Corrections or additions?
This article was prepared for the March 6, 2002 edition of
U.S. 1 Newspaper. All rights reserved.
Print Advertising: Still Kicking
Once upon a time the choice for getting the word out
was between the town crier or the newspaper. Now print —
newspapers
and magazines — must compete for advertising dollars with
everything
from the Internet to custom-painted VW Beetles. Advertisements, long
pulled high above sun bathers by little airplanes, are even being
embossed in the sand below. They’re on popcorn bags, T-shirts, and,
of course, on radio and television.
Still, print is hanging in there. "It can be very effective for
certain targets," says
Group, an advertising and marketing agency based in Mountain Lakes.
He speaks on "Strategies for Effective Print Advertising"
on Tuesday, March 12, at 6 p.m. at a meeting of the Business Marketing
Association at the Ramada Inn in Somerset. Call 609-409-5601. Cost:
$30.
Propper, a graduate of Temple (Class of 1979), founded his agency,
which now has 12 employees, in 1990. Before that, he worked for
agencies
in New York and New Jersey on travel and tourism campaigns and on
advertising for a number of consumer products, including Wrangler
jeans, Godiva chocolates, and Elizabeth Taylor’s Passion. His agency
does both business-to-business and business-to-consumer marketing.
Its clients are in the telecom, professional services, financial
services,
technology, and education industries.
For many of these clients, print works. "People do read
newspapers,"
Propper says. But not all people. And certainly not all the time.
He suggests these guidelines for using print.
habits,"
he says. "In the 55-plus market, there is a tendency for these
folks to read." The older set spends time with the daily paper,
but the same can’t be said of their children and grandchildren.
Generally
speaking, there are better ways to reach teens, says Propper.
Like their slightly younger siblings, twentysomethings aren’t nearly
as big fans of print as are their elders. But there are times when
newspapers reach them better than other media. In promoting an MBA
program for a client, Propper used radio, E-marketing, and newspapers.
"Newspapers were the clear winner in getting response," he
says.
Propper thinks magazines — even those aimed directly at them —
are less effective than other media. He says outdoor advertising —
things like billboards and signs on buses — do a better job of
reeling in folks not yet old enough to vote.
Specialty magazines do work well, however, in reaching professionals,
who often find perusing their trade magazines a must. Magazines can
also be a good medium for selling specialized products or services.
"There is a magazine for everyone," says Propper. "There’s
even one called Divorce. I know this because I was looking for a
medium
for one of my legal clients."
outshined
by flashier competitors in urban areas, but 20-story-tall digital
advertisements of the sort found in abundance in Times Square have
not yet reached vast stretches of America. And the billboards that
line New Jersey highways where traffic crawls at .2 miles an hour
would not be as effective in Montana, where motorists are said to
approach triple-digit speeds with regularity. In less media-intense
markets, print could well be the winner.
someone’s attention," says Propper. "Keep it extraordinarily
simple." The more complicated the print message, the more likely
that readers will thumb right past it. In one of Propper’s most
successful
ad campaigns, he used print as part of a campaign to tell students
about the advantages of attending Montclair State. "We positioned
them as a university that focuses on students," he says.
Advertisements
simply said: "A Center of Knowledge, Centered on You."
"It was tremendously effective," says Propper. "There
was a 13 percent increase in freshman enrollment."
appealing. For the Montclair State ads, Propper paired his catch
phrase
with photos of youngsters with whom he believed prospective students
could identify. "They looked smart," he says, "and
cool."
the mini-dramas that advertisers can stage on television, creating
smiles, and even the occasional tear, in 30 or 60 seconds. Yet emotion
is what will create a connection. Propper used frustration as the
emotion to sell a client’s logistics software.
His market research had shown him that there is a huge amount of
frustration
over shipping snafus. "We did an ad," he says, "that shows
a truck in front of a dark background. There is a lightening bolt
in the foreground, and the words `Shipping Happens!’" The ad
appealed
to managers who have to deal with the fallout from shipping problems
every day. "We look for things that will move the target to call
you," he says.
different," say Propper. Use industry buzz words to show you know
the issues the industry is facing.
it is often worth including it with other media to reinforce a
message.
"You hear about it on the radio, and then you see it in the
paper,"
says Propper of a good way of increasing awareness.
at the height of our infatuation with all things dot-com have been
toned down, and while Propper is high on the medium, one has to wonder
about its long-term future. Says Propper: "If your target is a
65-year-old male, he probably reads the daily newspaper." If your
target is much younger, don’t count on it.
Top Of Page
Security for Your PC
InfoTech Associates got into the computer security
services
business six years ago when one of its own internal systems was
compromised.
The company, which is based in Whitehouse Station, detected the
intrusion
and surreptitiously began to collect evidence. The F.B.I. entered
the case, apprehended, and prosecuted the perpetrators, and InfoTech
went off in a new direction. Founded in 1994, the company’s first
specialty was implementations of wide-area network database systems
and Web-based business applications.
After its own brush with IT tampering, InfoTech began to provide
information
security services. It now consults on, designs, implements, and
manages
IT security systems with a focus on essential, high-demand functions.
on "Survival on the Unseen Battlefield: Privacy and Security for
your PC" on Wednesday, March 13, at 6 p.m. at a meeting of the
Princeton Chapter of the Association of Internet Professionals. Free
for members, $10 for others. Call 215-369-4866.
Among the issues Lenkey addresses is how to figure out just what
information
is stored on your computer now: Is it possible that a stealth virus
has hidden pornography or bomb making instructions? Lenkey also speaks
on how to detect hackers and how to protect sensitive or confidential
files.
Other topics on the agenda are forensic techniques for data recovery,
laws concerning computer evidence, and Internet security.
Top Of Page
Corporate Angels
Industrial
and Office Properties (NJ-NAIOP) has made a contribution of $10,575
to the National NAIOP Disaster Relief Fund, which was established
to support humanitarian causes that will benefit those affected by
the events of September 11. The national fund has collected $151,200
to date.
from
its annual golf outing. The money will help fund research efforts,
education, prevention, treatment, and programs for cancer patients
and their families in Mercer County.
Heart Association for taking steps toward strengthening the
association’s
"chain of survival" to improve the survival rate from sudden
cardiac arrest.
Steps in the chain of survival include knowing the warning signs of
sudden cardiac arrest and heart attack, calling 9-1-1 immediately,
giving early CPR, and restarting the heart through early
defibrillation.
Bristol-Myers won the award for installing 92 automated external
defibrillators
(AEDs) in its buildings throughout New Jersey. The company’s
facilities
with defibrillators include those in Plainsboro, Lawrenceville, North
Brunswick, West Windsor, and Somerset. In addition to equipping its
own workplaces with defibrillators, Bristol-Myers has donated 29 AEDs
to area police and fire departments.
Foundation,
of free courses to help food service employers enhance the skills
of their workforce. The programs aims to improve customer service
and employee skills, and lay the foundation for uniform sanitation
standards throughout the region. For more information, call Doug Fee
at 609-586-4800, ext. 3447.
Jersey, donated $13,745 to the Windows of Hope Family Relief Fund.
The fund assists families of employees of Windows on the World and
neighboring restaurants who perished in the World Trade Center attack.
Panera’s "Operation Dough-Nation" raises donations through
collection boxes at cash registers in its restaurants.
Adopt-a-Family
Program sponsored by Catholic Charities. This national program
provides
individuals and families in need with gifts, clothing, and food.
Leading
the effort in Archer & Greiner’s 700 Alexander Park office was Rose
Marie DelaPlain, the office manager.
Children’s
Miracle Network. This was a 36 percent increase over the amount
contributed
last year. The money will benefit the Children’s Hospital of
Philadelphia.
The cornerstone of RE/MAX Greater Princeton’s fundraising is the
Miracle
Home Program, under which associates pledge to donate a specified
amount of money to the Children’s Miracle Network for each closed
sales transaction.
Drive, between Raymond Road and Route 1, have raised $3,000 for the
Todd M. Beamer Foundation. The foundation is providing immediate and
long-term assistance to the 22 children who lost a parent or parents
on Flight 93, one of the planes hijacked on September 11. The
assistance
is offered primarily in the areas of health insurance, mental health
support services, and financial planning.
Top Of Page
Sponsors Needed
for its upcoming "Bowl for Kids’ Sake" event. Lane
sponsorships
are available for $150 for the first lane, and $100 for each
additional
lane. Underwriting opportunities range from $300 for decorations
through
$2,000 for T-shirts and bowling towels. Companies willing to help
out can contact Terry Evanko, coordinator of special events, at
609-656-1000.
Corrections or additions?
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