Byways Brochure Advertising Makes Profit
Through
leveraging of funds and use of a turnkey contractor, the non-profit
501-c-4 Arkansas Delta Byways organization has realized a profit
from advertising placed in its annual promotional brochure.
Who:
The university-based nonprofit organization overseeing promotion and development of Arkansas Delta Byways’ contracts with an advertising agency that sells advertising and designs and produces 50,000 copies of a promotional brochure for the byway.
What:
An annual, 4x9 inch, 70-page full color travel guide for the byways combines editorial stories and advertising serves as a byway awareness builder and a source of funding through advertising sales. For more details, see How.
When:
The byway issues a request for proposals from ad agencies in the fall. A contractor is selected and a contract is signed in January/February. The ad agency works with an April deadline for collecting all ads. Publication design is completed in May. The deadline for advertisers to have ads paid in full is June. The final printed brochure begins distribution in July. For more details, see How.
Where:
The Arkansas Delta Byways region covers 15 counties, providing a sales territory with numerous opportunities for ad sales.
How:
The byways organization contracts with an advertising agency that sells advertising and produces the final brochure. Byway staff write some and review all of the editorial stories. Production and ad sales begin once a contract is signed and information is printed for potential advertisers, generally in March.
The byways organization is responsible for collecting ad contracts that require a one-half downpayment with ad order and the balance due upon publication. The byways organization sends reminders re: payment; in one problem case, the University’s attorney assisted with collection.
The byways organization is responsible for distribution. Staff and byways representatives cover delivery of the guides to sites across the region’s 15 counties. All advertisers receive at least one box of brochures (generally about 250) per full-page ad, with more delivered if supply is used.
Funding Potential:
A full-page color ad in the brochure sells for $1,750; the smallest ad is a 1/4 page two-color ad for $575. Advertising purchasers include county and city governments, large and small businesses, and casinos.
In 2004, 50,000 copies of the byways brochure were printed at a cost of $108,876. Advertising sales totaled $80,000, providing more than twice the amount required to leverage 2-to-1 matching funds from the state tourism office. The byways organization paid $36,292 and the state matched with $72,584, leaving a net income of $43,708 for the byways organization.
Why Brochure Ad Sales:
• Generate funding while increasing public awareness of byway
• Provide net income to leverage as match for state funding
Resources:
Photo Credit:
Photos courtesy of Arkansas Delta Byways
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This project was funded in part by a |
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