DOUBLE YOUR ADVERTISING RETURN

As the editor of a popular magazine on building, I receive dozens of press releases from the market.

Many press releases do not stand a chance of being published in the media because the sender does not understand how news works.

The problem is how little attention is given to the style of press releases and editorial. The same applies to the quality of photographs supplied. Your editorial stands a much better chance of being published if it is supplied with a good quality image.  But with the era of DIY photography by smart phones and cheap cameras, press releases are often refused by editors due to bad photos.

The fact is: as advertiser you spend tens of thousands of Rands on booking ad space in the media. Does your artwork do this advertising expense justice? Or are you wasting money? As an editor, I can see this is often the case. And often the same advertisers follow it up with poor editorial content that comes with photographs looking like they were taken by a 9 year old. Advertising spend wasted.

Much the same rule applies to non advertisers. If you want your editorial published free in the magazines that serve your market or online, you really need to supply professional content.

It pays back. 

A well prepared editorial with photography could cost you R 5 000 to prepare and distribute. However if editors like what you send, that same editorial could be published 3 to 4 times over in the different media. This means payback by up to 1200% when compared with the cost of booking the page and placing your advert at a cost of R 15 000 for the full page (as an example).

Best you hire a professional in the preparation of such editorials. The stakes are quite high and payback is huge - if you get it right.






"Advertising for Free".

THE CASE FOR ACCURATE & PROFESSIONAL CONTENT

More than 50% of commercial and industrial clients still use print media publications as their informative source of reference. Of these readers, a large majority are in senior decision making positions - not having the time to learn and adapt to the messages of the social media on the web. Readers such these are looking for well written, informative content, supported by logical arguments. Electronic content is not always the ideal medium for this, especially with the evolution of smartphone platforms. How would you choose to address your serious technical message to someone reading the Twitter feed on their smartphone while on the airport bus?

Reliability of information.

This brings up the main point – how reliable is the information we receive? It's a fact that in this era of digital and other noise, content is king. For the firm of architects wanting to communicate their narrative of success, there is a desperate need for plain English. Well written content backed with photography that conveys a story. The same applies to a system or material supplier wanting their product or service offerings to be specified on the drawing board or bill of quantities. Effective communication with your desired audience depends on speaking to them in a language that

• Is of interest to them;
• Makes sense and;
• Is unambiguous and easily actionable.

Looking through some marketplace ads, it is often hard to see the point. Certain of these ads are prepared in graphics studios that know little about the end user and nothing about the technology. They are pleasant eye candy, that's all.

As a technical writer, photographer and professional content provider I have noticed many companies put serious well written content at the bottom of the pile in preparing their corporate and marketing communications. They seem to fall into the well worn trap of underestimating their audience. They need to bear in mind that readers expect a magazine to deliver content that provides relevance and solutions to problems.

Role of independent editorial.

How is this best done? Many publications, both online and in print offer opportunities for enhanced messaging via their editorial pages. Editorial is the news line of the magazine and readers expect useful information with relevance to their line of business. Editorial cannot simply be advertising that has been washed clean of slogans and logos. It needs to describe the importance of the subject generically to the interested person and then demonstrate impartially why your solution as a product, project manager, consultant or service provider met the needs of the client.

What does this mean?

This means plain but accurate English backed with decent photography, not simply a few images taken haphazardly with the smartphone.

ADVERTISING AGENCY SERVICE PLUS EDITORIAL CONTENT

Energy MC offers a fully integrated service - across the advertising media, public relations (media) and online communications resources. See http://eco-insulation.blogspot.com as an example of an expert technical blogging service for clients. My current area of expertise is B2B, technology, business commercial and pecialist industries.

It is important for business to realise that editorial needs to be independent from advertising. There are few agencies that offer the integrated service that this freelance one does. Clients generally do not pay for the advertising management service, since these costs are recovered from arrangements that Energy MC has in place with the various B2B or tech magazine publishers, whom we represent.

Editorial - consisting of copywriting (words) and professional photography is charged independently on a completely different fee basis.

Clients are free to enter into the full service, consisting of 3 legs of editorial, advertising and online, or engage only one or the other individual service.

This is a highly effective freelance service.

I have many satisified clients .Call me for details. 072 905 0252 (leave message).

GARETH

EDITORIAL VS. ADVERTORIAL - THE DIFFERENCE

Clients often get it confused.

Worse, they end up paying for advertising space for advertorial where a well written editorial could do the trick.

In a nutshell, advertorial is paid-for editorial that could normally be substituted with a full advertisement. According to classic media rules, advertorial is meant to be indicated as such by mean of the printing of "Advertorial Feature" or words to that effect, or by placing in a line box.

Advertorial is written to make a hard sell, with the brand featuring prominently in the top paragraph or nearest. It is sometimes possible to insert logos and product photos. the control basically lies with the client but the style may be modified by editors to suit the publication's editorial style and rules.

Editorial needs to be "clean". Well written editorials that comply with the publication's editorial policies and are short and to the point may well be published verbatim. Expect no more than one mention of a brand or company name - and most often only an incidental mention, not near the top. Editorial needs to stress a problem or highlight and issue and then make news about its impact or solution. Editorial may often be rewritten or shortened by the publication concerned - and almost certainly the header will be changed.

The emphasis with good editorial is to write it as news - in which your product or service plays a supportive role.

Contact me NOW if you would like to explore options for getting your company in the News - editorial and not paid advertorial. Tel: 021 789 2560 or email gareth.energymc@gmail.com