daily Star; Bob Ortega and Rob ­President; Publisher, Verde Mike Christy, Arizona Daily Star, and O’Dell, The Arizona ­Republic; Alexis ­Independent, 2-year ­director Peter Aleshire, Payson Roundup, were Bechman and Michele Nelson, Payson Non-Daily, term expires named the ANA 2014 Photographers Roundup.

2015. of the Year.

Rob O’Dell, Arizona Republic, and Jim See achievements on page 8 See new on page 7 Read Don Rowley’s inspiring address to the ANA membership �������������������������page

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Convention scenes, candid clips, get more on our Flickr page ����������pages

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White Mountain Independent announces new publisher WHITE MOUNTAINS — The White Mountain Independent has a new publisher.

Brian D. Kramer took over the helm of the newspaper’s parent company, White Brian D. Kramer Mountain PublishPublisher, ing, on Monday.

The White “It’s a great privMountain ilge to have been ­Independent named publisher of the White Mountain Independent.

We have lots to be proud of having recently won the distinguished Arizona Newspaper of the Year award in the non-daily category, and I’m looking forward to working with our staff to provide the highest standard of community journalism here. Expect to see some positive changes in The ­Independent very soon,” Kramer said.

Kramer has extensive experience in the newspaper industry and recently finished his master’s degree in ­business. He spent the last two years as ­circulation director of the Casa Grande Valley Newspapers, a chain of six publications. He has also been involved in advertising sales, direct mail marketing and production.

In addition, he covered the history of Casa Grande in a series that was ­published into a book.

Kramer has worked in the newsroom as a reporter and interned with the Tucson office of Wick ­Communications, which operates 38 community ­newspapers and specialty publications in 13 states.

“I’m very pleased that Brian wants to step up and assume the publisher ­duties in the White Mountains. After a 22-year gap, it’s nice to be able to see the Kramer name in the staff box,” said Ruth A Kramer, president of Kramer Publications.

She and her late husband, Donovan M. Kramer Sr. purchased The Independent, Pinetop-Lakeside News and the Wampum Saver in 1978. The three Page 2 | ANAgrams ■ October 2014

entities were combined into White ­Mountain Publishing LLC. “Brian has worked hard in our Casa Grande operation and is ­knowledgeable about all aspects of the newspaper business. He’s thoughtful and energetic. People in the Casa Grande Valley have enjoyed working with him over the years, and I know the White Mountain business community will enjoy him, too,” she said.

“I’ll miss seeing him each day here, but I know Don would be pleased to see our grandson in the publisher role, helping to build a stronger community and an excellent community ­newspaper.”

The Independent also has a new ­editor, Mara Knaub, who returned to the newspaper in July after almost five years of working for the Yuma Sun. Knaub first came to work as a reporter for The ­Independent in September 2000 and left as copy editor in November 2009.

Prior to her first move to the White Mountains, Knaub worked for the Nogales International, her hometown’s newspaper, for 13 years.

“I am so happy to be back to the beautiful White Mountains. It actually feels like coming home,” she said.

“Best of all, I’m excited to be part of this community newspaper. It holds a special place in my heart, and even when I was away, I never lost touch with the WMI staff and close friends in the area,” she added.

She’s also looking forward to being part of a new era in The Independent’s history as the newspaper hires new staff and grows with the community, she said.

Her goal is to focus on community news and start covering areas that have not been covered as thoroughly as in the past, such as the Snowflake/Taylor area.

Knaub wants to hear from readers and encourages readers to email or call her with story ideas. Contact her at mknaub@wmicentral.com or 928-537-5721.

Reprinted with permission/The White Mountain Independent.

ANAgrams is a quarterly e-publication produced by the Arizona Newspapers Association 1001 N. Central Ave., Suite 670 Phoenix, AZ 85004-1947 (602) 261-7655 / office • (602) 261-7525 / fax www.ananews.com ANA Staff Paula Casey Executive Director / ext. 102 p.casey@ananews.com Julie O’Keefe Communications Manager / ext. 110 j.okeefe@ananews.com Sharon Schwartz Network Advertising Manager / ext. 108 s.schwartz@ananews.com Cindy Meaux Ad Placement Manager / ext. 112 c.meaux@ananews.com Liisa Straub Accounting Assistant / ext. 105 L.straub@ananews.com

The Arizona Newspapers Association (ANA) was established in 1930 and incorporated in 1956. It is the successor to the ­Arizona Press ­Association of 1905, and the ­Arizona Daily Newspaper ­Association of 1922. The ­Association is governed by an 11-member board of directors elected by the member newspapers. The ANA is a ­nonprofit trade association representing more than 115 A ­ rizona newspapers.

ANA Board of Directors President Don Rowley Publisher – Arizona Daily Sun 1st Vice President Donovan M. Kramer, Jr. Co-Publisher – Casa Grande Dispatch 2nd Vice President Kit Atwell Executive VP – Western News&Info, Inc. 3rd Vice President Manuel Coppola Publisher & Editor – The Nogales International Secretary / Treasurer Phil Vega Publisher – Sierra Vista Herald Ryan Kedzierski Publisher – Tucson Weekly, Inside Tucson Business, Explorer News Marc Marin Publisher – Arizona Silver Belt and Copper Country News Charlene Bisson Publisher – Sun City Independent, Sun City West Independent, Surprise Independent, Peoria Independent, Arrowhead Ranch Independent and Sun Life Magazine.

Chase Rankin Publisher – Arizona Daily Star Chris Stegman VP Advertising – The Arizona Republic Past President Pam Miller Publisher – Verde Independent/The Bugle

ANA president declares ‘newspapers will to ­continue to inform and empower’ ANA News The following text is a transcript of Don Rowley’s, 2014-2015 ­president, o p e n i n g re m a r k s t o t h e ­A N A ­m embership at the 2014 Annual ­Meeting and Fall C ­ onvention.

I would like to start off by conveying my thanks to ANA president, Joni Brooks, for her service and commitment to the Arizona NewspaDon Rowley pers Association Publisher, this past year Arizona Daily and acknowlSun; edge the efforts 2014-2015 of all ANA board president-elect members and ANA Board of Directors the dedicated ANA staff. Joni has already outlined some of the great work that together we have accomplished over this past year. Well done.

I’m pleased to be able to serve as the ANA president for the coming year and will do my best to build on the foundation that has been laid by my predecessors.

I don’t have to tell you that this is a challenging time in the newspaper industry in the State of Arizona and beyond. There are those who believe newspapers are on their way out. For most of my 38 years in this business, that notion would have been considered unfathomable. But now, even some inside our industry are starting to fear it may be true. I think there is cause for concern and for making well-considered decisions as we chart the way forward, but there’s no reason to panic.

Let me tell you why I think our future is still bright.

If newspapers didn’t exist today, someone would invent them. And it would be a breakthrough invention.

This concept of newsrooms that not only gather news but prioritize it, verify it, scrutinize it, and analyze it is pure genius. In today’s world of limited time and unlimited amounts of information, what we don’t need is more rumors, hearsay, ramblings and self-promotion disguised as news.

We need professional journalists who take all the indiscriminate harvesting of information and winnow it down to the relevant kernels. Never mind the “... we need to be much more aggressive about ­reminding others about the size and ­makeup of our audience and about the role we play as part of the fabric that holds a ­community together...” means of delivery, we need good local journalists telling local stories to local residents. That’s what makes us relevant. That’s what creates value. I’m telling you, if newspapers didn’t exist today, someone would invent them.

And it would be a welcome alternative to too much information that’s unverified, unreliable and lacking in local color and application.

While media trends are rapidly moving toward incredible fragmentation, with more stations, more channels, and more websites than anyone can literally count, newspapers have emerged as the only local version of mass media left standing. With the remarkable (and, to some, surpris-

ing) staying power of print combined with digital audiences that are growing at a staggering rate, our reach has never been greater, the tools we offer advertisers have never been more diverse, and the role we can play as the common denominator for community enlightenment and engagement has never been more needed.

If we have a problem in our industry, it’s that we have lost some of our institutional self-confidence. We too often don’t’ appreciate the incredible strength of our position to influence a remarkably large, well-educated audience who tend to be the gatekeepers in our communities and who, in turn, influence the rest of the population.

And once we take stock of our strengths, we need to be much more aggressive about reminding others about the size and makeup of our audience and about the role we play as part of the fabric that holds a community together and keeps its citizens from being taken advantage of by individuals and organizations who, unchecked, invariably run amok.

In the weeks and months ahead, ANA will continue to be a resource to help you get that message out to your market.

We also will be focusing much of our efforts and combatting consistently predictable efforts of state and local governments to marginalize our role in publishing public notices. For the sake of government transparency, not to mention the need to protect a significant revenue stream, this has to continue to be a top priority. We’re fortunate to have one of the best in the business, John Moody, on our side. I, for one, would much rather have John as a friend than a foe. And see ROWLEY’S page 4 October 2014 ■ ANAgrams | Page 3

Don Rowley’s convention address continued from page 3

we have Paula Casey who knows the players and the ­issues ­office, and many staff members have reduced their hours inside and out. She and her staff have worked ­tirelessly, to ­accommodate the need to “right size” the organization. and will continue to work tirelessly, to beat back any ­efforts We pledge to continue to stretch the dollars all of you pay to deny our readers the right to know what’s going on with into ANA as far as possible and look at investing only in their government. But they can’t do it alone. We’ll need those areas that show real promise for a healthy return. each of you to leverage your relationships with elected I’d like to close with one final thought. Near the end of officials if we expect to continue to prevail. They are un- 1999, when I was working in the corporate offices of ­Pulitzer doubtedly coming for us again, and we need to be ready. Community Newspapers, I became aware of an informal It’s no secret that some legislators don’t like us because nomination process many organizations and ­publications we have written some unflattering things about them, or were going through to pick their person of the year, ­person we don’t agree with of the decade, person their politics, or of the century, and their tactics. So they ­ultimately the person of want to punish our the ­millennium. That last industry by cutting one is huge. How do you off one of our revfigure out who was the enue streams, not most influential person because, in many from the last thousand instances, they disyears of world history? agree with the noThere were a lot of tion of public noideas floating around, tices, but because and there certainly they want to make wasn’t any kind of us pay for promot­consensus. To me, one ing discussion about of the most ­intriguing ideas that don’t alsuggestions for the ways match theirs. most influential person We can’t allow that of the millennium was Don Rowley, 2014-2015 president-elect ANA Board of Directors, receives the to happen. It’s not ­Gutenberg, the man from ANA Executive Director, Paula Casey, during the opening ceremonies good for our read- gavel credited with ­inventing of the BNC division at the 75th Annual Meeting and Fall Convention. ers, and it’s not good the printing press. The for our financial viability which, in the end, is also not good invention itself, of course, was only part of the story. In for our readers. order for the press to have changed world history, as it Other areas of emphasis for ANA this fiscal year will did, two other elements had to be in place. The first was a need to include looking for new ways of protecting and set of powerful messages that ­enlighten, engage and ultiimproving our sources of revenue. We have an incredible mately change readers. The ­second was men and women combined statewide audience and we need to continue to of courage willing to ­disseminate those messages to the develop and promote ways for advertisers to reach that masses, sometimes at great personal peril, and despite audience with one buy and one bill. those who would defy their attempts because they feared Finally, we understand that there has been a lot of belt- it would reduce the power they maintained by keeping the tightening going on in your individual operations, and we masses in ­ignorance. Information empowers. It changes have done a fair amount of that at ANA. We’ll likely need people and governments and even religions. Gutenberg’s to continue to do so this coming year. That’s not all bad invention proved that’s true. for you or for us. Once in a while, it’s nice to have a ­reason So today, we are fortunate to work in an industry that to look at what we do and boil it down to its essence, has the tools, the words and the will to continue to inform and let go of some of the non-essential items that we and empower. Whether it’s in print or online, we continue may find we have clung to only because we have “always in this millennium the legacy that made Gutenberg a top done it that way.” The ANA staff has been very conscien- contender for the most influential individual of the last tious about finding more efficient ways of operating the millennium.

Page 4 | ANAgrams ■ October 2014

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Understanding the digital subscriber and adjusting strategies to serve them Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute News As more newspapers adopt digital subscription models, publishers are facing challenging questions: • What services should be offered?

• Why are subscribers committing to pay for digital access?

• How are users converted to paying subscribers?

• How should newspapers communiBy Elizabeth cate with these customers?

Conner Stephens At the Columbia Missourian, these Graduate were questions the newsroom and ­Student the business side were asking after­ Missouri School ­launching digital and print/digital of Journalism ­subscriptions in September 2012.

As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, the ­Missourian sought to brand the digital subscription as a m­embership model that encouraged support of the ­Missourian’s work as Columbia’s morning newspaper and as a laboratory for journalism students at the University of Missouri.

The Missourian also offered members perks that the average reader didn’t receive. These included early access to special section content, e-books of special sections and news analysis pieces from The Associated Press. Most of these perks were promoted within the site and on social media.

Reports based on Google Analytics suggested there wasn’t a strong indication that many people were accessing these perks. The perks either didn’t resonate with members or they weren’t aware of them.

This led the Missourian back to these questions: • Who are the members?

• What provides value to them?

• How would they like to be reached?

In January 2014, 18 months after the membership ­model was launched, an email survey was conducted to help ­answer these questions. The survey was sent to all current and former members. The questions for former members also sought to uncover reasons for canceling and what would Page 6 | ANAgrams ■ October 2014

have improved their subscription experience.

There were three key themes that came from the survey that are relevant to any newspaper using a digital ­subscription model or planning to implement one: Local content is king, communication is important and seasonality matters.

A note about results: A number of students from the ­journalism school are required to have a subscription for certain classes. When looking at results, respondents who were current members and not students were segmented.

These respondents are referred to as nonstudent members.

Local content is king The survey showed that members paid for a digital ­subscription and continue to pay for it because of the ­local content the Missourian offers. The members are loyal to the website and use it as their primary local news source.

Even among canceled members, 85 percent continue to visit ­ColumbiaMissourian.com.

Most of the nonstudent members first heard about the membership model from the Missourian website — through ads or a page block — or the print edition. Other marketing efforts — TV, radio and advertisements on other sites — were not as successful at drawing in new members.

For the Missourian, this means continuing to do what it does best — ­produce great content.

More broadly, it signals that content is the driver of digital memberships.

Additional perks might add value, but the members are committing to pay because of the content they already enjoy.

Continuing to grow awareness about the Missourian’s ­offerings and drawing non-members to the website also ­expands the potential pool of future members.

Question to consider: How are you encouraging current users of your website to convert to members or ­subscribers?

Your best asset is the current work and content you ­provide.

Communication is important The survey reinforced what the analytics suggested: ­members weren’t aware of the extra perks offered such as exclusive stories, e-books and early access to special

s­ ections. Most didn’t know about a page on the site designed to highlight the best content for members.

Based in a city with a population of more than 113,000, the Missourian has more than 5,000 likes on Facebook and more than 14,000 followers on its ­primary ­Twitter account. However, nearly 80 percent of the nonstudent member ­respondents don’t follow the Missourian on social media.

Analytics indicate that social media drives one-third of the traffic to the ­Missourian’s website. So it is considered a valuable platform for sharing content and reaching and engaging with readers. However, there is a loyal audience for the Missourian’s content that is not being reached via social media.

The survey indicated that the Missourian needed to consider a different ­approach in reaching the paying members.

Members expressed interest in email newsletters and app alerts for being ­alerted to breaking news and content exclusive for members. The Missourian intends to start weekly curated email newsletters to share the week’s content, inform ­members of exclusive content or access, and offer engagement ­opportunities.

The Missourian is also testing a service known as Roost that will send ­browser alerts to users on their computers and mobile alerts to their phone and ­tablets. These alerts will be used for major breaking news. The alert itself is ­similar to a tweet and takes the user to a story if clicked on, but the alerts will be used less frequent than Twitter. This service is available to all visitors to the Missourian website.

Questions to consider: How are you connecting with your loyal reader base?

Is there a segment not on social media that would prefer to be reached on other platforms?

Seasonal memberships One of the major drivers of traffic to the Missourian website is Mizzou sports coverage. In open-ended comments, respondents repeatedly said they would like a seasonal membership that allows them to pay a one-time fee for access to the Missourian’s content during their preferred sports season — football, basketball, etc.

A four-month option was offered in fall 2013 during football season with ­limited success. In the future, the Missourian will consider ways to make this a ­better-known option and appeal to readers looking for access during a certain time ­period. These customers can still be repeat customers if they are approached again at the beginning of the next preferred season.

Questions to consider: Is there seasonality to the content your n­ewspaper ­offers? How could you serve those readers while also creating repeat customers?

About the survey: The survey was sent to 1,385 email addresses collected in the registration process for a membership. There were 157 surveys started with 143 of those completed. The responses on the partially completed surveys were ­included in the results. The survey was not random, and the results provided ­insight about usage by members but might not be representative of all users.

RELATED STORY: Time runs out on 24-hour pay model: Five lessons learned at the Columbia Missourian: http://www.rjionline.org/blog/time-runs-out-24-hourpay-model-five-lessons-learned-columbia-missourian Elizabeth Conner Stephens is a journalism graduate student at the ­University of Missouri. She previously served as a Knight visiting editor at the ­Columbia ­Missourian. She continues to be involved in the newsroom at the ­Missourian through an assistantship while in graduate school. A 2005 graduate of the ­Missouri School of Journalism, Elizabeth worked at the financial news and data company SNL Financial and the Columbus (Ga.) Ledger-Enquirer before returning to her alma mater in 2011. Reprinted with permission.

New directors for 2014 - ‘15 continued from page 1

Also added to the 2014-2015 board are two members filling the seats for directors: Brian Kedzierski, with ­Tucson Local Media - a part of 10/13 Communications; ­Publisher at Tucson Weekly, Inside ­Tucson Business, ­Marana News, ­Desert Times and Explorer News.

Marc Marin; ­Publisher ­ rizona Silver Belt, San Carlos A Apache Mocassin and Copper Country News.

Consumers rate newspapers as the media… with the most trusted and believeable ads.



most valuable in planning for shopping. preferred for receiving advertising.

 

October 2014 ■ ANAgrams | Page 7

Arizona’s journalistic achievements continued from page 1

• Valley of the Sun SPJ First Amendment Awards, ­recognizes journalists who that substantially ­relied on ­public ­records and open meetings to produce top-quality ­journalism.

Recipients: reporter Alexis ­Huicochea, team leader Joe Burchell and ­editor Bobbie Jo Buel, Arizona Daily Star; ­reporters Craig Harris and Rob O’Dell for “Troubled youths abused at ­residential ­treatment centers”, The ­Arizona ­Republic; reporters Craig ­Harris, Beth Duckett and Dustin ­Gardiner for “­Arizona’s public pension systems”, The Arizona Republic; senior-investigative reporter Wendy Halloran, 12 News; and investigative reporter Morgan Loew, CBS 5News.

• Order of the Silver Key Society, honors journalists who have been in the profession for at least 25 years, a significant majority of which were in Arizona, who have ­conspicuously ­contributed to the journalism ­profession and have inspired fellow ­journalists. Recipients: Kathy Tulumella, The ­Arizona Republic; Peter Aleshire, ­Payson Roundup; and Ed Sharpe, ­Glendale Daily Planet.

• The Phil Alvidrez Award for Excellence in Journalism, this award recognizes the career of an Arizonan journalist whose body of work has served to inspire fellow journalists, ­including a notable commitment to the cause of Freedom of Information. The award is named for Phil Alvidrez who retired as a news director for Phoenix’s KTVK-TV (channel 3) after 20 years.

Alvidrez was a tireless ­campaigner for the free flow of government ­information, often committing his ­station’s financial resources to fight numerous court battles to open closed documents and meetings. Recipient: Gary Nelson, The Arizona Republic, retired in June 2014 after 40 years in the newspaper business.

Congratulations to all the winners and thank you to those who participated.

Page 8 | ANAgrams ■ October 2014

Convention Scenes

and Candid Clips

Find and download more photos from our Flickr page October 2014 â– ANAgrams | Page 9

Bridges take selling from Point A to Point B One of the most impressive bridges I’ve ever seen is the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. It is four and a half miles long and connects the eastern and western shores of Maryland. Rising high above the waves, it enables travelers to cross the bay in a fraction of the time the trip would take by boat.

Although most bridges aren’t quite

By John Foust as dramatic, they all serve the same Advertising purpose. They help us move from Point Trainer A to Point B, usually over water.

Raleigh, NC Words can be bridges, too. When we communicate, we use certain phrases to connect pieces of information. Most of these bridges are so subtle that we hardly notice them. But if we didn’t have them, communication would be as choppy as the waters under the Chesapeake Bay Bridge.

Language bridges are especially important in selling.

Whether we are making a sales presentation or writing ad copy, bridges help us make the shift from the product to the person. Consider features and benefits. A feature belongs to the product (all-wheel drive, for instance), while a benefit belongs to the person using the product (better traction).

Without a bridge, a sales point is blunt and awkward.

When you read or hear, “The vehicle has all-wheel drive. Get better traction,” it’s easy to sense the need for a few words to tie the two thoughts together.

Adding a bridge creates the smooth transition we need: “The vehicle has four-wheel drive. THIS WILL GIVE YOU better traction.” Now the focus has shifted from the car to the person driving the car.

There are plenty of bridges you can use to connect ­features and benefits: as a result ... this means that ... due to this ... this creates ... this allows you to ... this promotes ... this ­generates ... because of this. Unless you’re talking to a stilted and formal person, stay away from stilted and formal ­connectors like “therefore” and “hence.”

Although it is more common to put the feature before the benefit, sometimes you can switch the order. For example: “You’ll get better traction when you drive, BECAUSE this ­vehicle has all-wheel drive.” Either way, a bridge is a bridge and will help you communicate more effectively.

In some cases, you may want to use a second bridge to lead to a more meaningful benefit: “The vehicle has all-wheel drive. This will give you better traction. AND your passengers will feel safer riding with you, especially in bad weather.” The second benefit is more important than the first, because it is emotional rather than logical. But you can’t convincingly arrive at the second benefit (feel safer) without starting with the first one (better traction). Obviously, this progression works only when there is a close relationship between the two benefits.

Word bridges serve two useful purposes. They separate features and benefits, helping audiences see each distinctly.

And they link them together to create a smooth flow through sales points.

It’s all a matter of moving your message from Point A to Point B. (c) Copyright 2014 by John Foust. All rights reserved.

John Foust has conducted training programs for thousands of newspaper advertising professionals. Many ad departments are using his training videos to save time and get quick ­results from in-house training. Email for information: john @jouhnfoust.com.

Public notices provide ­accessible information about government activities.

Who wins local ­government contracts?

What new laws will take ­effect in your ­community?

How are your taxes being spent?

Every day, newspapers ­publish this and other ­important ­information in their public notices.

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Page 10 | ANAgrams ■ October 2014

So How Are You Doing?

An inside look at how newspapers are doing Kevin Slimp The News Guru

kevin@kevinslimp.com This column is dedicated to anyone who publishes, writes, edits, designs, sells ads for, delivers or does anything else in the newspaper industry. You might remember that last month I mentioned a survey I’ve been doing of newspaper publishers in the United States and Canada. It’s been three weeks and, so far, more than 600 publishers have taken part in the survey. Requests to complete the survey were sent out by most newspaper associations in both countries. In addition, I sent out In September,more than 600 newspaper executives requests to publishers in areas where completed surveys related to their publications. associations didn’t send out a request, rural communities, 63 percent of survey so we could get an accurate idea of how participants come from those areas. things are going in our industry.

Most of the remaining respondents came My guess, knowing that many pubfrom large and mid-size metro areas. lishers manage multiple titles, is that Over the next few weeks, our group somewhere around 20 percent of the will be sifting through the responses publishers in these countries completed and making notes about answers we nd the in-depth survey. That’s a pretty particularly interesting or helpful. Once amazing response.

To assist in keeping the results valid, we’ve had a chance to go through the answers from the 600 plus surveys thorI set up the survey in such a way that oughly, I will begin sharing the informaonly one submission would be accepted tion in this column from a particular IP and at conferences. address. This meant That indicates that 70 I’m already schedthat answers from uled to speak on this only one responpercent of newspapers topic at conventions dent at each location receive very little, if throughout Canada would be accepted, any, revenue from the and the U.S. in early keeping the results 2015, so chances are from being skewed. digital side of things.

I will be near you at We’re nowhere some point. near ready to release Over the past two weeks, I was able the results, but later in this column, I’d to share a couple of ndings from the like to share some interesting responses survey at conferences in Arizona and to the survey. I’ve gathered a group of Indiana. Audience members were enthuindustry and non-industry experts to siastic about the information, and many sift through the results. Over the next caught me afterwards or wrote me later few weeks, we’ll be digging through the to discuss the survey. responses to learn what is really going Some ndings related to income at on in newspapers. newspapers are simple enough to report, A little about the respondents: since they came in the form of answers to • 17 percent report their primary multiple choice questions. Take this one: product is a free paper “For those whose primary product • Coincidentally, 17 percent of is paid, what percentage of your total responses came from daily newspaper revenue is derived from your digital/ publishers and 83 percent from nononline version(s) of your primary daily newspapers. product (through subscriptions and • Not surprisingly, since most newsadvertising revenue)?” papers are situated in small towns and

“

”

While 21 percent of publishers answered “zero” to that question, another 49 percent answered “between one and ve percent” of their revenue came from these sources. Most of the remaining respondents reported between ve and ten percent of their total revenue came from digital sources.

That indicates that 70 percent of newspapers receive very little, if any, revenue from the digital side of things.

Contrast that with the number of papers that invest in social and digital media, which is relatively high (86 percent), and you begin to notice some interesting phenomena.

In future columns, I hope to examine in detail responses to questions about how newspapers foresee the future. A quick glance at the survey tells me that 64 percent of publishers, when answering the question, “How true is the following statement of your newspaper: My newspaper is protable and will be for years to come,” responded that the statement is true. Another 25 percent answered that their paper is protable, but they can’t predict the future. Ten percent report that they are having a tough year this year.

Well, there you have it. My rst column related to my survey of 600 plus newspaper publishers. To be honest, it’s a bit overwhelming to look over the all the responses, many of which were essay questions, and not feel a responsibility to get the information out as quickly as possible. Still, it’s going to take some time to sift through all the answers and learn what is really on the minds of our industry leaders.

I can’t wait to share comments from publishers who were given an open forum to share their thoughts about our industry and their advice for the future.

This is going to be an interesting ride.

Find Kevin in early 2015 in these cities: Louisville (KPA), Jan 22-23 Minneapolis (MNA), Jan 30 Nashville (TPA), Feb 5-6 Columbus (ONA), Feb 12 Edmonton (AWNA), Feb 13-14

October 2014 ■ ANAgrams | Page 11

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Page 12 | ANAgrams ■ October 2014

By Sean Ireland Georgia Press Association/Publications Editor

Sometimes the simplest marketing ideas are still the best, even ones as old as chance drawings, where businesses offer chances to win a coveted prize and receive positive actions and attention for their brands.

A Texas newspaper run by Leonard Woolsey, the former publisher of the Times-Georgian of Carrollton, demonstrated the power that prizes have when it boosted its circulation revenue by $20,000 with the help of a contest for a vacation giveaway. Customers starting or reactivating a subscription, extending a subscription or switching their accounts to EZ Pay were entered into a contest to win a $3,000 vacation package.

The Galveston County Daily News set a goal of 600 actions for the circulation promotion. Circulation Director Yvonne Mascorro was overwhelmed when the target was reached halfway through the two-and-a-half month program. “We are so excited about how successful this promotion was for both the community and the newspaper,” she said. “We generated buzz, subscriptions and lots of goodwill.”

The promotion ended with the newspaper earning nearly 900 new actions and nearly $20,000 in revenue from new starts and reactivations of lapsed subscriptions. The Daily News added 273 new EZ Pay customers, the easiest to keep as subscribers. It also created positive feedback from The Daily News’s existing customers while being equally inviting to potential new ones.

“When you give ‘everyone’ an opportunity to win, you create a positive atmosphere all around,” Mascorro said.

“Existing subscribers are not irate that only new customers get all the good deals, and non-subscribers can engage with our brand in a unique way, while still being directed toward a long-term subscription.”

The contest began May 1, and the prize was a voucher for a vacation trip anywhere the winner chose to go.

The prize, just like the contest itself, is scalable. Any newspaper — weekly or daily — could easily reinvent The Daily News’s contest to make it appropriate for its own community.

The vacation contest was promoted through virtually every avenue the newspaper has: published house ads in the daily paper, TMC products and online; bounce-back cards in singlecopy papers; promotional emails sent to the newspaper’s non-subscriber and subscriber databases; newsstand cards and dealer cards; Post-It Notes on the daily newspaper; flyers in coffee shops; the recorded voice loop on the paper’s phone system; flyers on renewal notices and entry forms in a reception area.

“It seemed that all everyone was talking about was where he or she’d go if they won,” Mascorro said. “It was just a pleasant promotion. We often talked to participants about their dream vacation destination to interact with them on a more personal level. When I called the winner and told her she’d won, her first response was, ‘Where am I going?’ I told her, ‘You get to go anywhere you want.

We are giving you a $3,000 check to go on your dream vacation.’ It felt great to say that.”

Later, by email, Mascorro announced the contest winner to all of the entrants.

A second email was then sent to the paper’s entire database to congratulate the winner.

Then, “the story hit the front page of our newspaper and a follow-up column was published a few days later,” she said. “Sometimes we forget to toot our own horn.”

www.ANAnews

.com

Vacation prize drives new revenue

Get access to ­upcoming events, videos, member benefits, public notices and our annual directory.

Links to the webpages of member newspapers, and extensive information about ANA and its activities.

October 2014 ■ ANAgrams | Page 13

Mark Your Calendar Webinars How to Develop an ­Exciting & ­Compelling LinkedIn Profile & Why It Matters to Your ­Business

WHEN: Oct. 27, 2014 | 11 a.m. ET DESCRIPTION: 45 minutes. “How reporters and editors can effectively use this platform”. Conducted by May Chow, Manager, Corporate Communications, LinkedIn COST: FREE MORE INFO: ananews.com/training

How to Use the LinkedIn Publisher Tool to Become a ‘ThoughtLeader’ in Your Community WHEN: Oct. 31, 2014 | 11 a.m. ET DESCRIPTION: 30-minutes. For all publishers, CEOs, digital managers, editors, reporters, ad directors & more. ­Conducted by May Chow, Manager, ­Corporate Communications, LinkedIn. COST: FREE MORE INFO: ananews.com/training

Special Event All Arizona TV ­Stations to Simulcast ASU-­Produced Special ­Report on Heroin WHEN: Jan. 13, 2015 | 6:30 p.m. on most stations The statewide simulcast of “Hooked: Tracking Heroin’s Hold on Arizona”, a 30-minute commercial-free investigative report produced by Arizona State University student journalists will air on the 32 TV stations in Phoenix, Tucson and Yuma and most of the state’s radio stations. Go to link.

Page 14 | ANAgrams ■ October 2014

Happenings & Events Join the Coalition for ‘Mobile Devices in Courtrooms — New Rules, New Challenges’ WHEN: Thursday, Oct. 17, 2014 | 8:30 10:30 a.m. MT Location: First Amendment Forum at the Arizona State University Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, 555 N. Central Ave., Phoenix DESCRIPTION: Learn what is ­permissible use of smartphones, tablets or laptops in Arizona state courtrooms and what is not, as well as the latest regarding use of cameras and recorders in court.

Moderator: well-known Phoenix media law attorney David Bodney, partner in the firm of Ballard Spahr, LLC, and a member of the First Amendment Coalition of Arizona Board of Directors.

Panelists include: Robert M. Brutinel, Arizona Supreme Court justice.

Joseph C. Welty, Maricopa County Superior Court presiding criminal judge.

Bill Montgomery, the Maricopa County attorney.

Jennifer Willmott, criminal defense attorney who represented murder defendant Jodi Arias.

Cathie Batbie, news director at KVOATV (Channel 4-NBC) in Tucson Continental breakfast at 8:30 a.m., discussion at 9 a.m PRESENTED BY: First Amendment ­Coalition of Arizona COST: Admission is FREE, the public is invited, but RSVPs are requested to phoenixspj@cox.net.

MORE INFO: ananews.com/news

Contest Judging In just a few short months we’ll be entering into another partnership of contest judging with the Nebraska Press Association (NPA).

The NPA is still transitioning to an online judging system – because of that, we’ll need our volunteers to come in-person.

ANA and NPA will provide the location and meals - you provide the willingness to take action.

Our members are some of the best and we know how well you’ll do your part to make the NPA contest run smoothly.

So, mark your calendars for February 19 and 20, 2015 as we’ll be calling for volunteer judges before then.

NAA Ads for Newspapers Showcase the power of ­newspapers to advertisers by running the ­October ad from the Newspaper Association of America, designed exclusively for members. Go to link.

Shoppers want to know where to find the best deals for Black Friday and our newspapers are where they are turning for this information. Go to link.

Remind your readers that newspapers offer a reliable and trustworthy source on camapigns and ­candidates. Go to link.

Your newspapers have the audience and the engagement, but now it’s critical that your advertisers and local businesses know that.

You’ll find everything you need to create a customized ­promotional program that highlights to ­advertisers, local business and your readers at NAA.