Pressing Issue August 2007
by Joel Campbell, Legislative Monitor (reprinted from letter sent August 07)
August 7, 2007
Dear Publishers:
The UPA Legislative Committee met during the Summer Convention and has focused on what is expected to be a battle about posting legal and public notices on a statewide public notice Web site.
The committee is working on the following projects:
- Distribute a legislative directory and names of members of the interim committee that will likely hear this proposal. It is expected that the issue could be discussed as early as Sept. 19 during an interim committee hearing. A legislative directory is being sent with this letter along with a list of legislators on the Political Subdivisions Interim Committee. Sen. Dennis Stowell, R-Parowan, is a committee co-chair and lead sponsor the public notice legislation.
- Using these directories, UPA should members contact local legislators and explain to them the issues using the attached talking points. Please contact me if you have any questions about how to contact your legislators.
- Collect testimonials of readers who have been helped by public notices. For example, we want the rancher at the end of the county’s last road who doesn’t have the internet but uses newspaper public notices to find out about water rights issues. These testimonials could be used in display ads as well as the presentation to be given at the Legislature.
- Continue to make sure all member newspapers are uploading their public notices to the www.utahlegalnotices.com. (note from Kirk at UPA: the Legal Notices website has some additional information on the new process, uploading notices has been changed to placing just a simple code on your physical newspaper, click here for more info.)
- Begin research on how much revenue is actually spent by each county on public notices. This will be combined with information about circulation and penetration of UPA member newspapers.
- Prepare a legislative presentation that will be previewed by the UPA board on Sept. 14.
We appreciate your help on these issues.
Sincerely,
Joel Campbell
Legislative Monitor
801-362-4298
joelcampbell@byu.edu
Directory of Political Subdivisions Interim Committee
See enclosed directory or www.le.state.ut.us for contact information.
Rep. Fred R. Hunsaker, Co Chair
Sen. Dennis E. Stowell, Co Chair
Members
Rep. Sheryl L. Allen
Rep. Tim M. Cosgrove
Rep. Bradley M. Daw
Sen. Fred J. Fife
Rep. Gage Froerer
Rep. Kerry W. Gibson
Rep. Richard A. Greenwood
Rep. Christopher N. Herrod
Rep. Christine A. Johnson
Sen. Sheldon L. Killpack
Rep. Brad King
Rep. Jennifer M. Seelig
Sen. Michael G. Waddoups
Rep. Carl Wimmer
Rep. Scott L Wyatt
Speaking points about Internet Public Notice
The Utah Press Association is not opposed to public notices being published both in the newspaper and online. We, however, oppose either eliminating newspaper public notice altogether or requiring only brief public notices that send readers to a statewide government-operated public notice web site for the following reasons:
Public Notice should be carried by a third party
Governments should not be the sole keeper and caretaker of public information. It’s the fox-watching-the-henhouse syndrome. There is a long history of an independent third party – usually a community newspaper – acting as the chroniclers and providers of vital community information. As principle in a democratic society we ought to be concerned when government begins setting up information distribution channels. In effect, this proposal means the government will to set up its own private news and communications channel, something akin to a newspaper or a television station.
Leaving public notice solely up to the government is something even America’s founders shied away from. In 1789, The First Congress ordered every bill, order, resolution and vote “publish[ed] in at least three of the public newspapers printed within the United States.”
Is the only solution a government solution?
Utah lawmakers have had a long tradition of letting private business come up with solutions to solve societal or government problems. In this case, the private sector has been given no opportunity to come up with a solution. The only solution offered is to increase the size of government and create an information distribution bureaucracy. Should government really be in the information dissemination business? Already, the Utah Press Association operates http://www.utahlegalnotices.com to provide legal notices as a public service to citizens. In many other states, this has become the solution. Newspaper publishers are willing work with government officials to create a private-government partnership to resolve this problem. We believe this issue has only been studied from the government side of the equation. We have not thoroughly studied all of the long-term solutions and consequences, particularly in areas where local residents depend on information in their community newspaper.
Internet information is not easy to find
It’s harder to know information exists on the Internet, but easier to discover important information when it’s dropped on the doorstep or in the mailbox in a community newspaper. There’s a reason governments moved away from relying on “public square” posting of vital public notices and other government information. People don’t hang around town squares anymore – just like they don’t surf the Web looking for public notices.
Does it really save as much as it suggested?
Experience has shown proposals which shift public notice to the Internet in the name of cost saving, in reality may impose new and possibly higher costs on citizens. It takes thousands of hours to create and maintain even a basic commercial Web site. As any budding Web publisher has found, the costs of running and maintaining a Web can be surprisingly high. Loading material, putting it in the right places, building search engines, managing files and archiving the material costs money. The Utah Press Association already has a system in place that costs the government no additional money to provide a statewide searchable public notice database.
Internet notice disenfranchises the “have nots”
Eliminating all newspaper notice disenfranchises those that do not have Internet access. Going to the library to look it up is not enough particularly those who are disabled or homebound seniors.
Specialty Products Can Reward or Entice
By Randy HinesNewspaper circulation and promotion departments missed a great opportunity to go window shopping this summer at Promotions East, the largest promotional products tradeshow in the Northeast. Held the first week of June in Atlantic City, N.J., the event is already lined up for June 2-4 next year.
It may be worth your paper’s time to attend a similar session. One of this year’s major sponsors, the Promotional Product Association International, will team up with Imprinted Sportswear Shows for five regional tradeshows in 2008. (See www.ppa.org for details on these and other related events.) If one is nearby, it could be a chance to see the latest gadgets and incentives that can help entice consumers to become subscribers of your Utah newspaper.
More than $18 billion is spent annually on the growing industry of promotional products. The largest category, accounting for about 30 percent of all sales, is in wearable items (hats, T-shirts, etc.). The next most popular purchases are writing instruments at a little over 10 percent, followed by calendars, drinkware (cups, mugs, water bottles), bags and desk/office accessories.
A survey I conducted among Tennessee Press Association member papers more than 10 years ago revealed that drinkware was most popular then. Calendars came in second, followed closely by caps/sunvisors and desk accessories.
But the items are always changing with the times. Among the imprinted products featured in Atlantic City were baseball caps with built-in miniflashlights, lanyards that can double as eyeglass retainers, flashing buttons, and computer flash drives. Other popular possibilities were magnets, games, toys, key chains, license plates and frames, and small health care items—such as lip balm, sanitizers, suntan lotion and pill containers. (Speaking of magnets, I have almost 50 from various newspapers stuck on the front of my office desk, but none from Utah. If you have any, I would love to add them to my collection please.)
One unusual creation on display at the Atlantic City Convention Center was a pair of sandals with a product name or logo engraved on the bottom of each outer sole. It’s great if you plan a circulation promotion push along a sandy coast or lake. Just have a couple staffers (or hire a few teens) to walk all over the beach that morning and your paper’s name will be everywhere.
Research has shown favorable response of promo products by recipients. In a 2004 study at Dallas-Fort Worth Airport, more than three out of four respondents could recall the advertiser’s name on a product they had received within the past 12 months. More than half did business with that advertiser and the same number had a more favorable impression of the company or organization after getting the free item.
Apparently newspapers and other media are not as sold on the cost effectiveness of promo products as other industries. The top five purchasers of these articles are education (schools and seminars), financial, health care, nonprofits and construction. Media as a unit don’t even crack the top 10. Newspapers, however, actually get credit for the spread of the modern promotional product industry. According to PPAI, an Ohio printer named Jasper Meeks in the 1880s saw children carrying their school books in burlap bags. He thought if he could convince local businesses to put their names on bags for children to tote around town, Meeks could make money imprinting the bags.
How about your paper? Are you finding good results from your promotional products? How are they being used? Do they serve as mini-billboards when they are dispersed throughout your circulation area? Some papers reward employees with such items. Others use them for parades and special events. A few give them away as an incentive with new subscription orders. When I conducted focus group sessions for one daily, we gave away imprinted umbrellas, coffee mugs and rubber grips (for opening jars) to the appreciative participants.
Many of the items are low cost. A 20-ounce water bottle with your paper’s logo can be ordered for only 65 cents, for example. Buying in large quantities will reduce expenses.
Another advantage of promo products is that Utah papers can target who receives them. They can go to winning carriers, long-term employees, new subscribers, etc. As mentioned above, research has proven the items are appreciated by the recipients. Who doesn’t enjoy receiving a free gift? Finally, the imprinted message continues its job of promoting your newspaper as long as the items remain in view or in use.
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Dr. Randy Hines teaches in the Department of Communications at Susquehanna University, 514 University Ave., Selinsgrove, PA 17870. He can be reached at (570) 372-4079 or randyhinesapr@yahoo.com.
The one-armed paper-hanger editor-designer (Part 1)
By Ed HenningerAnyone who has ever hung wallpaper will immediately appreciate the meaning of the phrase: “Busy as a one-armed paper-hanger.”
And the phrase certainly describes most small-newspaper editors I’ve met. They are editors. Reporters. Managers. Designers. Receptionists. Photographers. IT specialists. Plate makers. Fixers of copy machines. Brewers of coffee. Watchdogs. Servants of the public.
Along with all of that, they get to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. Oh…and empty the trash. And bring in the dog. And put out the cat.
It’s no wonder they have little time to pay attention to the nuances of design. And finesse? Not a chance.
Perhaps some of the following suggestions will help as you commit the act of design:
Use keyboard shortcuts. They were created to help you and you can learn them as you go. Sure, you’re going to fumble once in a while and have to revert to using the mouse. But over the long haul, keyboard shortcuts give you speed and power over your pagination program.
Create templates. The more, the better—your page 1 template can carry design items (the nameplate, the UPC code, the index, etc.) that you won’t need on an inside page. On the inside pages, you’d place a folio, a page label, a standing head, etc.
Create style sheets. These are especially critical to your typography but you can also create object styles (such as a photo frame with runaround) in InDesign. This shouldn’t take you more than a spare hour or two. But then, you gotta create a spare hour or two. (More on that next month in “The one-armed paper-hanger editor-designer (Part 2).”
Create libraries. A master library of all elements is a must. But there also are items you’ll want to place in separate libraries, such as sports logos and business charts. The more, the better—provided you insist that the master library be kept up to date.
Keep it simple. Your design of page 1 doesn’t need to be perfect—it just needs to be easy to follow. There’s no need to do and redo and rethink and rework. Use what you know works for your readers.
Don’t sweat the small stuff. Kick out the smaller inside pages quickly. Get them out of the way so you have the time you’ll need to devote to page 1.
Copy and paste. If you’re missing an element from your library or style sheets, go to a page where you recently used that element and copy and paste it to your page. No need to recreate the element when you’ve already got it in your files.
Some of these are simple steps. Elementary. Perhaps so—but they can save you critical time when you’re up against deadline. And it’s a fact of life for small newspaper editors that you’re always up against deadline.
Next month: What you can do as an editor to give yourself the time to be a better designer.
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IF THIS COLUMN has been helpful, you’ll find more help in Ed’s new book, Henninger on Design. With the help of Henninger on Design, you’ll become a better designer because you’ll become a thinking designer. Find out more about Henninger on Design by visiting Ed’s web site: www.henningerconsulting.com
ED HENNINGER is an independent newspaper consultant and the Director of Henninger Consulting. Offering comprehensive newspaper design services including redesigns, workshops, training and evaluations. E-mail: edh@henningerconsulting.com. On the web: www.henningerconsulting.com. Phone: 803-327-3322.
Get the right information from advertisers
By John FoustThere’s an old saying, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”
Pretend for a moment that you go to the grocery store to buy the ingredients to bake a cake. But there’s a problem: You don’t know what's required. So you run up and down the aisles, throwing everything you see into the cart. By the time you get to the checkout line, the cart is overflowing with detergent, paper towels, cereal, toothpaste, lettuce, soft drinks, vegetables, flowers, ice cream, and dozens of boxes.
There is no rhyme or reason to the cart’s contents. Granted, there is a slim chance that the necessary ingredients are somewhere in the shopping cart, but that's not likely.
This is a ridiculous example, even to a non-cook like me. But it shows how foolish it is to start something, without first figuring out what it takes to finish successfully.
Many advertising sales people have settled into familiar routines, unaware of the vital importance of client meetings. They drop by an account’s office, visit for a few minutes – and then ask what he or she wants to run in the next ad. These meetings are comfortable and predictable. In other words, they are unlikely to produce the ingredients of exciting new ad campaigns.
Every contact with an advertiser presents an opportunity to sell. This means a sales person should go into each meeting with a plan – whether it is to introduce himself or herself, learn about the client's marketing goals, present a new ad idea, review the schedule, discuss a special issue, or to gather information for future advertising.
Perhaps the least understood kind of meeting is one in which the sales person gathers information for a new ad campaign. Without a plan, it can resemble that mad dash through the grocery store. Without a shopping list, you'll ask a lot of general questions – and end up with a cart which is full of useless information.
Although creative strategy discussions vary according to specific situations, here are some basic topics to consider:
1. The target audience. Don't try to target "everybody." In this world of niche audiences, the advertiser who tries to appeal to everyone will appeal to no one.
It helps to define the audience in terms of demographics (measurable characteristics such as age, gender, marital status, income, education, geographical region) and psychographics (values, lifestyles, attitudes, etc.).
Some publications – and some advertisers – have access to this kind of audience information. If research isn't available, use your common sense – and your client's first hand experience – to identify the niches which have your advertiser's best prospects.
2. The advertiser's products and services. Look for ways to connect what the audience wants or needs to what the advertiser offers. Identify the problems that are being faced by the target audience. Then ask: How can the advertiser solve those problems? Focus on features and benefits.
With an organized shopping list, you'll find it easier to get the information you need. Then you'll be ready to cook up some good advertising.
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(c)Copyright 2007 by John Foust. All rights reserved.
E-mail John Foust for information about his training videos for ad departments: jfoust@mindspring.com
The Votes are In: Traditional Media Trumps Internet for 2008 Election, According to Nucleus Research Survey
Despite the hype, few voters are turning to the Internet to learn about presidential candidatesWellesley, Mass.,—July 16, 2007—Nucleus Research, a global provider of information technology research and advisory services, today revealed that social networking, blog and political parties’ Web sites are affecting voter opinion far less than the recent buzz would suggest.
According to a survey conducted in June 2007 by Nucleus Research and KnowledgeStorm, 72 percent of respondents report that mainstream media (MSM) such as newspapers and magazines are their primary sources for political information. More than 56 percent of respondents also cite these mediums as the sources that they trust the most when seeking to gain political knowledge.
“There’s been tremendous publicity surrounding how many ‘friends’ candidates have on MySpace, the ‘Obama Girl’ video on YouTube and Bill and Hillary’s Soprano’s spoof,” said Rebecca Wettemann, vice president of research for Nucleus Research. “While these stories are entertaining, the fact of the matter is that people trust and rely upon what they learn from MSM more than five times as much as the information they access on the Internet.”
Less than 5 percent of respondents turn to YouTube as a source of information, and only 19 percent use candidates’ Web sites. In addition, only 14 percent utilize political parties’ Web sites.
The survey also found that 18 percent of respondents gather their information from alternative news programs, such as the Daily Show with Jon Stewart.
“Candidates have rushed to create an ‘Internet persona’ to keep pace with our tech-savvy society, but at a significant cost,” said Jeff Ramminger, executive vice president, KnowledgeStorm. “When it comes to believability, Nucleus’ research has found that MSM still holds the most weight. The results of the Nucleus survey prove that what is perceived as most edited and vetted remains the most trusted.”
The survey also found that only 51 percent of people feel as though they have a clear understanding of what the candidates stand for. This finding helps to explain why many voters hold MSM in such high esteem. Results suggest that voters are anxious to learn more about their potential leaders, but do not have the time to sift through what’s fact, fiction or propaganda on sponsored Web sites, or less traditional media outlets such as blogs.
Of those respondents who do use the Internet to gather political information, more than 38 percent believe that Hillary Clinton is doing the best job of delivering her message via the Web; Barack Obama holds the number two spot, according to 19 percent of respondents.
“The bottom-line question is: are Barack Obama’s 97,954 Facebook ‘friends’ going to help him secure the swing vote and defeat Hillary Clinton? We believe absolutely not,” added Cheryl Gutowski, analyst at Nucleus Research.
To download a copy of the full report, go to www.NucleusResearch.com.
Create Pagination Workflow With Remote Users Utilizing InCopy CS3
by Kevin SlimpIf you’ve been reading this column for long, you know that I’m a big fan of Adobe InDesign. If you’ve been paying close attention, you’ve probably heard me mention InDesign’s companion application, InCopy. Paginators know InDesign as one of the tools of choice for creating newspaper pages.
For others, like editors and reporters, InDesign can be overkill. Sure, you could use InDesign as a word processor if you wanted to, but it’s a lot more application than most people need to place text on a page.
This is where InCopy comes in. InCopy has been around for quite a while, but most folks in the newspaper business didn’t become familiar with it until recent versions. Working in conjunction with InDesign, InCopy creates an editorial workflow, allowing writers, editors and paginators to work in harmony with each other.
Basically, the InDesign/InCopy (LiveEdit) workflow functions one of two ways. More commonly, a paginator lays out the basic design of a page, leaving room for text frames, photos and other elements. Next, she “assigns” each element to be available to InCopy users. Using a check-in/check-out procedure common in other editorial workflow systems, LiveEdit users can then open a file in either InDesign or InCopy to view or make changes.
Next, a reporter might open the file in InCopy, write a story in the allotted space and check the file in, making it available to anyone in the workflow. Immediately, the paginator receives a cue that a story has been changed, then accepts the change (with the click of a button) in the InDesign document.
The second method of creating LiveEdit workflows begins with the reporter. He writes the story, then checks the file in. After the file is checked in, an editor might check out the story to edit and suggest corrections.
In addition to removing, adding and making corrections, InCopy users can create “notes” that can be seen throughout the workflow but don’t end up on the printed page.
Next, the paginator opens a blank InDesign page (or template) and places the InCopy text files in frames throughout the page, creating a workflow between her page and the text from InCopy. Still, anyone along the workflow could check out, edit and check in text, with the changes appearing on the InDesign page.
As I speak about new technology at industry and press association gatherings, I generally receive more questions concerning InCopy than any other software product. Generally, publishers who haven’t seen the application have heard of it and want to know how it works. “Can you really see how the text is going to appear on the final InDesign page while you’re working in InCopy?” I hear that one a lot. And yes, you can.
Folks who write cutlines and headlines love the ability to see how their text will to appear on the page, allowing them to create visual, as well as literary, masterpieces. This can be done from within InCopy without purchasing InDesign.
There are a few reasons InCopy users should consider upgrading to the CS3 version. Primarily, you want to use the same version of InCopy and InDesign. If your designers are using InDesign CS3, your editorial staff should be using InCopy CS3. It makes the workflow run much more smoothly. And at $89 (USD), the price is right.
An interesting addition to the CS3 version of InCopy is the ability to work with e-mail based assignments. This allows the paginator to send stories and graphics as single assignment via e-mail. Basically, this means you could create a LiveEdit workflow between persons in different locations, using e-mail where a server isn’t present to share their files.Yes, very interesting.
Assignments have also been improved in InCopy CS3 (and InDesign CS3), making it easier to keep related stories together. This makes it easier for InCopy users who want to open an individual story rather than an assignment file containing several stories. Let’s not forget InCopy CS3’s ability to import Excel spreadsheets into tables.
I’ve worked with several newspapers over the past three years to implement the LiveEdit workflow. With each upgrade, the workflow continues to improve in ease of use and capabilities. With InCopy CS3’s ability to convert Excel spreadsheets into tables, work with e-mail assignments and performance improvements, the reasons to consider the LiveEdit workflow continue to grow.
Upgrades from previous versions are available for $89 (USD). The full version of InCopy CS3 is $249 (USD). For more information, visit Adobe's Website.
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Kevin Slimp is a favorite speaker and trainer in the newspaper industry. He can be reached at kevin@kevinslimp.com.
Websites, BannerAds and the internet, oh my...
by Kirk Parrish, Utah Press AssociationUtah Press has teamed up with Matchbin (hopefully you have heard of them by now) to start a statewide BannerAd Network. As you may well remember, the first attempt years ago did not go so well, due to lack of implementation and knowledge. With this version we cannot fail, and here's why: There is already advertising in place for this network, and we're talking big names here folks, Ford, ebay, Best Buy, etc. If you check above, below and to the side of this page (or any page on Utah Press' website) you will see the types of ads I am talking about. Not only will you be able to run house ads (as you may see many of ours on here), but you will be able to sell into your own website, or the statewide network.
The BannerAd system is self maintaining, so not much effort on your part is needed. To get started, a small code is placed on your website, and that's it. The ads are automatically populated from Matchbin. Any ad coming in for just your website will have to be approved by you (or your webmaster, or whomever you designate). Any ad coming from the Statewide Network will be approved by Utah Press (and believe me, we'll be more strict then the Classified or 2x2 Networks are).
I'm running a rather sneaky paragraph in here. My curiosity is super peaked, I want to know who actually reads my articles, AND Pressing Issues. So, here's the scoop, the first Utah newspaper person to e-mail me gets a prize!!! Now, back to the article...
Matchbin and Utah Press feel that this could be a great revenue generator, as well as a great opportunity to “jump on the bandwagon”. The internet is not a trend that will fade away eventually. Just like television, and radio before it, newspapers will need to learn to adapt. We have the tools for you to succeed in the advertising world that is the internet. Let us know how we at Utah Press can help you. We were formed by your newspapers predecessors to help the public get to you, now that the public is on the internet, we will help them get to you from there as well.
Utah Press is also dedicated to getting every newspaper online. If you do not have a website, or feel your's need updating, please contact me at the UPA office. We have many solutions to make it quick and painless. Again, let us know how we can help you.
Some Banner Ad Network highlights:
- Typical Ad Sizes (LargeBanner- 728x90, SmallBanner - 486x60, Skyscraper - 160x600, Square - 300 x 250)
- Easy management, little maintenance, simple for clients to use.
- Utah Press can maintain/manage the entire system if needs be.
- No setup fee, no expenditure, just income
Sign Me Up!!! (100k pdf)
Just fill out and fax back to UPA!!!
Tidbits from around the nation
(reprinted from New Jersey Newspaper Networks imPRESS Newsletter)Online Newspaper Audiences Up 7.7% From 2006
According to an analysis provided by Nielsen//NetRatings for the Newspaper Association of America, more than 59 million people visited a newspaper website during the second quarter of 2007. This represents a 7.7% increase over the same period a year ago. "Readers are visiting newspaper websites in record numbers for in-depth news and information as well as hyper-local information," said NAA President and CEO John F. Sturm.
Wall Street Journal article uncovers newspapers' comeback for political advertising
A recent article from the Wall Street Journal (7/26/07) reported that while overall political ad spending doubled between 2002 and 2006, political advertising in newspapers tripled over the same period. The study suggests that as political ads have clogged the airwaves, newspapers have become a way for candidates to stand out from the crowd. Newspapers are also a cost-effective way for local, county, and state politicians to achieve market penetration. In addition, newspaper websites are becoming a key way to reach voters under the age of 40, since the sites attract a news-hungry demographic who are likely to vote.
Newspaper For Sale
Have you ever dreamed of owning a newspaper. Now is your chance. The Morgan County News, located in Morgan, Utah is for sale. This weekly paper has been in business since 1923. It is located in one of the most beautiful and fastest growing areas in Utah. Located just 15 miles east of Ogden. Due to illness the owner must sell. For more information, contact publisher Doug Johnston at 801 829-8441 or email publisher@morgannews.us