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how to reach business your paper Old School Can Still be a Good Tool the week ahead other notables [Virginian - Pilot](Virginian - Pilot Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Recently while reviewing our year-to-date tracking information, I noticed an interesting trend. Of the top five lead-generating media, two old-school venues held the No. 2 and No. 3 positions - newspaper and Yellow Pages. While the Internet continues to be our No. 1 lead generator, it is worth noting that two media predicted by some to be dead soon still ranked high in our lead sources. Several factors are causing that. First, many newspapers in our markets of Hampton Roads, Richmond, and Northern Virginia/ Washington, D.C./Maryland, are open to negotiating to our terms. Therefore, we do a larger proportion of advertising in that medium. Second, despite continuing to reduce expenditures in the Yellow Pages, we still have a presence in a lot of directories. The biggest factor is that our 45-plus core market still uses those media, which brings me to my point: It's important to look at your target market and understand their habits to determine the most efficient use of your advertising investment. Everywhere you turn today there is a seminar or article on social media. Everyone wants to jump on that bandwagon. I'll be honest; our company is, too! We've recently hired a new Internet marketing team, including an search engine optimization specialist, a content management specialist and a website designer. After launching our new website later this summer, we'll be going full-tilt playing the Google game. However, many in our main target market - baby boomers - still pick up the newspaper for news and take the time to use the Yellow Pages. I'm not nave. I see the writing on the wall. Our national phone directory broker recently went out of business. Some directories have become extinct. But newspapers still seem to have a life! But the tracking numbers tell our story. As do our revenues, which have grown during the Great Recession from $9 million to $20 million. I started my advertising career when T-squares and X-Acto knives were still used for "camera-ready" art, so one might consider me "old-school." But I've also seen the frenzy new media can create. Remember the Pet.com sock puppet and the dot-com boom-to-bust? Internet purists back in the '90s said it was going to put every media six feet under. It didn't. Newspaper, radio, TV, direct mail ... all are alive and driving leads for us. Certainly the Internet is a catalyst that has made huge changes in our lives, in this company's growth and in the way we market. But with marketing, don't get caught up in the flavor of the day. Start with the basics. What is your product, who is your target market, and what's the most efficient way to reach them. Facebook? The newspaper? Aerial advertising? As in the case of our service, if your target market is 45-plus, old-school media may still have relevance. Reach Eric G. Lackey at [email protected]. new business LAW: T. Wayne Williams and Jonathan R. DeLoatche have formed the law firm of Williams DeLoatche PC, located at 924 Professional Place, Suite B, in Chesapeake. Their practice areas include personal injury, traffic defense, guardianships and civil litigation. small business CHAMBER: The Isle of Wight-Smithfield-Windsor Chamber of Commerce is accepting reservations for consultations on Jan. 15 with a representative from the Small Business Development Center of Hampton Roads. To schedule a consultation, or for additional information, contact Lori White at the Chamber of Commerce at (757) 357-3502. expansion CLINIC: Patient First has opened its eighth Patient First neighborhood medical center in Hampton Roads and the third in Chesapeake, at 2425 Taylor Road, across from Chesapeake Square Mall. It is open from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., 365 days a year. To contribute, send items to [email protected] or Calendar, Business News, 150 W. Brambleton Ave., Norfolk, VA 23510. Include the name of organization, date, time, place and cost. Also include a name and number to contact before publication. Items should be received two weeks in advance. (c) 2011 ProQuest Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved. |