The Power of The Paper

   A couple of weeks ago The Messenger, with the help of Hy-Vee and Decker Truck Line, put together a flood drive to assist the flood victims of Eastern Iowa.  This two-day drive was literally put together five days prior.  The community response was overwhelming.  We filled a semi with supplies, plus received over $1,000 in cash donations and gift cards!  This event really made me proud to be a part of this community.

   I also started thinking about how this event came together.  What other medium (television, radio, billboard)  in our community could have put an event of this magnitude together in such a short time frame and made it a success? The answer: NONE.  Hope Floats really demonstrated the power of the newspaper. If you have a message that you need to get out to a mass number of people in our community, the most effective way is through The Messenger.

   Not getting response from your advertising? Here’s a tip: The content of the message is the most important thing in an advertisement.  FACT: A buy one get one free ad will bring more response than a 10% off ad.  Whenever an advertiser tells us they tried The Messenger before and didn’t get results I always offer them one free small ad in our paper, provided they let me put in anything I want, and I will show you results.  I’ve never been taken up on the offer.  Maybe it’s because they know in the back of their mind that if they ran a better promotion, they would see the results they want.

   Hope Floats was a perfect demonstration of the right promotion providing the desired results in a very limited time.